Today in New York Weather History: June 29

 

1903 (Monday)

A rainstorm that began at daybreak continued until 1 PM, dumping 2.57" of rain (a record amount for the date), with much of it (1.90") pouring down between 11 AM and 1PM.

1917 (Friday) 

Showers during the pre-dawn hours and late in the afternoon amounted to 0.18", bringing the month's total rainfall to 3.83" - the same amount that was measured in May.  This was the first time for such an occurrence in consecutive months (it has happened four other times since then: Nov./Dec. 1945; Dec. 1980/Jan. 1981; June/July 1985; and Sept./Oct. 1997). 

1934 (Friday)

Today's high soared to 101° after a low of 68°.  At the time this was the earliest date for a triple-digit high (later passed in 1952 and 1966), but the AM low remains the coolest for any day with a high of 100+ (average low on a day with a high in triple digits is 78°).

1959 (Monday)

Today's high of 97° was the hottest reading of the summer, but tomorrow, with a high/low of 93°/79°, would have the hottest mean temperature.

1965 (Tuesday)

A high/low of 95°/72° made this the hottest day of the year.

1976 (Tuesday)

This was the fifteenth day in a row with highs in the 80s.  The average high during these days was 86°, five degrees above average.  Twelve of the days had highs of 84° or warmer.  Also, this was the fifth year in a row in which rain fell on this date.  The 0.53" that fell was produced by thunderstorms between midnight and daybreak.   

1991 (Saturday)

Today's high of 97° was the hottest reading of the month.  (There would be four days in July with highs that were hotter.)

1994 (Wednesday)

Mid-day thunderstorms dumped 0.66" of rain between 1-2 PM, and 0.96" between 1-3 PM. 

2003 (Sunday)

With today's 0.05" of rain early this morning, June's record rainfall reached 10.26".

2008 (Sunday)

The Gay Pride Parade was interrupted by occasional tropical downpours between 1:30 and 5 PM (amounting to 0.59").  Before the thunderstorms popped up, the temperature rose to 89°.  (For weather conditions during every Gay Pride Parade, click here.)

 

 

2010 (Tuesday)

This was the tenth day in a row in which the high temperature was 87° or hotter (including four days in the 90s).  All told, half of the days this month were 87°+, helping to make it the warmest June since 1994.  (And a record hot July would follow.)

 

 

2014 (Sunday)

The weather was glorious for this year's Gay Pride parade as skies were clear, the humidity low and afternoon temperatures in the low 80s.

2019 (Saturday)

After 6/27 and 6/28 got very close, with highs of 89°, today's high of 91° was the first in the 90s this year - five weeks later than the average date of this occurrence, and the fifth latest first-90 in the years since 1970 (the other years were 1972, 1982, 1985 and 2014).  In total, there would be 15 days in the 90s this year, a slightly below average number.

 

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Analysis: Temperatures Most Likely to be the Coldest or Hottest of Each Month

 

 

Looking at all of the months of every year since the reporting of weather conditions  began in Central Park in 1869, the temperature that has the distinction of occurring the most times as a month's coldest reading is 52° in June, which has occurred in 25 years (most recently in 2016), or about once every six years.  And the daily high that's most frequently been the hottest of any month is 94° in July as well as in August; it's been the hottest reading in those two months 22 times (most recently in 2017 and 2021, respectively).

 

 

 

Looking across months, the temperature that has had the most designations as hottest reading of a month is 92°, which has had that distinction 76 times across six months.  (Second most is 94°, which has been hottest 72 times across five months.)

 

 

By contrast, the daily low temperature with the most designations as coolest is 57°, which has been the coolest reading 45 times across four months.  Second most is 41 times for the lows of 17° and 52°, occurring in five months and four months, respectively.

 

 

Here are the greatest concentrations by month:

August - 80% of its hottest readings have been between 89°-96° (an 8-degree range)

June - 75% of its hottest readings have been between 89°-96° (an 8-degree range)

June - 75% of its coolest readings have been between 49°-55° (a 7-degree range)

May - 73% of its coolest readings have been between 40°-46° (a 7-degree range), and 50% have been between 41°-44° (just a 4-degree range) 

 

MISCELLANEOUS OBSERVATIONS

• February and March have had the most different temperatures that have been coldest (both with 30) or warmest (both with 34), while June has had the fewest (15 and 19), with July having practically the same amount (16 and 19) .

• The most frequent chilliest temperature in July, 60° (22 times), last happened in 1995, which is the longest current hiatus of any month for a temperature that has been coldest or warmest.  But despite this lengthy hiatus, it's still comfortably ahead of 58° and 59°, which have both happened 19 times.  Looking at warmest reading, the last time February's most frequent mildest reading occurred (58°) was in 2005.

• For five years in a row (1989-1993), September's chilliest reading was 44°.  In five of the six years between 1946-1951 the hottest temperature in July was 94° (the outlier was 102° in 1949).  Also in July, five of the six years between 1973-78 had 58° as the coolest reading; the outlier was a low of 59° in 1974. 

• Half of the 16 occurrences of the low of 13°, which is the most frequent coldest low temperature in December, were concentrated in the 15 years between 1886-1900.  The other eight 13° readings occurred in the course of the other 137 years.

• Despite it being April's most frequent coldest low, there was a 31-year period between 1874-1904 when the low of 33° wasn't the coldest reading.  And the low of 42° in May (tied for the month's second most frequent low) had a hiatus of 36 years between 1893-1928.
  

 

May 2022 Weather Recap - Late First 80, Followed by Early First 90 & First 70

 

 

 

May 2022 was 0.8 degrees milder than average, and rainfall was somewhat above average (4.52").  The coolest reading was 45° on 5/7 and 5/8, the hottest was 93° on the last day of the month.  The last time the temperature was this hot in May was in 2000 (on 5/7); the last time it was hotter was in 1996 (96° on 5/20).   

 

The first 20 days of the month were about a degree below average, but then from May 21 onward temperatures were four above average.  For the entire month, eight days were five degrees or more warmer than average, four were five degrees or more cooler than average.  The most above average day was 5/22, with a high/low of 89°/72° (16 degrees above average); the most below average day was 5/7, with a high/low of 50°/45° (13 degrees below average).

 

The year's first reading of 80°+ occurred very late, on 5/21, the latest since 1988 and tenth latest on record; that date also had the year's first reading in the 90s, (90°),  just the fourth time that the first 80 and first 90 shared the same date.  Regarding days in the 90s, since 1960 Mays with two or more days with highs in the 90s occur about once every three years.  (Before 1960, it happened once every seven years.) 

 

The day after the first 80/90, Central Park had its first low in the 70s (72°), which was about two weeks ahead of schedule (the first 90 was about a week ahead of schedule). 

 

May's rainfall of 4.52" was 0.01" less than what fell in April.  This was the tenth time there was a 0.01" difference between consecutive months.  The previous time it occurred was in January and February 2016 when 4.41" and 4.40" was measured.  There have been five pairs of consecutive months with the same amount of precipitation (the last time it happened was in September and October 1997).

 

Finally, Memorial Day's high of 84° was the warmest reading on the holiday since 2015 (when it was 85°), while the high of 58° on Mother's Day (5/8), was the chilliest since 2018 (when it was 54°).

 

Here are recaps of the previous seven Mays:

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

 

 

 

Today in New York Weather History: May 21

 

1924

On a showery day, the high/low was only 50°/47°.  The high was 20 degrees below average.

1971

Although just 0.03" of rain fell today (between 3-4 PM), it was the first measurable rainfall on this date in 17 years.  The day was gray and coo,l with a high of only 60°.

1985

Heavy rain fell between 5-11 PM, amounting to 1.60".  During one 15-minute period (between 6:55-7:10 PM), 0.48" of rain poured down.

1996

This was the second day in a row with a record high as the mercury topped out at 93°.  The next 90-degree day wouldn't be for another two months (and it would be the only other 90-degree day of the summer.) 

 

2002

This was the last of four consecutive days with morning lows in the chilly low 40s, well below the average of 55°.

2012

After four days in a row of sunny and mild weather, today was a gray, rainy Monday.  1.40" of rain fell, with a particularly heavy downpour occurring during AM rush hour, with 0.57" measured between 9-10:00.

2013

Today was just the second 80-degree day of the year, coming six weeks after the first (4/9).  This was the greatest number of days between the first and second 80-degree day in eight years, when there was a gap of 45 days.  (The longest gap, in the years since 1900, was 58 days in 1928).  Today's high of 86° was the warmest reading since the first week of September 2012.

 

 

2022

At long last the temperature reached the 80s for the first time this year, the latest date for this occurrence since 1988.  This is the tenth latest date for this occurrence on record.  And with a high of 90°, this was just the fourth year to have the first 80 and first 90 occur on the same day (joining 1918, 1927 and 2010).  This was the first time a reading was in the 90s in May since 2018.  Besides the heat, the air was oppressive, with afternoon dew points in the 68-70° range.  The morning low of 62° was the coolest on a day with a high in the 90s since 2010, when there was a low of low of 56° on 4/7 (the earliest date on record for a reading in the 90s).

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April 2022 Weather Recap - Rainy, Then Dry

 

April was 0.9 degrees chillier than average and somewhat rainier (despite there being practically no rainfall in the month's last 11 days).  The chilliest reading was 38° (on 4/2), the mildest was 79° (4/14).  The last time the chilliest reading was this mild was in 2012.  Only two other Aprils have had a milder reading for their coldest reading: in 1878 (42°) and 2010 (40°).  The month's temperature range was 41 degrees, well below the usual range of 50 degrees (since 1980, 32° to 82°).  On the day the high reached 79° in Central Park, the high at Newark Airport soared to 88° (and it was in the low 70s at LaGuardia and Kennedy airports).  

 

The month's rainfall of 4.53" was similar to that of April 2020 (4.49") and April 2019 (4.55").  Much of the rain fell from two storm systems that brought 1.15" on 4/7-8, and 2.09" on 4/18-19.  Just 0.02" of rain fell between 4/20-30, which was the least to fall in the last third of April since 1942, when no measurable rain fell after 4/11 (that April is the second driest on record).   

 

Six days had highs in the 70s, an average number, with five of them on consecutive days (4/12-4/16).  The average high of 73° during the streak was twelve degrees above average.  This was the lengthiest such streak in April in 11 years.  The streak ended the day before Easter Sunday, which, with a high/low of 51°/41°, was the chilliest since 2009.  

 

Finally, the last three days of the month had afternoon humidity levels that bottomed out at 11%, 9%, and 14%.  The 9% reading on 4/29 tied for the third lowest in the years since 2000.  This was the most arid three-day streak since March 28-30, 2007.  Very low humidity was also reported on the 15th and 22nd (13% and 15%, respectively).  

 

Here are April recaps of the past six years:

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

 

 

Months With Warmest & Coldest Readings Just A Few Days Apart

 

 

For the purposes of this analysis, I've gathered together months that had their coldest and warmest temperature one or two days apart.  On average, this has happened about once every two-and-a-half years.  The difference between the coldest and warmest reading has been, on average, 42 degrees (ranging between swings of 29 and 61 degrees).  I've limited the months in this analysis to those with "solo" occurrences, i.e., months in which the hottest and coldest temperature occurred on just one date.  Through March 2022, there were 58 months that met this criterion.  The last time it happened was in Nov. 2009, when the month's coldest temperature occurred on 11/7 (35°), and mildest reading on 11/8 (69°).  Here are a few other observations:

 

• By month, February has had the most instances (nine), while September had the fewest (one).  By season, winter has had 20 such months, spring and summer have each had 14, and fall has had 10 months.
  

 

• Although the average time between occurrences has been 2-1/2 years, in 1961 it happened in consecutive months (May and June).  And there have been three instances in which this type of month was just a month apart from the other:  Oct./Dec. 1871; Dec. 1882/Feb. 1883; and Aug./Oct. 1894.  (There are no instances in which a month's temperature extremes occurred on the same day). 

 

• We're presently in the midst of the longest hiatus, which started in December 2009.  This is in contrast to the 15-year period between 1887-1901 when there were 13 months which had their warmest and coldest readings 1-2 days apart.  (Including five consecutive years, 1891-1895.)
  

 

GREATEST SWINGS IN A MONTH'S WARMEST-COLDEST TEMPERATURE WHEN 2 DAYS APART

>  March 1987/ 61 degrees/ from 76° to 15°

>  March 1988/59 degrees/ from 17° to 76°

>  Dec. 1871/ 57 degrees/ from -2° to 55°

>  Feb. 1967/ 56 degrees/ from 4° to 60°

>  April 1880/ 54 degrees/ from 26° to 80° 

 

GREATEST SWINGS IN A MONTH'S WARMEST-COLDEST  TEMPERATURE WHEN 1 DAY APART

>  Jan. 1934/ 52 degrees/ from 58˜ to 6°

>  Jan. 1913/ 45 degrees/ from 18° to 63°

>  June 1961/43 degrees/ from 96° to 43°

>  Feb. 1947/ 43 degrees/ from 50° to 7°

 

Finally, there have been nine months in which the temperature extremes occurred on the first and last day of the month, most recently in June 2009.

 

 

 

 

March 2022 Weather Recap: Somewhat Mild & Dry

 

 

March 2022 was the 16th mildest March on record in New York.  (March 2020 and 2021 are among the 16 that were milder.)   The month was 2.5 degrees above average, with the high and low being 3.7 and 1.2 degrees above average, respectively.  This March would probably have ranked among the ten mildest if it weren't for four cold days:

 

•             March 4 -  37°/21°, 11 degrees below average 
•             March 13 - 35°/22°, 13 degrees below average
•             March 28 - 33°/23°, 19 degrees below average 
•             March 29 - 38°/24°, 15 degrees below average

      

March 28th's high was the coldest this late into the year in 40 years, since a high of 30° on April 7, 1982.  (Temperatures rebounded on the 31st, and from late morning into the wee hours of 4/1, they were in the 60s.)  And the last time a low of 23° occurred later than 3/28 was in 1995, on 4/6.

 

 

March 7 and 18 were the mildest days of the month, with both having the same high/low of 74°/50°.  The eight-day period from March 15-22 was 12 degrees above average (high/low of 64°/46°).  This was followed five days later by a four-day stretch of unseasonably cold temperatures, from March 27-30, 13 degrees below average (41°/26°).

 

Below average precipitation, 2.39" (about two inches below average), made this NYC's 29th driest March (tied with March 1897).  Much of the rain, 1.99", fell on three days (0.56" on 3/9, 0.50" on 3/12, and 0.93" on 3/24).  Only 0.4" of snow fell (3/9), but it was the most in March in three years.  33 other Marches have had less snow.

 

There was a wind gust of 49 mph the night of 3/7, the highest gust recorded in Central Park since one of  62 mph during superstorm Sandy on Oct. 29, 2012.   

 

Finally, on 3/22 afternoon humidity drop to 11% (fourth lowest of this century).

 

Here are March recaps from previous years:

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

 

 

 

 

 

 

February 2022 Weather Recap: Minimal Snow, Wide Variation in Average High & Low

 

Last winter, February had much more snow than January (26.0" vs. 2.1"), but this winter the tables were turned as February had just 2.0" compared to January's 15.3".  Although snowfall was minimal, there have been 31 other winters with even less snow in February (and two-thirds of those had less than an inch). 

 

Temperature patterns were also reversed, as February of last year was 1.7° below average and  January was 1.1° above, while this winter February was 1.4° above average and January was 3.4° below.  Feb. 2022 was the 21st mildest on record.  Five recent Februarys in 2020, 2018, 2017, 2016, and 2012, were milder.

 

 

Another very big difference between Feb. 2022 and 2021 was in its diurnal variation, i.e., the difference between the daily high and low temperature.  Last February's was just 9.5 degrees, which tied for the second smallest reported in February.  This year's however, was 16.9 degrees, which was the widest variation in February since 1990, and the third widest for any February (average variation is 12.7 degrees).  Part of the reason was that it had three days with temperature variations of 30 degrees or more; only February 1918 has had more (four). 

The difference between the average high and low of Feb. 2022 and 2021 is fascinating, as this February's average high was 6.9 degrees milder than last February, but its average low was 0.5 degrees chillier.

 

 

February's above average temperature was driven by the average high, which was 3.5 degrees above average; by contrast, the average low was 0.6 degrees below average.  Eight days had highs of 55° or milder, with four of them above 60°, including two climbing to 68° (on 2/17 and 2/23).  The first 68° was a record for the date. 

 

Looking at cold conditions, eight days had highs in the 30s or colder, and four of these days had highs of 32° or colder.  Similar to the month's warmest reading, the coldest reading (16°) was also reported on two days, 2/14 and 2/15.   (January's coldest reading also occurred on back to back days).

 

Eleven days were 10 degrees or more above or below average (seven were above, four were below).  The most above average was +23 degrees on 2/17, when the high/low was 68°/49°; the most below average day came three days before that, with a high/low that was 15 degrees below average (25°/16°).  

 

During the three weeks between Feb. 4-24, four dramatic swings in temperature occurred:

• Feb. 4-5: From 8° above average (high/low of 57°/26°), to 11° below average (27°/19°)
• Feb. 12-14: From 16° above average (59°/42°), to 1° below average (42°/25°), to 15° below average (25°/16°)
• Feb. 15-17: From 13° below average (30°/16°), to 3° above average (49°/28°), to 23° above average (68°/49°)
• Feb. 23-24: From 15° above average (68°/35°), to 6° below average (35°/29°) 

 

Finally, precipitation was very close to average, with 3.23" measured (vs. an average of 3.19").  The days with the most precipitation were Feb. 3 and Feb. 20, with 0.72" and 0.74", respectively.  The month's measurable snow fell on two days: 2/13 (1.6") and 2/25 (0.4").  Of the Februarys with two inches of snow or less, Feb. 2022 had the fourth biggest drop-off from January.

 

 

Here are other February recaps:

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2015

 

 

Greatest New York Weather 'Hits' of 2021

 

 

 

Nationwide, 2021's top weather events included Arctic cold in Texas in mid-February that shut down much of the state's power grid; searing heat at the end of June never before experienced in the Pacific Northwest; and a deadly tornado outbreak that Kentucky bore the brunt of on Dec. 10-11.  Meanwhile, New York's biggest story was the  consecutive months of unprecedented rainfall in July-August-September, which culminated in flooding downpours from the remnants of hurricane Ida on the night of Sept. 1, a deluge that was responsible for the deaths of nearly 50 residents of NYC and outlying suburbs (comparable to superstorm Sandy's death toll in Oct. 2012). 

 

The year was the eighth mildest and tenth wettest on record.   Eight of 2021's months were warmer than average, led by December (+4.7°, third mildest) and October (+4.1°, sixth mildest).  These months book-ended the most below average month of the year, November (-1.8°). 

 

Although the year's nearly 60 inches of precipitation was 10 inches above average, seven of the months had below average rainfall.  More than half of the year's precipitation (52%) was in July, August, and September.  And nearly half of the rain in those three months came from tropical systems Henri (8.19") and Ida (7.13").  Here are other highlights of 2021:

 

• A snowstorm that began Jan. 31 and continued into Feb. 2 dumped 17.4”.  Most of the accumulation, 16.8", fell in less than 24 hours (Sunday night, Jan. 31 thru late afternoon on Monday, Feb. 1).  After this snow event, an additional 10" of snow fell during the rest of the month, bring February's total to 26.0", making it the 8th snowiest February on record.

• March had its first temperature in the 80s since 1998, occurring on 3/26 (82°).

• In addition to the excessively wet months of July-Aug-Sept, there were also periods of very low humidity during the year.  For example, nearly half of the days in March had low humidity (below 25%); extremely low humidity was reported on April 6 (7%); and December had it lowest humidity on record on 12/17 (14%).

• The coolest Memorial Day weekend on record (average high/low of 57°/48°) was followed by the ninth warmest June.  A high of 98° on 6/30 was NYC’s hottest reading in nine years years, and the hottest reading in June since another reading of 98° in June 1994.  But just three days later, July had its first reading in the 50s since 2009, and its coolest high temperature (66°) since 2005.

• July, August, and September each had more than 10 inches of rain (July's amount was above 11") – not only the first time in nine years any month had that much rain, but the first time ever that three consecutive months had this much.  This was also the first year to have two rainstorms that produced seven inches+.  They were associated with downgraded hurricanes Henri and Ida , and they were less than two weeks apart (Aug. 21-23 and Sept. 1).

• On the night of  9/1, Ida's rain poured down in just five hours time (and 3.13" in one hour).  More rain fell between 9-10 PM than fell in all of November and December.

As an aside, this one-hour amount was trumpeted by the National Weather Service as being Central Park's greatest one-hour amount on record - but this claim was in error, as NWS's own records show a greater 60-minute amount on Sept. 5, 1913, when 3.31" of rain was measured between midnight and 1 AM - 0.18" more than Ida's 60-minute gully washer.  (11 days earlier, a one-hour amount of 1.94" during Henri also had the NWS claiming it was an all-time record, which was even more in error, as there have been at least a dozen instances of greater amounts in an hour, most recently in July 2018.)

• October had a record streak of lows in the 60s - thirteen days in a row.  It also set a record (for any month) of days with high/lows stuck in the 60s.  There were six such days, concentrated in the nine-day period between Oct. 3-11.  Finally, October's coolest reading of 47° was the mildest reading to have this distinction.

• The final week of October was the rainiest on record (4.71" fell).  That week accounted for more than half of the precipitation measured from October thru December.  This rainy week was followed by the driest November-December on record.  These two dry months prevented the year from reaching the sixty-inch mark in precipitation, coming in at 59.73".  After 31.44" fell in July-September (32.09", if rain on 6/30 is included), 12 of the 13 weeks in October-December had less than 1/10 of that amount (3.06").

 

Here are recaps of previous years:

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

January 2022 Weather Recap - Coldest in 7 Years, Snowiest in 6

 

 

After a December that was the third mildest on record, the first two days of January 2022 saw a continuation of these mild conditions, with highs of 56° and 59°.  Then the jet stream shifted, winter-like conditions arrived, and the month became the coldest January since 2015.  At 3.4 degrees colder than average, it was the most below average of any month in more than two years, since November 2019 (which was 4.1 degrees below average).  Subtracting the first two days of the month, which were 16 degrees milder than average, the rest of January was 4.5 degrees below average. 

 

Besides cold temperatures, snowfall was also above average, with 15.3" measured (after just 0.2" fell in December); most of it was produced by two snowstorms, as 5.8" fell on Jan. 7, and 8.3" was measured on Jan. 28-29.  This was the snowiest January since 2016 (which is the second snowiest January), and tied for 20th snowiest January overall.  Its snowfall was greater than the combined amount of the three preceding Januarys (5.5").

 

 

January was 13.5 degrees colder than December.  Only three other Januarys have had a bigger drop in  temperature from December: Jan. 2016, Jan. 1912, and Jan. 1985.  (On average, January is five or six degrees colder than December.)

 

January's average low of 23.5° was 4.4 degrees colder than average, while the high was 2.4 degrees colder.  January's average high of 37.1° was 1.2 degrees colder than December's average low.  The coldest reading was 10° on 1/15 and on 1/16.  The coldest day (based on mean temperature), was on 1/15, when the high/low was 21°/10° (17 degrees colder than average).  Overall, there were 12 days that were 8 degrees or more below average; half of them were 12 or more degrees below average.  

 

Finally, 11 days had highs of 32° or colder, including the last six days of the month, the longest streak since one of 14 days during the winter of 2017-18.  This streak's average high/low was 30°/19° (nine degrees below average).

 

Here are previous January recaps since 2014 (there was no recap published for Jan. 2016).

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2015

2014

 

 

 

 

Weather of 2022 in New York

 
JANUARY

1 (Saturday) - It was a rainy and mild start to the new year, with a high/low of 56°/50°, and 0.79" of rain (most of which fell after dark).   This was the first low of 50° or milder on 1/1 since 1979, and just the third time overall with a low in the 50s on this date.  The high of 56° was the tenth warmest reading (tied with 2007).  After a record dry November and December, today was the rainiest day since late in October.

7 (Friday) - A fast-moving winter storm produced 5.8" of snow, most of it falling before sunrise.  This was the winter's  first snowfall of one-inch or more, coming about two weeks later than the average date of this occurrence.  Curiously, although Central Park and LaGuardia Airport (which are just seven miles apart) had similar amounts of liquid precipitation (0.38" and 0.33", respectively), CPK's accumulation of snow was 3.9" less than LGA's (9.7"). 

With today’s snowfall, the month’s precipitation for the first week of January reached 1.44”, which was.05” more than what fell in all of December.

8 (Saturday) - With a high/low of 30°/20°, today had the winter's first high of 32° or colder.  This was three weeks later than the typical date, and was the latest date for this occurrence since the winter of 1986-87, when it happened on 1/20.  This "first of the winter" milestone happened the same week as the first low in the teens (1/4), and the first snowfall of an inch or more (1/7).

15 (Saturday) - With a high/low of 21°/10,° today was the coldest day of the winter.  The day's low was the coldest reading in Central Park in nearly three years, since a low of 2° on Jan. 31, 2019.  (10° is on par with the average coldest temperature of winters going back to 1990.)  At sunrise, wind chills were in the 0° to -5° range.  Tomorrow's low would also be 10° (but with a high that was 16 degrees warmer than today's).

17 (Monday) - 1.53" of precipitation fell during a winter storm that moved in yesterday evening, beginning as snow for a few hours (accumulating 0.8"), and then continuing as rain until mid-morning today (when 1.16" fell).  The storm's total was  was more than what fell in either November (1.12") or December (1.39").  Furthermore, this amount of precipitation doubled what had fallen in the first 15 days of January, and at 3.07" in total, was more than what fell in November and December combined.

29 (Saturday) - Snow that began after 8 PM last night continued thru mid-afternoon, accumulating 8.3".  The 7.3" that fell today was a record for the date and was the first snowfall of an inch or more on 1/29 since 1973.  Visibility was less than 1/2 mile for much of the morning.  The temperature dropped sharply overnight from upper 20s to mid-teens after daybreak; winds that gusted between 25-35 mph produced wind chills of 0° to 5° above zero.  This snowstorm had the coldest temperatures since the snowstorm of Jan. 21, 2014 , when 11.5" piled up and temperatures dropped to the low teens in the final hours of the storm.  Today was the 4th consecutive day with a high of 32° or colder, the longest streak in Central Park since the winter of 2018, when there was a 14-day streak (Dec. 26-Jan. 8).

The City was spared much worse conditions as it was on the western edge of an intense nor'easter that brought blizzard conditions  and 15"-30" of snow to Long Island and southeastern New England.

 

FEBRUARY

5 (Saturday) - The temperature at daybreak was 21°, which was a drop of 36 degrees from yesterday's high reading of 57° which occurred in the morning.  The last time the City experienced a drop this great in such a short period of time (25 hours) was in April 2018, when the mercury fell from 77° during the afternoon of 4/14, to 38° at daybreak on 4/15. 

13 (Sunday) - 1.6" of snow fell the day after the high reached 59°.  And although it was quite a turnaround, it pales in comparison to Feb. 9, 2017, when a 9.4" snowfall followed a high of 62° the day before.  And on Feb. 3, 2014, 8.0" fell the day after a high of 56°.  This was the second year in a row in which snow fell on Super Bowl Sunday.  4.5" fell last year, which was the most to fall on the NFL's big day (the game was played on 2/7); this year's amount was the second biggest accumulation.

17 (Thursday) - Today had the year’s first reading in the 60s.  At 68° it was the warmest reading in three months (since 11/18), and a record for the date.  The last time a reading this mild happened in February was in 2018, when the mercury soared to 78° on 2/21 (the warmest temperature ever reported in February).  Today’s spring-like reading, 25 degrees above average, came just two days after a low of 16°.  (There was also a low of 16° on 2/14,  two days after a high of 59°.)

23 (Wednesday) - For the second time in past six days the high reached 68°; however, unlike 2/17’s high, today’s was not a record.  Then after dark, a cold front moved through, and the temperature dropped to the mid-30s by midnight (however, there was no precipitation).  This was the third day this month with a diurnal variation of 30 degrees or more - just the second February with three or more such days (February 1918 had four). 

 

MARCH

7 (Monday) - The temperature rose into the 70s, topping out at 74°, tying the record for the date.  This followed another record tying high yesterday (68°), and was the first reading in the 70s this year, about two weeks ahead of schedule (by contrast, the first day in the 60s, on 2/17, was two weeks behind schedule).  The temperature was still at 71° at 10 PM, when a cold front blew through with winds that gusted to 49 mph in Central Park.  Today's reading was the fourth high of 68+ in the past three weeks, joining 2/17, 2/23, and 3/6 (which all had highs of 68°).   

9 (Wednesday) - It was a sloppy day with wet snow occasionally mixed with rain and temperatures that hovered between 33° and 35°.  The 0.56" of liquid that fell (between 8:30 AM and 6 PM) produced just 0.4" of snow - but this was more snow than what fell in March 2020 or 2021 (both saw only a trace). 

22 (Tuesday) - On average, relative humidity in March between 2PM and 9PM is in the 55%-60% range, but today it was between 11% and 13%.  Only four other dates in the 21st century have had lower readings: 6% on March 30, 2007; 7% on April 6, 2021; 9% on April 20, 2016; and 10% on April 20, 2006.   Skies were sunny and temperatures above average for the ninth day in a row (high/low of 58°/43°).  This was the fifth day in the past four weeks to  have an hour or more with humidity at 25% or lower. 

28 (Monday) - An Arctic front moved through last night, and today's high/low of  33°/23° would have been cold even in the depths of winter.  Although the day's low was far from the record for the date (13°), the high broke the record from 1893 for coldest daily maximum.  This was the coldest high temperature this late in March/early April in 40 years, since April 7, 1982, when the high/low was 30°/21°.  Today had the coldest mean temperature of the month as well as the past six weeks (0.5 degree colder than 3/13, which had a high/low of 35°/22°, and 2/20, which had a  high/low of 36°/21°).

Making the cold even more biting was the wind, which gusted between 20-30 mph.  Finally, the air was quite dry, with afternoon humidity falling to 20%; dew points were in the -5° to +5° range throughout the day.

 

APRIL

7 (Thursday) - Rain moved in at around noon and continued for the rest of the day.  1.12" was measured , with a large portion of it (0.40") falling between 11 PM-midnight (an additional 0.04" fell on 4/8).  Meanwhile, suburbs in northern NJ, the Hudson River valley, and western Connecticut reported between two and four inches.  Besides the rain, it was also windy, with gusts between 20-30 mph.  This inclement weather forced the Yankees to postpone their home opener - the fifth home opener postponed since 2003.

8 (Friday) - The day after rain postponed the Yankees' home opener, today's rescheduled game was played under sunny skies and temperatures in the 60s.  Additionally, the air was quite dry, with the relative humidity dropping to 23% in mid-afternoon.  (Perhaps best of all, the Yankees beat their arch-rivals, the Red Sox, in extra innings.)    

15 (Friday) - Conditions for the Mets home opener were a near replica of last week's Yankees first game as skies were sunny and the day's high reached 70°.  And the visiting team, the Arizona Diamondbacks, probably felt at home because of the very low humidity, which dropped to 13% when the first pitch was thrown.  But the hospitality ended there as the Mets easily won the game, 1o-3.   Today was the fourth day in a row with readings in the 70s - the first time for a streak of this length since late September.

16 (Saturday) - Today, with a high of 73°, was the fifth day in a row with a high of 70°+.  The average high during this streak was 73°, 12 degrees above average.  The last time there was a streak of this length in April was eleven years ago (but it occurred 12 days later than this year's streak). 

17 (Sunday) -With a high/low of 51°/41°, this was the chilliest Easter Sunday since 2009 (49°/36°).  This followed five consecutive days with highs in the 70s.  And similar to last Easter, the air was quite dry, with the humidity bottoming out at 25% in mid-afternoon. 

19 (Tuesday) - A fast-moving nor'easter that moved in late last night was over by daybreak today.  2.09" of rain poured down, mostly between 10 PM and 3 AM.  Winds gusted to 37 mph at Central Park, with 45-65 mph gusts common on Long Island and in Connecticut.  This was the biggest rain total from a storm system since a nor'easter dumped 3.53" of rain nearly six months ago (on 10/25-26 ).   

28 (Thursday) - For the second time this spring the humidity in the middle of the afternoon dropped to 11% (the other day was 3/22; 4/15 had humidity of 13%).  The day also featured clear skies, gusty winds (25-35 mph), and temperatures that were ten degrees below average (high/low of 58°/40°). 

 

MAY

9 (Monday) - It was a day with very low humidity, which bottomed out at 13% at 1o PM -  the lowest humidity reported for this time of day in the years since 2000 (daily humidity is usually lowest mid-afternoon).  Additionally, this was the seventh day this year with humidity falling to 15% or below, which is the greatest number of days going back to 2000 (breaking a tie with 2021).  Furthermore, this was the lowest humidity reported in May.  Finally, humidity of 15% between midnight and 2 AM on 5/10 was the lowest humidity reported so early in the day. 

21 (Saturday) - The temperature reached the 80s for the first time this year, the latest date for this occurrence since 1988.  This was the tenth latest date for this occurrence on record.  And with a high of 90°, this was just the fourth year to have the first 80 and first 90 occur on the same day (joining 1918, 1927 and 2010).  This was the first time a reading was in the 90s in May since 2018.   Besides the heat, the air was oppressive, with afternoon dew points in the 68-70° range.  The morning low of 62° was the coolest on a day with a high in the 90s since 2010, when there was a low of low of 56° on 4/7 (the earliest date on record for a reading in the 90s).

22 (Sunday) - The day after the year's first high in the 90s, today had the first low in the 70s.  Today missed by one degree becoming the first May weekend since 1987 with both days having highs of 90+ (only five May weekends have had this happen; 1987’s is the hottest of them, with highs/lows on May 30 and 31 of 97°/74° and 94°/76°). 

This weekend's unseasonably warm temperatures were similar to the same weekend last May, with this year’s highs/lows being 90°/62° and 89°/72°, while last year’s (on May 22 and 23) were 89°/65° and 88°/68°.

28 (Saturday) - An isolated, severe thunderstorm struck Central Park early in the afternoon, dumping 0.64” of rain in less than an hour (and there was a wind gust of 42 mph).  By contrast, Newark, LGA and JFK had minimal rainfall (and my Greenwich Village neighborhood didn’t get hit as hard as CPK).  Combined with rain early in the morning, the day’s total rainfall of 0.72” set a record as the rainiest Saturday of any Memorial Day holiday weekend.  (Pushing ahead of the 0.68” that fell in 1982, and 0.65” in 2020).  

31 (Tuesday) - Mostly sunny and hot, with a high of 93°.  This was the hottest reading in May since 2000, when the high was 93° on 5/7.  (But it should be noted that there was a high of 96° in April 2002).  This was the second 90-degree reading this month, and although it was three degrees hotter than the high on 5/21, today may have felt slightly more comfortable as the dew point was 8-10 degrees lower than what it was during the afternoon of 5/21.

 

JUNE

15 (Wednesday) - Today, with a high of 83°, was the third day in a row with a high of 80°+ in Central Park - the first time this year, and the deepest into a year since 2003.  Typically, this occurs around May 21-23.  (The first reading of 80°+ this year, on 5/21, was the latest since 1988).

18 (Saturday) - After yesterday's sultry conditions (bright sunshine and a high of 88°), today felt like October as skies were overcast and afternoon temperatures were only in the mid-60s; adding to the chill were gusty winds clocked between 30-40 mph.  (Despite this change, it appeared half of the City's residents hadn't heard the day's forecast as they were walking about dressed as if they expected a repeat of yesterday's summer-like conditions.)   

19 (Sunday) - It was a beautiful Father’s Day despite it being ten degrees chillier than average (high/low of 73°/54°), along with a stiff breeze that persisted throughout the day (but not as windy as yesterday, which had wind gusts of 30-40 mph).  This was the first Father’s Day since 2012 not to have a high of 80° or warmer (the average between 2013 and 2021 was 85°).  And the last time the low temperature was this chilly on Father’s Day was in 1958.  Furthermore, humidity late in the afternoon dropped to 25%, which was comparable to the humidity level on Father's Day in 2018 (24%).   

21 (Tuesday) - It was an overcast, cool, and somewhat damp day (some sprinkles, mist, and fog from mid-afternoon onward).  Temperatures were stuck in the 60s, with a high/low of 67°/62; the high was 15 degrees cooler than average, but the low was just 5 degrees under.  This was the only day this month with a high in the 60s, and the first since another high of 67° occurred on 5/24.