Cold, Raw Days of Late May

 

 

A few weeks ago I published a post about warm weather in May.  Most of us are delighted to get an early start to summer, with days that have temperatures in the 80s and 90s, especially because they aren't usually accompanied by the humidity levels common in mid-summer.  Of course, most Mays have a few cool days in store to remind us that we're still transitioning from spring to summer (May 2015, warmest on record, was an exception).  And raw days in the latter part of May are especially cruel, with summer so close at hand.  This post focuses on these late, cold days.

 

Two dates that stand out on the list below are May 26, 1967 and May 27, 1961.  Both had highs only in the 40s, which is what the typical high is in the second week of March.  The high on May 26, 1967 was 46°, twenty-eight degrees below average; May 27, 1961's high of 47° was twenty-seven degrees below average.

 

One characteristic of chilly days in May is that high temperatures are often significantly more below average than low temperatures.  This is due largely to clouds and rain (and east-northeasterly winds).  Although a typical day in May has a 15-degree difference between its high and low, the chilly days listed below show diurnal variations that are often half that range (seven degrees or less).

 

 

 

CHILLY DAYS IN LATE MAY (SINCE 1915)
(Sorted by Calendar Date)
				Below Average
Date	High	Low	Mean	Mean	High
5.20.2000	51	46	48.5	-15	-20
5.20.1957	51	45	48.0	-16	-20
5.20.1952	54	50	52.0	-12	-17
5.21.1990	51	47	49.0	-15	-20
5.21.1929	50	45	47.5	-15	-20
5.21.1924	50	47	48.5	-14	-20
5.23.1982	55	51	53.0	-12	-18
5.24.1982	55	50	52.5	-12	-18
5.24.1927	51	49	50.0	-15	-21
5.25.2013	54	45	49.5	-16	-20
5.25.2005	53	48	50.5	-15	-21
5.25.1967	46	42	44.0	-21	-28
5.25.1934	56	49	52.5	-11	-16
5.25.1925	53	41	47.0	-17	-20
5.25.1921	52	47	49.5	-14	-22
5.26.1967	55	42	48.5	-17	-19
5.27.1961	47	41	44.0	-22	-27
5.28.1917	55	49	52.0	-14	-18
5.30.1953	56	50	53.0	-14	-19

 

 

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Comments

[Benny R.]

Little did you know that after the time this post was written, June 2015 would have had the chilliest June day in nearly 70 years (June 2nd, 2015) and also one of the chilliest June maximum temperatures on record (high of 55/low of 50, chilly enough to be added to this list). This came right after a May that had no highs chillier than 60 degrees. Guess you spoke too soon...

[Rob]

This post is about May, therefore no mention was made of cool days in June.