Climatological Report (Monthly)
Issued by NWS Portland, ME

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000 CXUS51 KGYX 011854 CLMPWM PWMCLMPWM 000 TTAA00 GYX 011821 CLIMATE REPORT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAY ME 221 PM EDT SUN OCT 01 2023 ................................... ...THE PORTLAND ME CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE MONTH OF SEPTEMBER 2023... CLIMATE NORMAL PERIOD: 1991 TO 2020 CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD: 1941 TO 2023 (FOR TEMPERATURES) CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD: 1871 TO 2023 (FOR PRECIPITATION) CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD: 1882 TO 2023 (FOR SNOWFALL) WEATHER OBSERVED NORMAL DEPART LAST YEAR`S VALUE DATE(S) VALUE FROM VALUE DATE(S) NORMAL ................................................................ TEMPERATURE (F) RECORD HIGH 95 09/11/1983 09/07/1945 LOW 23 09/30/1941 HIGHEST 88 09/05 86 2 81 09/10 09/11 LOWEST 43 09/27 37 6 36 09/30 09/29 AVG. MAXIMUM 72.8 71.1 1.7 69.5 AVG. MINIMUM 55.4 52.1 3.3 51.0 MEAN 64.1 61.6 2.5 60.3 DAYS MAX >= 90 0 0.5 -0.5 0 DAYS MAX <= 32 0 0.0 0.0 0 DAYS MIN <= 32 0 0.1 -0.1 0 DAYS MIN <= 0 0 0.0 0.0 0 PRECIPITATION (INCHES) RECORD MAXIMUM 10.84 2008 MINIMUM 0.30 1948 TOTALS 4.91 3.77 1.14 4.20 DAILY AVG. 0.16 0.13 0.03 0.14 DAYS >= .01 8 9.3 -1.3 9 DAYS >= .10 6 5.3 0.7 5 DAYS >= .50 3 2.3 0.7 3 DAYS >= 1.00 1 1.0 0.0 2 GREATEST 24 HR. TOTAL 3.24 09/18 TO 09/19 SNOWFALL (INCHES) RECORDS TOTAL T 1992 TOTALS 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SINCE 7/1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 SNOWDEPTH AVG. 0 DAYS >= TRACE 0 0.0 0.0 DAYS >= 1.0 0 0.0 0.0 GREATEST SNOW DEPTH 0 24 HR TOTAL 0 DEGREE DAYS HEATING TOTAL 100 145 -45 162 SINCE 7/1 119 173 -54 163 COOLING TOTAL 80 43 37 28 SINCE 1/1 422 444 -22 542 ................................................................ WIND (MPH) AVERAGE WIND SPEED 5.7 HIGHEST WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 31/230 DATE 09/08 31/320 09/16 HIGHEST GUST SPEED/DIRECTION 46/290 DATE 09/16 SKY COVER AVERAGE SKY COVER 0.47 AVERAGE RH (PERCENT) 79 WEATHER CONDITIONS. NUMBER OF DAYS WITH THUNDERSTORM 2 HEAVY RAIN 3 RAIN 4 LIGHT RAIN 9 FREEZING RAIN 0 LT FREEZING RAIN 0 HEAVY SNOW 0 SNOW 0 LIGHT SNOW 0 FOG 14 FOG W/VIS <= 1/4 MILE 2 HAZE 3 - INDICATES NEGATIVE NUMBERS. R INDICATES RECORD WAS SET OR TIED. MM INDICATES DATA IS MISSING. T INDICATES TRACE AMOUNT. && AFTER A WET SUMMER IN THE PORTLAND AREA, A BROAD AREA OF HIGH PRESSURE BUILT INTO THE NORTHEAST DURING THE FIRST WEEK OF SEPTEMBER. THIS HIGH PRESSURE BROUGHT THE DRIEST STRETCH OF WEATHER THE PORTLAND AREA HAD SEEN SINCE THE END OF MAY. ALONG WITH DRY WEATHER, TEMPERATURES CLIMBED WELL ABOVE NORMAL DURING THE FIRST WEEK OF SEPTEMBER. IT WAS ALSO DURING THIS TIME THAT TROPICAL ACTIVITY WAS INCREASING IN THE ATLANTIC BASIN. SOME FRONTAL SYSTEMS BROUGHT A RETURN TO WET WEATHER DURING THE SECOND WEEK OF SEPTEMBER BEFORE ATTENTION TURNED TO HURRICANE LEE THAT WAS TRACKING NORTHWARD THROUGH THE WESTERN ATLANTIC. LEE MOVED INTO THE EASTERN GULF OF MAINE ON THE 15TH AS A CATEGORY 1 HURRICANE AND TRANSITIONED TO A POST TROPICAL SYSTEM ON THE 16TH AS IT TRACKED NORTHEASTWARD THROUGH THE BAY OF FUNDY. THIS SYSTEM BROUGHT HIGH SURF AND RIP CURRENTS TO AREA BEACHES ALONG WITH A PEAK WIND GUST TO 46 MPH ON THE 16TH WHILE THE BULK OF RAIN MISSED THE PORTLAND AREA TO THE EAST. A MORE SIGNIFICANT RAIN EVENT OCCURRED ON THE 18TH INTO THE 19TH WHEN LOW PRESSURE TRACKED ACROSS CAPE COD INTO THE GULF OF MAINE BRINGING 3.24 INCHES OF RAIN. HIGH PRESSURE BUILT INTO THE NORTHEAST DURING THE THIRD WEEK OF SEPTEMBER AND DOMINATED THE WEATHER PATTERN THROUGH THE END OF THE MONTH. THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 64.1 DEGREES, WHICH WAS 2.5 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL AND TIED FOR THE THIRD WARMEST SEPTEMBER ON RECORD. THE WARMEST SEPTEMBER ON RECORD WAS IN 2015 WHEN THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS 65.3 DEGREES. THE COOLEST WAS 54.5 DEGREES IN 1950. THE FOLLOWING TABLE LISTS THE WARMEST SEPTEMBERS ON RECORD AT PORTLAND. WARMEST AVERAGE TEMPERATURE IN SEPTEMBER (SINCE 1941)... RANK TEMP YEAR 1 65.3 2015 2 64.6 2017 3 64.4 2023 <=== 4 64.1 1961 5 63.8 2016 6 63.6 2018 63.6 2005 8 63.4 2020 63.4 2010 10 63.3 2021 63.3 1999 A TOTAL OF 4.91 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION FELL, WHICH WAS 1.14 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL. THE HEAVIEST PRECIPITATION OCCURRED ON THE 18TH INTO THE 19TH WHEN 3.24 INCHES OF RAIN FELL. THE WETTEST SEPTEMBER ON RECORD WAS IN 2008 WHEN 10.84 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION FELL. THE DRIEST WAS 0.30 INCHES IN 1948. THE FOLLOWING DAILY RECORDS WERE SET OR TIED IN SEPTEMBER 2023... DATE RECORD PREVIOUS SEP 5 77 - WARMEST AVERAGE TEMPERATURE 76 IN 1961 SEP 6 68 - WARMEST LOW TEMPERATURE 66 IN 2018 AND OTHERS SEP 18 2.29 - GREATEST PRECIPITATION 1.65 IN 2004 $$ DS/SB