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Climatological Report (Annual)
Issued by NWS
Issued by NWS
000
CXUS53 KIWX 012251
CLASBN
CLIMATE REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTHERN INDIANA
551 PM EST SAT JAN 01 2022
...................................
...THE SOUTH BEND CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE YEAR OF 2021...
CLIMATE NORMAL PERIOD 1991 TO 2020
CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD 1893 TO 2021
WEATHER OBSERVED NORMAL DEPART LAST YEAR`S
VALUE DATE(S) VALUE FROM VALUE
NORMAL
..............................................................
TEMPERATURE (F)
RECORD
HIGH 109 07/24/1934
LOW -22 01/20/1943
01/25/1897
HIGHEST 95 08/24 MM MM 94
LOWEST -4 02/17 MM MM 3
AVG. MAXIMUM 61.7 58.7 3.0 61.3
AVG. MINIMUM 43.1 39.9 3.2 42.3
MEAN 52.4 49.3 3.1
DAYS MAX >= 90 14 13.5 0.5 22
DAYS MAX <= 32 33 44.7 -11.7 21
DAYS MIN <= 32 126 126.4 -0.4 129
DAYS MIN <= 0 2 5.8 -3.8 0
PRECIPITATION (INCHES)
RECORD
MAXIMUM 55.61 1990
MINIMUM 25.15 1963
TOTALS 42.17 39.23 2.94 36.58
DAILY AVG. 0.12 0.11 0.01 0.10
DAYS >= .01 143 147.5 -4.5 144
DAYS >= .10 76 80.0 -4.0 77
DAYS >= .50 26 24.6 1.4 22
DAYS >= 1.00 8 7.5 0.5 8
SNOWFALL (INCHES)
RECORDS
TOTAL 141.7 1978
TOTALS 39.0 64.5 -25.5 50.9
SINCE 7/1 3.3 19.0 -15.7 16.7
SNOWDEPTH AVG. 1 0
DAYS >= TRACE 70 42.2 27.8 63
DAYS >= 1.0 14 20.3 -6.3 18
GREATEST
SNOW DEPTH 16 02/16 9
DEGREE DAYS
HEATING TOTAL 5599 6400 -801 5690
SINCE 7/1 1871 2404 -533 2074
COOLING TOTAL 1167 722 445 978
SINCE 1/1 1167 723 444 978
..............................................................
WIND (MPH)
AVERAGE WIND SPEED 8.4
HIGHEST WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 43/240 DATE 12/11
HIGHEST GUST SPEED/DIRECTION 58/240 DATE 05/27
SKY COVER
POSSIBLE SUNSHINE (PERCENT) MM
AVERAGE SKY COVER 0.45
NUMBER OF DAYS FAIR 147
NUMBER OF DAYS PC 100
NUMBER OF DAYS CLOUDY 87
AVERAGE RH (PERCENT) 68
WEATHER CONDITIONS. NUMBER OF DAYS WITH
THUNDERSTORM 44 MIXED PRECIP 0
HEAVY RAIN 36 RAIN 52
LIGHT RAIN 143 FREEZING RAIN 1
LT FREEZING RAIN 2 HAIL 0
HEAVY SNOW 2 SNOW 11
LIGHT SNOW 62 SLEET 2
FOG 174 FOG W/VIS <= 1/4 MILE 30
HAZE 80
- INDICATES NEGATIVE NUMBERS.
R INDICATES RECORD WAS SET OR TIED.
MM INDICATES DATA IS MISSING.
T INDICATES TRACE AMOUNT.
&&
...TOP TEN WARMEST AND LEAST SNOWIEST...
A MAJORITY OF MONTHS THIS YEAR FEATURED ABOVE-NORMAL TEMPERATURES.
MARCH 2021 WAS THE 7TH WARMEST ON RECORD AS WAS SEPTEMBER. OCTOBER
RANKED AS THE 8TH WARMEST ON RECORD AND DECEMBER RANKED AS THE 5TH
WARMEST ON RECORD. THESE NOTABLY WARM MONTHS PROPELLED US TO THE
5TH WARMEST YEAR ON RECORD. RECORDS AT SOUTH BEND BEGAN IN 1893.
THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE YEAR WAS 52.4 DEGREES, WHICH IS 3.1
DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 49.3 DEGREES. THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE
FOR THE YEAR WAS 95 DEGREES ON AUGUST 24TH. THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE
FOR THE YEAR WAS -4 DEGREES ON FEBRUARY 17TH.
THERE WERE 14 DAYS WITH A HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 90 DEGREES OR WARMER,
WHICH IS NEAR NORMAL. THERE WERE 126 DAYS WITH A LOW TEMPERATURE AT
OR BELOW FREEZING. THIS IS ALSO NEAR NORMAL. THERE WERE TWO DAYS
THIS YEAR WITH A LOW TEMPERATURE BELOW ZERO. THE CLIMATE NORMAL
VALUE IS 6 DAYS PER YEAR.
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE YEAR WAS 39.0 INCHES, WHICH IS A WHOPPING
25.5 INCHES BELOW THE NORMAL OF 64.5 INCHES. THIS IS THE 8TH LEAST
SNOWIEST YEAR ON RECORD. THIS IS THE LEAST SNOWIEST SINCE 2006 WHEN
18.9 INCHES WAS OBSERVED (THE RECORD FOR LEAST AMOUNT OF SNOW IN A
YEAR). THERE WERE 14 DAYS WITH AN INCH OR MORE OF SNOW, ABOUT 6 DAYS
BELOW NORMAL.
THE TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE YEAR WAS 42.17 INCHES, THIS IS 2.94
INCHES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 39.23 INCHES. THIS RANKS AS THE 27TH
WETTEST YEAR ON RECORD. THERE WERE 8 DAYS THIS YEAR WITH 1 INCH OR
MORE OF PRECIPITATION, WHICH IS NEAR NORMAL.
A MONTH-BY-MONTH SUMMARY FOLLOWS.
JANUARY 2021
...MILD WITH A SNOW DEFICIT...
MUCH OF THE MONTH WAS MILD WITH A NOTABLE DRY SPELL FROM THE 4TH
THROUGH 13TH. MOST OF THE MONTH`S PRECIPITATION FELL AT THE START OF
THE MONTH, BUT THE LATTER PART BECAME MORE ACTIVE.
IT WAS NOT UNTIL JANUARY 23RD THAT SOUTH BEND RECORDED A DAILY
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE DEPARTURE BELOW NORMAL. OUR AVERAGE TEMPERATURE
THROUGH THE 22ND WAS 30.1 DEGREES, WHICH TIES FOR THE 18TH WARMEST
ON RECORD. I SHOULD NOTE THAT THIS SAME STRETCH OF DAYS IN 2020
RECORDED AN AVERAGE OF 31.5 DEGREES. THE OVERALL WARMTH WE
EXPERIENCED THIS MONTH WAS NOT ONLY A RESULT WARM HIGH TEMPERATURES,
THOUGH FOUR DAYS OBSERVED A HIGH OF AT LEAST 40 DEGREES. INSTEAD,
MILD LOW TEMPERATURES REALLY TIPPED THE SCALES. THE (CLIMATE) NORMAL
LOW TEMPERATURE FOR JANUARY IS TYPICALLY 17.6 DEGREES. INSTEAD,
SOUTH BEND OBSERVED 23.8 DEGREES.
THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE ENTIRE MONTH WAS 28.8 DEGREES WHICH
IS 4.4 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS RANKS AS THE 33RD WARMEST ON
RECORD.
A RAIN-CHANGING-TO-SNOW EVENT BEGAN THE MONTH WITH 0.96" OF
PRECIPITATION AND 1.9" OF SNOW. THERE WERE A COUPLE OTHER INSTANCES
OF SNOW AND PRECIPITATION MID-MONTH. SNOW WAS EXPERIENCED IN SMALL
DOSES, WITH THE GREATEST SINGLE-DAY TOTAL OF 3.6 INCHES ON THE 31ST.
SNOWFALL FOR THIS MONTH TOTALED 14.6 INCHES WHICH IS 6.0 INCHES
BELOW NORMAL. THE RANKS AS THE 63RD LEAST SNOWIEST JANUARY. TO DATE,
SNOWFALL FOR THE ENTIRE WINTER IS 30.0 INCHES WHICH IS 7.9 INCHES
BELOW NORMAL.
PRECIPITATION FOR THIS MONTH TOTALED 2.33 INCHES WHICH IS ONLY 0.04
INCHES ABOVE NORMAL. THE RANKS AS THE 56TH WETTEST JANUARY.
THERE WERE NO RECORDS SET THIS MONTH.
BROWN
FEBRUARY 2021
...SNOW AND COLD ARRIVE...
FOLLOWING A MILD JANUARY AND THE MONTH`S SIX-INCH SNOWFALL DEFICIT,
FEBRUARY OFFERED A CORRECTION SO TO SPEAK.
TEMPERATURES WERE BELOW NORMAL FROM THE 2ND THROUGH 21ST. THE
GREATEST AVERAGE DAILY TEMPERATURE DEPARTURE FROM NORMAL WAS ON THE
17TH, WHEN THE DAY WAS 20 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. THIS WAS ALSO THE
DATE OF THE MONTH`S LOWEST MINIMUM TEMPERATURE; -4 DEGREES. THE
STRETCH OF DAYS FROM THE 1ST THROUGH 21ST RANKED AS THE 13TH COLDEST
ON RECORD, WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 16.4 DEGREES. THE VERY END
OF THE MONTH OFFERED RELIEF FROM THE COLD AS HIGH TEMPERATURES OF AT
LEAST 40 DEGREES WERE OBSERVED FROM THE 23RD THROUGH 28TH. THE
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 21.6 DEGREES WHICH IS 6.2
DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. THIS RANKS AS THE 22ND COLDEST FEBRUARY.
THE MONTH`S SNOWFALL PILED UP IN A PERIOD FROM THE 4TH TO 21ST. THE
GREATEST SINGLE-DAY TOTAL FOR THE MONTH WAS 6.5 INCHES ON THE 15TH.
THIS WAS THE GREATEST SINGLE-DAY FEBRUARY SNOWFALL SINCE 10.3 INCHES
IN 2018. AN ADDITIONAL 1.4 INCHES OF SNOW FELL FROM THIS SAME STORM
SYSTEM ON THE FOLLOWING DAY, RESULTING IN A TWO-DAY TOTAL OF 7.9
INCHES. THE TOTAL SNOW FOR THE MONTH WAS 20.4 INCHES WHICH IS 5.4
INCHES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS RANKS AS THE 21ST SNOWIEST ON RECORD. THIS
IS THE SNOWIEST FEBRUARY SINCE 2018 WHEN 29.6 INCHES WERE OBSERVED.
THE GREATEST SNOW DEPTH (7AM) WAS 16 INCHES ON THE 16TH. THIS TIES
FOR THE 20TH GREATEST MAXIMUM SNOW DEPTH ON RECORD. THIS IS THE
GREATEST SNOW DEPTH SINCE JANUARY 8TH, 2011, WHICH HAD A MAXIMUM OF
23 INCHES. I SHOULD NOTE THAT 2018 (FEB 2ND) HAD A MAXIMUM SNOW
DEPTH OF 15 INCHES.
MARCH 2021
...WARM WITH A DRY START, BUT A WET FINISH...
MARCH WILL BE KNOWN AS A WARM MONTH. THIS IS MAINLY BECAUSE THE
AVERAGE MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 54.9 DEGREES AND
RANKED AS THE 7TH WARMEST. SOUTH BEND HAD AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF
43.1 DEGREES FOR MARCH, WHICH RANKED AS THE 14TH WARMEST MARCH.
WITH HOW WARM MARCH WAS FOR SOUTH BEND, THERE WAS ONLY A TRACE OF
SNOW FOR THE MONTH. A TRACE OF SNOW WAS REPORTED ON THE 1ST AND
31ST OF THE MONTH. THIS RANKED AS TIED FOR THE LEAST SNOWIEST MARCH.
SOUTH BEND HAD A VERY DRY START TO MARCH WITH MARCH 1 TO MARCH 24
RECEIVING ONLY 0.36 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION. THIS RANKED AS THE
SECOND DRIEST STRETCH BEHIND ONLY 1981. FURTHERMORE, 14 STRAIGHT
DAYS OF PRECIPITATION TOTALING LESS THAN 0.02 INCHES OCCURRED FROM
MARCH 1ST TO MARCH 14TH. THIS RANKED AS THE 7TH LONGEST STRETCH OF
"DRY" WEATHER IN MARCH. AFTER THE DRY START, A PERIOD OF ACTIVE
WEATHER MOVED IN FOR THE LATTER PART OF THE MONTH WITH MARCH 24TH TO
MARCH 31ST RECEIVING 2.00 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION. THIS RANKED AS
THE 13TH WETTEST STRETCH FOR THIS PERIOD. OVERALL, SOUTH BEND
RECEIVED 2.36 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH, RANKING AS THE
52ND DRIEST MARCH.
APRIL 2021
...DROUGHT CONDITIONS CONTINUE WITH ROLLER COASTER TEMPERATURES...
FROM A TEMPERATURE POINT OF VIEW, APRIL FEATURED TWO LARGE EPISODES
OF TEMPERATURE SWINGS. AFTER A CRISP START ON THE 1ST AND 2ND,
TEMPERATURES WARMED DRAMATICALLY THEREAFTER. THE PERIOD FROM APRIL 1
TO APRIL 13TH RANKS AS THE 8TH WARMEST ON RECORD, WITH AN AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE OF 53.3 DEGREES. WITHIN THIS STRETCH, ON THE 6TH, SOUTH
BEND PICKED UP ITS FIRST 80-DEGREE DAY OF THE YEAR. THIS IS ABOUT 20-
DAYS SOONER THAN AVERAGE AND IS THE EARLIEST 80-DEGREE DAY SINCE
MARCH 14, 2012. THIS TIES 1921 AND 1988 AS THE 11TH EARLIEST 80-
DEGREE DAY ON RECORD (14TH EARLIEST IF DUPLICATES ARE CONSIDER TO
EACH HAVE THEIR OWN RANK).
FOLLOWING THAT WARM SPELL, A STRETCH OF DAYS WITH BELOW-NORMAL
TEMPERATURES WAS OBSERVED FROM THE 14TH TO 25TH. THIS PERIOD RANKED
AS THE 10TH COLDEST ON RECORD. THE HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 40 DEGREES ON
THE 20TH NARROWLY MISSED THE RECORD OF 38 SET IN 1947. SOON AFTER,
HIGH TEMPERATURES SOARED INTO THE 80S ONCE MORE. THE HIGH OF 85
DEGREES ON THE 27TH BEAT THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF 84 IN 1986.
THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 49.8 DEGREES WHICH IS NEAR
THE NORMAL OF 49.0.
DROUGHT CONDITIONS REMAINED LARGELY THE SAME IN THE GREATER SOUTH
BEND AREA THROUGH THE MONTH. THERE WAS A PERIOD OF SOME IMPROVEMENT
MID-MONTH THANKS TO THE COOL CONDITIONS AND ABOUT ONE INCH OF RAIN
FROM THE 8TH THROUGH 12TH. HOWEVER, CONDITIONS DETERIORATED BY THE
END OF THE MONTH WITH A CONTINUED LACK OF PRECIPITATION. ALL TOLD,
PRECIPITATION TOTALED 2.24 INCHES AND IS 0.99 INCHES BELOW NORMAL.
THIS RANKS AS THE 32ND DRIEST ON RECORD. SINCE JANUARY 1ST,
PRECIPITATION IS 1.88 INCHES BELOW NORMAL.
LASTLY, IT WOULD NOT BE APRIL IN THE MIDWEST WITHOUT SOME SNOW! SNOW
OCCURRED ON THREE DAYS THIS MONTH TOTALING 0.7 INCHES. THIS IS 0.7
INCHES BELOW THE NORMAL OF 1.4 INCHES. APRIL OF 2020 RECORED 3.7
INCHES!
MAY 2021
...FROSTY NIGHTS AND CONTINUED DROUGHT...
THE MONTH BEGAN WITH FOLKS BREAKING OUT THEIR SUMMER ATTIRE AS A
HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 79 AND 82 WERE OBSERVED ON THE 1ST AND 2ND,
RESPECTIVELY. TEMPERATURES QUICKLY TUMBLED THEREAFTER. THE AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE DEPARTURE FROM THE 5TH THROUGH 15TH RANGED FROM 4 TO 15
DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. A NUMBER OF FROST ADVISORIES WERE ISSUED
DURING THIS STRETCH. PATIENCE PAID OFF AS SUMMER-LIKE TEMPERATURES
RETURNED FROM THE 16TH TO 27TH WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE DEPARTURE
AS GREAT AS 16 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL (20TH, 22ND, 25TH). THE MONTH
ENDED WITH PATCHY FROST IN OUTLYING AREAS ON THE 29TH AND 30TH WITH
A LOW OF 38 REPORTED AT THE AIRPORT. SUCH A MINIMUM TEMPERATURE THIS
LATE IN THE SPRING IS UNFORTUNATE, BUT IT OCCURS MORE OFTEN THAN YOU
MAY THINK.
LET ME EXPLAIN: BY SEARCHING THE CLIMATE DATA BY FIRST AND LAST DATE
FOR A MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OF LESS THAN 40 DEGREES, I FOUND THAT THE
MEAN LAST DATE IS 5/21. THE LATEST THIS HAS OCCURRED IS 6/22(!) IN
1992. SORTING THIS LIST BY YEAR, 5/21/2019 SAW A LOW OF 39 DEGREES
AS DID 5/29/2008. HOWEVER, OUR LOW OF 38 ON 5/30/2021 IS THE LATEST
IT HAS BEEN THIS COLD SINCE 2003 WHEN A LOW OF 37 WAS REPORTED ON
JUNE 2ND.
THOSE TEMPERATURE SWINGS NEARLY CANCELED EACH OTHER OUT IN THE END,
AS THE MONTHLY AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 58.9 DEGREES IS ONLY 0.2
DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.
PRECIPITATION CONTINUED TO BE ELUSIVE FOR SOME. ONLY 2.97 INCHES WAS
OBSERVED WHICH IS 1.23 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. MOST OF THE MONTH`S RAIN
FELL ON MOTHER`S DAY: 1.10 INCHES. THIS WAS FOLLOWED BY 15 DAYS
WITHOUT MEASURABLE RAINFALL. DURING THAT TIME, DROUGHT CONDITIONS
WORSENED. TO EASE THE BURDEN, HOWEVER, WAS 1.42 INCHES FROM THE 25TH
THROUGH 28TH. EVEN WITH THIS LATE-MONTH RAIN, MAY 2020 TIES 1898 AS
THE 50TH DRIEST MAY ON RECORD. THIS IS THE DRIEST MAY SINCE 2.49" IN
2016. SOUTH BEND IS CURRENTLY 4.04 INCHES BELOW-NORMAL FOR THE
CALENDAR YEAR.
...JUNE 2021...
ON JUNE 1, THE TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE YEAR WAS 4.17 INCHES
BELOW NORMAL. ACCORDING TO THE U.S. DROUGHT MONITOR, EXTREME
NORTHERN INDIANA WAS DECLARED "ABNORMALLY DRY", WHILE SOUTHERN
MICHIGAN WAS IN A "MODERATE DROUGHT". BY THE END OF THIS MONTH, THE
YEAR`S PRECIPITATION TOTAL WAS 1.59 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS CHANGE
IS LARGELY THE RESULT OF A STATIONARY FRONT THAT MOVED IN LATE IN
THE MONTH WHICH BECAME THE FOCUS FOR NUMEROUS ROUNDS OF RAIN AND
THUNDERSTORMS.
FOUR TO SEVEN INCHES OF RAIN FELL IN THE GREATER SOUTH BEND AREA
FROM THE 25TH AND 26TH. THE SOUTH BEND AIRPORT RECEIVED AN
IMPRESSIVE 1.84 INCHES (25TH), FOLLOWED BY AN INCREDIBLE 4.30 INCHES
THE NEXT DAY! OF COURSE, THAT SHATTERED THE OLD RECORD OF 1.87
INCHES IN 1994. THE GREATEST SINGLE-DAY PRECIPITATION TOTAL FOR JUNE
IS 4.69 INCHES WHICH OCCURRED ON JUNE 25, 1968.
THE RAIN TOTAL FOR THE MONTH WAS 9.67 INCHES WHICH IS 5.63 INCHES
ABOVE NORMAL. THIS RANKS AS THE 2ND WETTEST JUNE ON RECORD.
TEMPERATURES WERE GENERALLY ABOVE NORMAL FOR THE MONTH WITH THE
EXCEPTION OF A COOL SPELL FROM THE 21ST TO 23RD. THE MORNING LOW OF
46 ON THE 22ND WAS 14 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL AND SEVEN DEGREES AWAY
FROM THE RECORD LOW. ON THE OTHER HAND, SOUTH BEND RECORDED ITS
FIRST THREE 90-DEGREE DAYS (6/5, 11, 12). THE AVERAGE FIRST 90-
DEGREE DAY IS JUNE 11TH. BY THE END OF JUNE LAST YEAR, SOUTH BEND
HAD ALREADY OBSERVED FIVE 90-DEGREE DAYS.
THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 73.0 DEGREES WHICH IS 4.2
DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS RANKS AS THE 8TH WARMEST JUNE ON RECORD.
JULY
...SLIGHTLY COOL AND DRY, BUT HUMID...
THIS MONTH`S AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FINISHED AT 73.4 DEGREES, WHICH IS
0.1 DEGREE ABOVE NORMAL AND RANKED AS THE 53RD WARMEST JULY ALL
TIME. SOUTH BEND HAD 3 DAYS REACHING 90 DEGREES OR HIGHER, WHICH IS
THE LOWEST TOTAL SINCE 2017 WHEN IT HAD 0 90+ DEGREE DAYS AND IS 3.3
DAYS BELOW THE NORMAL NUMBER OF 90+ DEGREE DAYS (6.3). IT ALSO HAD
16 DAYS ONLY FALLING TO 65 DEGREES OR GREATER AS A LOW TEMPERATURE,
WHICH IS 4.4 DAYS ABOVE THE NORMAL TOTAL OF 12.4 DAYS DURING THE
MONTH OF JULY. THIS IS AS A RESULT OF THE HIGH RESIDENCE TIME OF
HIGH HUMIDITY IN THE AREA. PUTTING THAT ALL TOGETHER, THE COOLER
HIGH TEMPERATURES, BUT HIGHER HUMIDITY ALLOWS THE MONTH TO FINISH
OFF AROUND NORMAL IN THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE CATEGORY.
THIS MONTH`S PRECIPITATION TOTALED 2.39, WHICH IS 1.39 INCH BELOW
THE NORMAL JULY TOTAL OF 3.78. THIS RANKED AS THE 42ND DRIEST JULY
ALL TIME. SOUTH BEND HAD A WET MIDDLE PART OF THE MONTH WHEN IT SAW
8 STRAIGHT DAYS OF RAINFALL (ABOVE 0 INCHES) FROM THE 10TH TO THE
17TH. 8 OR MORE STRAIGHT DAYS OF RAINFALL HAS ONLY HAPPENED 5 OTHER
TIMES IN SOUTH BEND`S PERIOD OF RECORD (2003,1992,1990,1915,1905).
HOWEVER, THE HIGHEST AMOUNT OF RAINFALL THAT FELL ON A SINGLE DAY IN
JULY STAYED BELOW 0.75 INCHES HELPING TO KEEP THE TOTAL RAINFALL FOR
THE MONTH BELOW NORMAL AND REFLECTED THE SUMMER TIME HIT-OR-MISS
NATURE OF STORMS, WHICH WERE COMMON THIS MONTH.
AUGUST
...HOT AND WET...
THIS MONTH`S AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FINISHED AT 75.6 DEGREES, WHICH IS
4.9 DEGREE(S) ABOVE NORMAL AND RANKED AS THE 10TH WARMEST AUGUST
WHEN COMPARED TO THE PERIOD OF RECORD. SOUTH BEND HAD 5 DAYS
REACHING 90 DEGREES OR HIGHER, WHICH IS ABOUT 2 DAYS GREATER THAN
THE AVERAGE OF 2.6 DAYS. IT ALSO HAD 18 DAYS ONLY FALLING TO 65
DEGREES OR GREATER AS A LOW TEMPERATURE, WHICH IS 8.2 DAYS ABOVE THE
NORMAL TOTAL OF 9.8 DAYS DURING THE MONTH OF AUGUST. THIS IS AS A
RESULT OF THE HIGH RESIDENCE TIME OF HIGH HUMIDITY IN THE AREA.
PUTTING THAT ALL TOGETHER, THE WARMER HIGH TEMPERATURES, AND HIGHER
HUMIDITY ALLOWS THE MONTH TO FINISH OFF ABOVE NORMAL IN THE AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE CATEGORY.
SOUTH BEND HAD 3 SEVERE WEATHER-AIDED RAINFALL TOTALS EXCEEDING 0.5
INCH ON THE 6TH (1.16), 10TH (2.55), AND 11TH (0.65) AND ANOTHER
RAINFALL EVENT TOTALING 0.86 INCH ON THE 24TH. THESE RAINFALL
TOTALS HELPED SOUTH BEND REACH 5.50 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION FOR THE
MONTH, WHICH IS 1.49 ABOVE THE NORMAL AUGUST TOTAL OF 4.01 INCHES.
THIS RANKED AS THE 19TH WETTEST AUGUST WHEN COMPARED TO THE PERIOD
OF RECORD.
SEPTEMBER 2021
...WARMEST SEPTEMBER IN 88 YEARS...
PLENTY OF WARM AFTERNOONS WERE OBSERVED THIS MONTH, INCLUDING THREE
DAYS WHERE THE HIGH REACHED 90 DEGREES OR WARMER. SEPTEMBER HAS
FEATURED THREE OR MORE 90-DEGREE DAYS SEVEN TIMES IN LAST 21 YEARS.
OUR ANNUAL TOTAL IS NOW UP TO FOURTEEN 90-DEGREE DAYS. THE AVERAGE
DAILY TEMPERATURE WAS AT OR BELOW NORMAL ON ONLY SEVEN DAYS THIS
MONTH. AS A RESULT, THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 69.2
DEGREES WHICH IS 5.3 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS RANKS AS THE 7TH
WARMEST SEPTEMBER ON RECORD.
THERE WERE A FEW EPISODES OF RAIN, THE BULK OF WHICH OCCURRED FROM
THE 20TH THROUGH 23RD WHEN A SLOW-MOVING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVED
THROUGH. NORTHEAST INDIANA AND NORTHWEST OHIO WERE ABSOLUTELY
DRENCHED BY THIS SYSTEM; RAIN TOTALS IN EXCESS OF 5 INCHES WERE
REPORTED. THAT WAS NOT QUITE THE STORY AT SOUTH BEND WHERE THE TOTAL
FOR THE MONTH WAS 1.96 INCHES, WHICH IS 1.42 INCHES BELOW NORMAL.
THIS RANKS AS THE 35TH DRIEST ON RECORD. THIS DEFICIT PRACTICALLY
"ERASES" THE SURPLUS OF 1.49 INCHES AT THE END OF AUGUST.
OCTOBER
...TOP TEN WARMEST AND WETTEST...
THIS WAS A REMARKABLE MONTH WITH RECORD-WARMTH THROUGH THE 21ST AND
RELENTLESS RAIN. SOUTH BEND EXPERIENCED ITS WARMEST OCTOBER ON
RECORD THROUGH OCTOBER 21ST WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 64.6
DEGREES. BY THE 22ND, OCTOBER 1920 SURPASSED THIS YEAR`S WARMTH WITH
AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 64.3 (VS 63.6 OCTOBER 2021). WITHIN THIS
STRETCH OF WARMTH, THREE RECORDS WERE TIED OR BROKEN:
ON 10/7: THE RECORD WARMEST LOW WAS TIED (66 IN 2007)
ON THE 10/10: A NEW RECORD WARMEST LOW OF 70 (PREVIOUS 66 IN 1904)
ON 10/11: THE RECORD WARMEST LOW WAS TIED (64 IN 1920)
A SEASONABLE CHILL FINALLY ARRIVED TO THE AREA ON THE 22ND WHEN THE
AVERAGE DAILY TEMPERATURE WAS SIX DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. THE FINAL
TEN DAYS OF THE MONTH ALSO FEATURED THE FIRST 32-DEGREE FROST WITH A
MORNING LOW OF 31 ON THE 27TH. THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH
WAS 58.9 DEGREES WHICH IS 6.9 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS RANKS AS
THE 8TH WARMEST OCTOBER ON RECORD.
A PROGRESSIVE WEATHER PATTERN BROUGHT SEVERAL ROUNDS OF RAIN TO THE
AREA TO START THE MONTH. THERE WAS A BRIEF DRY PERIOD FROM THE 16TH
TO 19TH BEFORE A SOAKING ROUND OF RAIN ARRIVED. THESE FREQUENT RAIN
EVENTS HAMPERED FALL HARVEST, ESPECIALLY BY THE END OF THE MONTH
WHEN SOILS WERE SATURATED BY 1.60 INCHES ON THE 24TH AND 1.12 INCHES
ON THE 25TH. EIGHTEEN DAYS THIS MONTH FEATURED MEASURABLE
PRECIPITATION; TIED FOR THE 4TH MOST ON RECORD (22 DAYS IN 1898 IS
THE RECORD). THIS IS THE MOST SINCE 2012 WHEN THERE WERE 20 DAYS
WITH MEASURABLE PRECIPITATION.
ALL TOLD, PRECIPITATION TOTALED 6.03 INCHES AND RANKS AS THE 9TH
WETTEST ON RECORD. THIS IS 2.31 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS IS THE
WETTEST OCTOBER SINCE 9.13 INCHES IN 2017. ONE DAILY PRECIPITATION
RECORDS WAS SET THIS MONTH: 1.60 INCHES ON THE 24TH BROKE THE
PREVIOUS RECORD OF 1.04 IN 2008.
NO SNOW WAS REPORTED THIS MONTH WHICH IS BELOW THE NORMAL OF 0.2
INCH.
NOVEMBER
...TEMPERATURE SWINGS AND BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION...
THIS MONTH FEATURED A NUMBER OF TEMPERATURE SWINGS THAT RESULTED IN
AN AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE NEAR NORMAL: 39.9 DEGREES. THIS IS
ONLY 0.1 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THE FIRST SIX DAYS OF THE MONTH WERE
SEASONABLY CHILLY, BUT AFTERNOON HIGH TEMPERATURES ROCKETED INTO THE
60S ON THE 7TH AND 8TH. A COOL-DOWN FOLLOWED UNTIL ANOTHER AFTERNOON
HIGH IN THE 60S OCCURRED ON THE 17TH.
THIS FIRST SNOW OF THIS UPCOMING WINTER SEASON WAS REPORTED ON THE
2ND (TRACE) AND THE FIRST MEASURABLE SNOW OCCURRED ON THE 14TH WHEN
1.2 INCHES OF SNOW WAS OBSERVED. THIS DATE IS NEAR-NORMAL FOR THE
FIRST 1-INCH SNOWFALL. THE MONTH`S TOTAL SNOW WAS 1.8 INCHES WHICH
IS 3.3 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THIS RANKS AS THE 35TH LEAST SNOWIEST ON
RECORD.
PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH TOTALED 1.79 INCHES WHICH IS 0.99 INCHES
BELOW NORMAL. THIS RANKS AS THE 23RD DRIEST ON RECORD.
NO RECORDS WERE SET THIS MONTH.
DECEMBER 2021
...DECEMBER RANKS WITHIN THE TOP TEN WARMEST AND LEAST SNOWIEST...
SNOW LOVERS WERE DISAPPOINTED THIS MONTH WHILE THOSE WHO DETEST
WINTER CELEBRATED THE MILD AIR AND LACK OF SNOW.
COLD AIR WAS LOCKED OUT OF OUR AREA, INSTEAD RESIDING OFF TO OUR
NORTHWEST. ONLY TWO DAYS THIS MONTH REPORTED AN AVERAGE DAILY
TEMPERATURE DEPARTURE BELOW NORMAL. THE WARMEST DAYS OF THE MONTH,
THE 15TH AND 16TH, WERE 26 AND 19 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL FOR THE DAY.
NEW RECORD HIGH AND LOW TEMPERATURES WERE SET ON THE 15TH; 64 BREAKS
THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF 62 IN 1971 WHILE THE LOW OF ONLY 47 DEGREES
BREAKS THE PREVIOUS (WARM) LOW TEMPERATURE RECORD OF 44 IN 1928. THE
HIGH ON THE 16TH MISSED THE RECORD BY 1 DEGREE (65 IN 1984).
WITH THE ABOVE IN MIND, IT IS NO SURPRISE THAT THIS RANKS AS THE 5TH
WARMEST DECEMBER ON RECORD. THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURES THIS MONTH WAS
37.1 DEGREES WHICH IS 7.5 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS IS THE WARMEST
DECEMBER SINCE 2015 (39.4 DEGREES; THE WARMEST ON RECORD).
PRECIPITATION THIS MONTH, MAINLY RAIN, WAS COMMON WITH 3.86 INCHES
OF PRECIPITATION REPORTED. THIS IS 1.46 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL AND
RANKS AS THE 23RD WETTEST DECEMBER ON RECORD.
THE LACK OF SNOWFALL THIS MONTH WAS RECORD-BREAKING UNTIL THE VERY
END WHEN 1.5 INCHES WAS OBSERVED ON THE 28TH. UNTIL THEN, ONLY A
TRACE OF SNOW HAD BEEN OBSERVED. SNOW THIS MONTH TOTALED 1.5 INCHES
WHICH IS 12.2 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. DECEMBER 2021 RANKS AS THE 7TH
LEAST AMOUNT OF SNOW ON RECORD.
DECEMBER 2021 WAS NOTABLE FROM A NATIONAL WEATHER PERSPECTIVE AS
THERE WERE TWO DEVASTATING SEVERE WEATHER OUTBREAKS. THE FIRST
OCCURRED ON THE NIGHT OF DECEMBER 10TH RESULTING IN NEARLY 400
SEVERE WEATHER REPORTS. THERE WERE 66 CONFIRMED TORNADOES INCLUDING
TWO SUPERCELLS WHICH TRAVELED WELL OVER 100 MILES. THIS INCLUDES THE
TORNADO THE IMPACTED MAYFIELD, KY. NEXT, AN ANOMALOUSLY DEEP LOW
PRESSURE SYSTEM PRODUCED A SERIAL DERECHO AS IT MOVED FROM THE
ROCKIES TO THE PLAINS AND INTO THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI RIVER VALLEY
BEGINNING ON DECEMBER 15TH. THUNDERSTORMS ASSOCIATED WITH THE
DERECHO PRODUCED HUNDREDS OF WIND DAMAGE REPORTS AND OVER 90
CONFIRMED TORNADOES. DUE TO THE DEEP NATURE OF THE LOW, THERE WERE
WIDESPREAD SYNOPTIC WIND GUSTS OF 50 TO 70 MPH, WITH SEVERAL SITES
RECORDING WIND GUSTS AS GREAT AS 90 TO 100 MPH. (SOURCE: CENTRAL
REGION HEADQUARTERS)
BROWN/LEWIS/ROLLER
$$
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