Climatological Report (Annual)
Issued by NWS Topeka, KS
Issued by NWS Topeka, KS
000 CXUS53 KTOP 012200 CLATOP CLIMATE REPORT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TOPEKA KS 400 PM CST FRI JAN 01 2021 ................................... ...THE TOPEKA KS CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE YEAR OF 2020... CLIMATE NORMAL PERIOD 1981 TO 2010 CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD 1887 TO 2020 WEATHER OBSERVED NORMAL DEPART LAST YEAR`S VALUE DATE(S) VALUE FROM VALUE DATE(S) NORMAL ................................................................ TEMPERATURE (F) RECORD HIGH 114 07/24/1936 LOW -26 12/23/1989 HIGHEST 97 08/28 MM MM 98 07/20 07/18 07/19 LOWEST 1 02/14 MM MM -3 01/30 AVG. MAXIMUM 67.5 66.1 1.4 65.5 AVG. MINIMUM 45.3 44.2 1.1 44.6 MEAN 56.4 55.1 1.3 55.0 DAYS MAX >= 90 54 41.5 12.5 43 DAYS MAX <= 32 10 21.3 -11.3 28 DAYS MIN <= 32 116 110.9 5.1 124 DAYS MIN <= 0 0 4.0 -4.0 2 PRECIPITATION (INCHES) RECORD MAXIMUM 60.89 1973 MINIMUM 19.07 1963 TOTALS 35.50 36.46 -0.96 48.75 DAILY AVG. 0.10 0.10 0.00 0.13 DAYS >= .01 86 99.6 -13.6 114 DAYS >= .10 56 60.6 -4.6 75 DAYS >= .50 19 23.9 -4.9 30 DAYS >= 1.00 12 10.1 1.9 15 GREATEST 24 HR. TOTAL 2.53 07/29 TO 07/29 SNOWFALL (INCHES) RECORDS TOTAL 48.6 1960 24 HR TOTAL 17.3 02/26/1900 TO 02/27/1900 SNOW DEPTH 18 03/16/1960 TOTALS 5.8 17.8 -12.0 25.0 SINCE 7/1 0.6 6.5 -5.9 0.6 SNOWDEPTH AVG. 0 0 DAYS >= TRACE 29 12.7 16.3 43 DAYS >= 1.0 2 5.2 -3.2 9 GREATEST SNOW DEPTH 2 02/15 4 12/16 02/14 02/20 02/13 01/23 24 HR TOTAL 2.7 02/12 TO 02/12 4.4 12/15 DEGREE DAYS HEATING TOTAL 4587 5020 -433 5117 SINCE 7/1 1806 2017 -211 MM COOLING TOTAL 1537 1422 115 1609 SINCE 1/1 1537 1422 115 1609 ................................................................ WIND (MPH) AVERAGE WIND SPEED 7.4 RESULTANT WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 1/150 HIGHEST WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 38/300 DATE 06/04 HIGHEST GUST SPEED/DIRECTION 58/320 DATE 07/09 SKY COVER AVERAGE SKY COVER 0.33 AVERAGE RH (PERCENT) 65 WEATHER CONDITIONS. NUMBER OF DAYS WITH THUNDERSTORM 46 MIXED PRECIP 0 HEAVY RAIN 34 RAIN 45 LIGHT RAIN 104 FREEZING RAIN 4 LT FREEZING RAIN 6 HAIL 4 HEAVY SNOW 0 SNOW 1 LIGHT SNOW 15 SLEET 5 FOG 156 FOG W/VIS <= 1/4 MILE 32 HAZE 58 - INDICATES NEGATIVE NUMBERS. R INDICATES RECORD WAS SET OR TIED. MM INDICATES DATA IS MISSING. T INDICATES TRACE AMOUNT. REMARKS... THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE YEAR WAS SOMEWHAT ABOVE NORMAL WHILE THE TOTAL PRECIPITATION WAS JUST BELOW NORMAL. THE WARMTH STARTED EARLY AS THE FIRST NINE DAYS OF THE MONTH SAW THEIR AVERAGE TEMPERATURE TO BE NEAR THOSE OF EARLY MARCH. WINTER DID STILL MAKE ITSELF KNOWN AS FREEZING RAIN AND SLEET CAUSED SOME POWER OUTAGES ON JANUARY 10 AND WIND CHILLS FELL TO AROUND TEN DEGREES BELOW ZERO ON FEBRUARY 13 AND 14. THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE MEASURED IN MARCH...HOWEVER...WAS ONLY 22 DEGREES. ONLY FOURTEEN OTHER MARCHES ON RECORD HAD A WARMER LOWEST TEMPERATURE. FREEZING RAIN...SLEET...AND LIGHT SNOW FELL FELL ON THE MORNING OF APRIL 3 WHICH LED TO MANY TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS. A FEW DAYS LATER...ON APRIL 8...THE TEMPERATURE REACHED 88 DEGREES...TYING THE RECORD HIGH FOR THAT DAY. THUNDERSTORMS ON THE EVENING OF APRIL 11 PRODUCED HAIL UP TO THE SIZE OF GOLFBALLS IN WESTERN AND NORTHERN PORTIONS OF TOPEKA AND SMALL HAIL RETURNED AFTER DAWN ON THE 12TH...BUT A STRONG COLD FRONT BROUGHT TEMPERATURES DOWN FROM THE 60S IN THE MORNING TO THE 30S IN THE AFTERNOON WITH WIND CHILLS NEAR 20 THAT EVENING. WEATHER MORE TYPICAL OF SPRING THEN DEVELOPED WITH NEARLY TWO INCHES OF RAIN ON MAY 4 FROM SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THAT PRODUCED A 68 MPH WIND GUST AT FORBES FIELD AND TREE AND POWER LINE DAMAGE ACROSS MUCH OF THE CITY. A RECORD RAIN OF 2.38 INCHES FELL ON JUNE 27 INCLUDING 1.65 INCHES IN JUST ONE HOUR. OVER THE PERIOD OF JULY 27 TO 30...5.61 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION WAS MEASURED WHICH CAUSED SOME FLASH FLOODING OF HOMES ON JULY 30. SUMMERTIME HEAT BUILT BY MID JULY WITH HEAT INDICES REACHING 100 TO 105 JULY 17 TO 19 AND JULY 23 TO 26...WITH A PEAK OF 110 ON JULY 18...HOWEVER THE MERCURY FELL TO 53 DEGREES ON AUGUST 4 WHICH WAS THE COLDEST TEMPERATURE TO HAVE OCCURRED IN THE FIRST HALF OF AUGUST SINCE 2005. PERIODS OF RAIN AND DRIZZLE DOMINATED SEPTEMBER 9 AND 10 WITH A HIGH TEMPERATURE OF ONLY 54 DEGREES ON THE 9TH...BREAKING THAT DAY/S RECORD LOWEST MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE BY TEN DEGREES. ANOTHER COOL PERIOD OCCURRED FROM OCTOBER 23 TO 29 WITH TEMPERATURES AVERAGING TO BE FIFTEEN DEGREES BELOW NORMAL...INCLUDING RECORD LOWEST TEMPERATURES OF 32 ON THE 26TH AND 36 ON THE 27TH. A RECORD OF 0.6 INCHES OF SNOW ALSO FELL ON THE 26TH AND LIGHT FREEZING RAIN FELL ON THE 27TH...THE LATTER OF WHICH LEAD TO SOME TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS. NOVEMBER SAW FAIRLY PERSISTENT WARMTH WITH ONLY SEVEN DAYS SEEING THEIR AVERAGE TEMPERATURE BELOW NORMAL. NEARLY ALL THE PRECIPITATION IN DECEMBER FELL ON ONE DAY. FREEZING RAIN STARTED IN THE PRE-DAWN HOURS OF DECEMBER 29 AND CONTINUED THROUGH MUCH OF THE MORNING WITH A FEW TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS RESULTING. RAIN CONTINUED INTO THE EARLY EVENING WITH THE DAY/S TOTAL PRECIPITATION AT 1.21 INCHES. THIS SET THE RECORD FOR THE MOST PRECIPITATION FOR THE DAY. -- SEASONAL AVERAGE TEMPERATURES IN THE TOP 20 ON RECORD -- WINTER......12TH WARMEST /DECEMBER 2019-FEBRUARY 2020/ -- SEASONAL TOTAL PRECIPITATION IN THE TOP 20 ON RECORD -- NONE -- SEASONAL TOTAL SNOWFALL IN THE TOP 20 ON RECORD -- NONE -- MONTHLY AVERAGE TEMPERATURES IN THE TOP 20 ON RECORD -- JANUARY.....12TH WARMEST MARCH.......15TH WARMEST JUNE.........9TH WARMEST OCTOBER.....15TH COLDEST NOVEMBER....13TH WARMEST -- MONTHLY TOTAL PRECIPITATION IN THE TOP 20 ON RECORD -- JULY.........7TH WETTEST AUGUST.......9TH DRIEST OCTOBER.....10TH DRIEST -- MONTHLY TOTAL SNOWFALL IN THE TOP 20 ON RECORD -- NONE -- DAILY RECORDS -- HIGHEST MAXIMUM - FEB 2......72 F LOWEST MINIMUM -- JUN 30.....77 F HIGHEST MINIMUM - NOV 8......57 F LOWEST MAXIMUM -- MAY 11.....51 F SEP 9......54 F OCT 26.....32 F OCT 27.....36 F PRECIPITATION --- JAN 10...0.75 INCHES JAN 17...0.42 INCHES JUN 27...2.38 INCHES JUL 29...2.53 INCHES DEC 29...1.21 INCHES SNOWFALL -------- OCT 26....0.6 INCHES -- THUNDERSTORM-RELATED SEVERE WEATHER REPORTS -- HAIL ----- GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL APRIL 11 WIND ----- 55 TO 60 MPH GUSTS APRIL 28 68 MPH GUST AT FORBES FIELD MAY 4 GUSTS AROUND 60 MPH JUNE 4 GUSTS AROUND 60 MPH JUNE 5 58 MPH GUSTS AT BILLARD AIRPORT JULY 9 $$