Climatological Report (Monthly)
Issued by NWS Buffalo, NY
Issued by NWS Buffalo, NY
660 CXUS51 KBUF 102157 CLMBUF CLIMATE REPORT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BUFFALO NY 328 PM EST MON JAN 01 2024 ................................... ...THE BUFFALO NY CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE MONTH OF DECEMBER 2023... CLIMATE NORMAL PERIOD: 1991 TO 2020 CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD: 1871 TO 2023 WEATHER OBSERVED NORMAL DEPART LAST YEAR`S VALUE DATE(S) VALUE FROM VALUE DATE(S) NORMAL ................................................................ TEMPERATURE (F) RECORD HIGH 74 12/03/1982 LOW -10 12/25/1980 HIGHEST 60 12/09 55 12/30 LOWEST 24 12/14 4 12/24 12/19 12/22 AVG. MAXIMUM 43.8 37.2 6.6 37.2 AVG. MINIMUM 34.9 25.6 9.3 26.9 MEAN 39.4 31.4 8.0 32.0 DAYS MAX >= 90 0 0.0 0.0 0 DAYS MAX <= 32 1 10.0 -9.0 10 DAYS MIN <= 32 14 24.0 -10.0 25 DAYS MIN <= 0 0 0.2 -0.2 0 PRECIPITATION (INCHES) RECORD MAXIMUM 8.71 1990 MINIMUM 0.69 1943 TOTALS 3.87 3.75 0.12 6.57 DAYS >= .01 20 17 DAYS >= .10 10 11 DAYS >= .50 2 4 DAYS >= 1.00 0 2 GREATEST 24 HR. TOTAL 0.88 12/27 TO 12/27 1.98 12/23 TO 12/23 SNOWFALL (INCHES) RECORDS TOTAL 82.7 2001 TOTALS 5.7 25.3 -19.6 64.7 SINCE 7/1 8.0 34.0 -26.0 SNOWDEPTH AVG. 0 6 DAYS >= 1.0 2 6.0 -4.0 6 DAYS >= 0.1 6 10 GREATEST SNOW DEPTH 3 12/07 28 12/27 24 HR TOTAL 2.9 DEGREE DAYS HEATING TOTAL 784 1042 -258 1014 SINCE 7/1 1919 2313 -394 MM COOLING TOTAL 0 0 0 0 SINCE 1/1 627 607 20 MM ................................................................ WIND (MPH) AVERAGE WIND SPEED 9.0 HIGHEST WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 35/240 HIGHEST GUST SPEED/DIRECTION 52/240 DATE 12/12 SKY COVER POSSIBLE SUNSHINE (PERCENT) MM NUMBER OF DAYS FAIR 1 NUMBER OF DAYS PC 4 NUMBER OF DAYS CLOUDY 26 AVERAGE RH (PERCENT) 80 WEATHER CONDITIONS. NUMBER OF DAYS WITH THUNDERSTORM 1 MIXED PRECIP 0 HEAVY RAIN 2 RAIN 4 LIGHT RAIN 17 FREEZING RAIN 0 LT FREEZING RAIN 0 HAIL 0 HEAVY SNOW 0 SNOW 0 LIGHT SNOW 11 SLEET 0 FOG 20 FOG W/VIS <= 1/4 MILE 1 HAZE 0 - INDICATES NEGATIVE NUMBERS. R INDICATES RECORD WAS SET OR TIED. MM INDICATES DATA IS MISSING. T INDICATES TRACE AMOUNT. && ...NOTABLE WARMTH, LACK OF SNOW THIS DECEMBER... A STRONG EL NIO SIGNAL IN THE EQUATORIAL PACIFIC REGION ENHANCED THE STRONG WEST TO EAST FLOW ACROSS THE PACIFIC OCEAN AND CONTINENTAL UNITED STATES, LOCKING COLD AIR WELL TO OUR NORTH AND MAKING FOR REMARKABLE WARMTH THROUGH THE MONTH OF DECEMBER. JUST TWO DAYS FINISHED WITH BELOW DAILY NORMAL TEMPERATURES. THIS MILD MONTH ALSO FEATURED VERY LITTLE SNOWFALL AND OF WHAT SNOW THAT DID ACCUMULATE WAS MELTED QUICKLY IN THE WARMTH. THE TEMPERATURE AVERAGED 39.4F THIS MONTH, RANKING 2ND WARMEST ON RECORD. ONLY THE RECENT MILD DECEMBER OF 2015 (ALSO AN EL NIO WINTER) FEATURED A HIGHER MONTHLY AVERAGE TEMPERATURE. THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE RECORDED FOR THE MONTH WAS A MERE 24F DEGREES, PLACING THE HIGHEST MONTHLY MINIMUM TEMPERATURE ON RECORD FOR BUFFALO. THE STREAK OF DAYS FEATURING A MINIMUM TEMPERATURE VALUE AT OR ABOVE 20F REACHED 309 DAYS BY MONTH`S END, WHICH IS A RECORD FOR LENGTH OF CONSECUTIVE DAYS. OVERNIGHT MINIMUMS WERE ESPECIALLY WARM, AVERAGING 9.3 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THERE WERE 21 DAYS THAT REMAINED AT OR ABOVE FREEZING, TYING WITH 2015 FOR THE GREATEST NUMBER OF DAYS ON RECORD. THERE WERE 4 RECORD WARM MINIMUM TEMPERATURES SET THIS MONTH, WITH THESE OCCURRING ON THE 9TH, 17TH, 27TH AND 28TH. PRECIPITATION TOTALED NEAR NORMAL FOR THE MONTH, WITH 3.87 INCHES MEASURED. THE BULK OF THIS TOTAL FELL AS RAIN. THERE WERE TWO 3-DAY STRETCHES THAT WERE PRECIPITATION FREE, THESE ON THE 14TH-16TH AND AGAIN ON THE 20TH-22ND. THE WETTEST DAY WAS THE 27TH WHEN 0.88 INCHES OF RAIN WAS RECORDED DURING A PROLONGED PERIOD OF RAIN. SNOWFALL WAS LACKING WITH JUST 5.7 INCHES OF SNOW MEASURED. THIS FELL PRIMARILY IN 2 EVENTS, ONE ON THE 6TH-7TH AND ANOTHER ON THE 18TH-19TH AND BOTH WERE SYNOPTICALLY DRIVEN SNOW EVENTS. DECEMBER BEGAN WET FOR WESTERN NEW YORK AS SEVERAL STORM SYSTEMS APPROACHED THE REGION FROM THE SOUTH. ANOTHER STORM PASSED BY TO OUR SOUTH OF NEW YORK STATE ON THE 5TH, AND BROUGHT A LITTLE LIGHT SNOW TO THE REGION. A WARM FRONT FROM THE WEST BROUGHT SEVERAL INCHES OF SNOW TO WESTERN NEW YORK ON THE 7TH, BUT MILD AIR BEHIND THE FRONT QUICKLY MELTED WHAT SNOW FELL. IT WAS A SUNNY DAY ON THE 12TH, BUT AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT WINDS GUSTED TO AROUND 50 MPH THROUGH THE AFTERNOON HOURS. THE COMBINATION OF WIDESPREAD, AND LATER, LAKE EFFECT SNOW BROUGHT ADDITIONAL SNOW TO THE BUFFALO METRO AREA ON THE 18TH-19TH. FROM THIS EVENT, CLOSE TO A FOOT OF SNOW FELL OVER THE HILLS SOUTH OF BUFFALO, WHILE SEVERAL INCHES OF SNOW FELL AROUND BUFFALO. MILD AIR TEMPERATURES MELTED THE SNOW WELL BEFORE CHRISTMAS DAY FOR THE BUFFALO METRO AREA. A MILD AIRMASS ON CHRISTMAS DAY BROUGHT THE FOURTH WARMEST CHRISTMAS DAY ON RECORD, WITH 57 RECORDED AT THE AIRPORT. RAIN, DRIZZLE AND FOG REMAINED AROUND THE REGION ON THE 28TH-30TH, WITH A FEW WET SNOWFLAKES EARLY ON THE 30TH. THE FINAL ACCUMULATING SNOW OF THE MONTH FELL ON THE 31ST AS A WEAK CLIPPER LOW PASSED INTO THE REGION, YET NOT ENOUGH TO PUSH BUFFALO OUT OF THE TOP 3 LEAST SNOWIEST STARTS TO THE WINTER SEASON. THE WATER TEMPERATURE ON LAKE ERIE FLUCTUATED BETWEEN 43F AND 45F DEGREES THROUGH THE MONTH. THE 43F DEGREES READING ON THE 31ST WAS THE WARMEST THE LAKE HAS EVER BEEN TO CLOSE OUT THE YEAR. WINDS WERE WELL BELOW NORMAL, FINISHING MORE THAN 2 MILES PER HOUR BELOW NORMAL. THE GREATEST WIND GUST WAS THE 52 MPH READING ON THE 12TH IN THE EARLY AFTERNOON. IN ALL A MILD AND WET MONTH, WITH THE SNOW DROUGHT CONTINUING. && THOMAS $$