Tue, Oct 10, 2023
Winter/Spring 2024 Mesonet OK-First Classes Winter/Spring 2024 Mesonet OK-First classes for public safety officials are now open for enrollment! We will be offering a mix… Read More »
Thu, Apr 27, 2023
Summer/Fall 2023 Mesonet OK-First Classes Summer/Fall 2023 Mesonet OK-First classes for public safety officials are now open for enrollment! We will be offering a mix… Read More »
Tue, Jan 03, 2023
December Caps 2022 Rain Record December provided a fitting end to Oklahoma’s tumultuous 2022 weather story. This final chapter came complete with a half-dozen tornadoes,… Read More »
Tue, Nov 01, 2022
October Drought Relief Mixed Drought held on through October in Oklahoma for the fifteenth consecutive month, its roots dating back to August 2021 and… Read More »
Tue, Oct 11, 2022
Winter/Spring 2023 Mesonet OK-First Classes Winter/Spring 2023 Mesonet OK-First classes for public safety officials are now open for enrollment! We will be offering a mix… Read More »
Mon, Oct 03, 2022
September Continues Dry Dusty Weather Drought surged across Oklahoma as the driest September since 1956 took its toll on the state’s landscape. The amount of… Read More »
Wed, Aug 17, 2022
Fall 2022 OK-FIRE Classes Free training workshops will be offered this fall for both new and experienced users of OK-FIRE, the statewide weather-based decision support system… Read More »
Mon, Aug 01, 2022
July Heat Punishes Oklahoma The seemingly impenetrable heat wave and dry spell that had punished Oklahoma since early June continued through nearly all of… Read More »
Fri, Jul 01, 2022
June Teases Several Seasons June managed to pack pieces of three seasons into a single month. The first 10 days were quite springlike, with… Read More »
Wed, Jun 01, 2022
May Rains Dent Drought May’s reputation as Oklahoma’s most prolific severe weather month was confirmed within the first week with as many as… Read More »
Mon, May 02, 2022
April Winds Highest in Mesonet Era Opinions on Oklahoma’s weather are often more variable than the weather itself. Some Oklahomans will look back on April… Read More »
Wed, Apr 13, 2022
Summer/Fall 2022 Mesonet OK-First Classes Summer/Fall 2022 Mesonet OK-First classes for public safety officials are now open for enrollment! We will be offering a mix… Read More »
Fri, Apr 01, 2022
Variety Describes March Weather March’s weather ran the gamut of nearly all the hazards Oklahoma has to offer, befitting a seasonal transition month in… Read More »
Tue, Mar 01, 2022
Wintry Weather Rules February Three impactful winter storms struck Oklahoma during February, snarling traffic on state highways, bringing down power lines, and forcing… Read More »
Tue, Feb 01, 2022
Winter Arrives In January Winter arrived with conviction at the dawn of the new year in Oklahoma and delivered a startling counterpunch to the… Read More »
Tue, Jan 04, 2022
December Shatters Temperature Record In what could best be described as a climatological anomaly on steroids, Oklahoma soared to its warmest December on… Read More »
Wed, Dec 01, 2021
November Caps Off Warm, Dry Fall An extended pattern of warm, dry weather exacerbated drought conditions during November. Drought impacts, including fire danger and soil… Read More »
Thu, Nov 18, 2021
Spring 2022 Mesonet OK-First Classes Spring 2022 OK-First classes for public safety officials are now open for enrollment! We will be offering a mix of… Read More »
Mon, Nov 01, 2021
October Sets Tornado Record Oklahomans are growing accustomed to Mother Nature’s October weather shenanigans following a snowstorm of up to 13 inches in… Read More »
Tue, Oct 05, 2021
Fall 2021 OK-FIRE Classes Free training workshops will be offered this fall for both new and experienced users of OK-FIRE, the statewide weather-based decision… Read More »
Fri, Feb 01, 2019
The weather was a bit confused in Oklahoma during January. The first half of the month was on the warm and wet side of normal, while the second half was dominated by short, intense periods of dry winter’s chill. The state received an average of 1.86 inches of precipitation from January 1-12, but only 0.31 inches throughout the rest of the month – the 5th wettest and 25th driest such periods on record, respectively. The month’s biggest thrill came in the form of a winter storm on January 3, with freezing rain, sleet and snow falling across much of the state. Preliminary reports had Blanchard leading the official snowfall totals with 5.5 inches, although unofficial reports of up to 6.5 inches came in from the eastern side of Moore. Oklahoma City recorded 4.5 inches, their 18th largest single-day January snow total since records began in 1893. The final bit of excitement was the frigid weather to end the month. A large area of arctic air settled over the Upper Midwest and Northern Plains during the final week of January, breaking many longtime cold temperature records. Low temperatures in Minnesota and North Dakota approached minus 60 degrees, with similar wind chills across a larger range. Oklahoma received the extreme southwestern edge of that air mass – a glancing blow. Wind chills dropped below zero in a few spots, and single digits over a larger area.
According to preliminary data from the Oklahoma Mesonet, the statewide average precipitation total was 2.17 inches, 0.61 inches above normal to rank as the 23rd wettest January since records began in 1895. Northeastern Oklahoma was unusually wet at 2.15 inches above normal, the seventh wettest January for that region. All Mesonet sites in the western quarter saw less than an inch of liquid precipitation, while areas east of Interstate 35 received 2-4 inches. A few Mesonet sites in the far northeast recorded more than 5 inches. Totals ranged from 5.41 inches at Tahlequah to 0.32 inches at Hooker. Far southwestern Oklahoma had deficits of nearly a half-inch, about 50 percent of normal for January. The first two months of climatological winter, which runs from December-February, ended with a statewide average of 5.71 inches, 2.11 inches above normal and the 11th wettest December-January on record. Burns Flat led the state in snowfall for the season through January with 8 inches, and Erick, Forgan and Shattuck had each reported more than 7 inches. The official observing site at Oklahoma City had recorded 5.5 inches.
The January statewide average temperature was 38 degrees, 0.3 degrees above normal to rank as the 52nd warmest on record. Temperatures ranged from 78 degrees at Slapout on January 6 to minus 2 degrees at Eva on the second. The first two days of 2019 were quite frigid in the Panhandle. Eva’s wind chill on the first and second of the month was minus 14 and minus 17 degrees, respectively. Boise City and Kenton had wind chills of minus 10 degrees. The first two months of winter finished with a statewide average of 39.2 degrees, 0.9 degrees above normal to rank as the 43rd warmest such period on record.
Oklahoma managed to make it three consecutive weeks with no drought or abnormally dry conditions depicted on the U.S. Drought Monitor map, from January 8-29. The month’s final map had about 1 percent of the state in abnormally dry conditions. The area was centered on Harmon County in the far southwest where those moisture deficits continued to accumulate. The February outlooks from the Climate Prediction Center (CPC) showed slightly increased odds of below normal temperatures across the northwestern two-thirds of the state, and above normal precipitation for all but the far western Panhandle. The odds were a bit higher across eastern Oklahoma. CPC’s Monthly Drought Outlook does not see drought development anywhere in the state through the end of February.