Tue, Apr 23, 2013
Science of Climate Change and Variability Workshop Oklahomas for Excellence in Science Education, the Oklahoma Climatological Survey, the National Science Foundation, and the University of Oklahoma Biological… Read More »
Mon, Apr 01, 2013
Arrival of Spring Fails to Rescue Dry March April 1, 2013 The wet conditions of February failed to translate into March, but the cooler than normal… Read More »
Thu, Feb 28, 2013
February Brings Winter Storms, Drought Relief February 28, 2013 Winter roared back into Oklahoma during February, providing significant drought relief to much of the… Read More »
Mon, Feb 04, 2013
January Defies Dry Trend January 31, 2013 January seemed destined to finish on the dry side of normal, just as the eight months previous… Read More »
Wed, Jan 30, 2013
Oklahoma Mesonet Weather Camps 2013 We will be hosting two camps in the summer of 2013. A middle school camp for Middle School Oklahoma… Read More »
Wed, Jan 02, 2013
Heat and Drought Dominate 2012 Oklahoma Weather Headlines A slide back to true wintry weather, the likes of which had not been seen across Oklahoma since early… Read More »
Thu, Nov 29, 2012
Oklahoma Drought Picture Worsens During November Oklahoma Drought Picture Worsens During November Drought surged during November with a return to the dry, warm and… Read More »
Thu, Nov 08, 2012
Oklahoma Drought Continues to Expand With some areas of the state awaiting their first drop of rainfall since the end of September and a… Read More »
Thu, Nov 01, 2012
October Interrupts Warm Streak, But Not Drought It’s been awhile since Oklahoma has seen a month like October. Eleven months, to be exact. Not since September… Read More »
Tue, Oct 02, 2012
Late September Rains Provide Drought Relief Hopes for drought relief were starting to fade as September wound down, only to be saved by a slow-moving soaker… Read More »
Thu, Sep 06, 2012
Drought and Wildfires Plague August According to data from the Oklahoma Mesonet, August finished one degree above normal to rank as the 53rd warmest… Read More »
Thu, Aug 09, 2012
Extreme to Exceptional Drought Covers Most of Oklahoma Spurred by the rapidly intensifying flash drought and its impacts, including the extreme fire danger realized in the state… Read More »
Wed, Aug 01, 2012
July Blazes to Sixth Warmest on Record as Drought Expands August 1, 2012 Heat exploded across Oklahoma during July thanks to a rapidly intensifying drought and a persistent upper-level ridge… Read More »
Thu, Jul 19, 2012
Heat and Drought Surge Once Again in Oklahoma The drought plaguing much of the interior United States continues to stretch its tendrils into Oklahoma. Some experts claim… Read More »
Mon, Jul 02, 2012
June Ends On A Scorching Note A blistering final week and a return to drought transformed June from a mildly hot month into a… Read More »
Mon, Jun 04, 2012
May Ends Warmest Spring in Oklahoma History May Ends Warmest Spring in Oklahoma History Fri. June 1, 2012 A pleasantly cool final day and scattered heavy… Read More »
Fri, Mar 30, 2012
OK Regents Summer Academies This summer, invite your students to spend time at an Oklahoma college or university and discover the fascinating worlds of aeronautics,… Read More »
Fri, Mar 23, 2012
Drought Ends for Much of Oklahoma Drought Ends for Much of Oklahoma Thu, Mar 22, 2012 Heavy rain associated with this week’s slow-moving storm… Read More »
Thu, Mar 01, 2012
Warm February Closes Out Eleventh Warmest Winter in Oklahoma Golf clubs replaced parkas as the outdoor accessory of choice this winter, and Oklahoma’s kids can only dream of missed… Read More »
Tue, Jan 03, 2012
EarthStorm-Job Shadow Program for Meteorology Careers Applications for the 2012 Job Shadow Day are available at: http://www.mesonet.org/index.php/earthstorm/page/job_shadow. Deadline: February 3rd, 2012 Job Shadow Day: February… Read More »
Mon, Jun 04, 2012
May Ends Warmest Spring in Oklahoma History
Fri. June 1, 2012
A pleasantly cool final day and scattered heavy rains during the month’s final week were too little and too late, and May entered the record books as one of the warmest and driest in state history. According to data from the Oklahoma Mesonet, the statewide average temperature finished at 72.2 degrees, 4.3 degrees above normal. That ranks May as the fifth warmest on record. Statewide average records date back to 1895. That heat, combined with the state’s warmest March and tenth warmest April, propelled the spring season to the warmest on record at 65.1 degrees, 6 degrees above normal. The climatological spring runs from March through May for record purposes. The previous record mark for spring was 62.9 degrees from 2006. The January-May statewide average of 56.3 degrees also tops the record books at 5.2 degrees above normal.
The recent warmth is a continuation of what the state has experienced since early 2010. Of the last 26 months, starting with April 2010, 21 have been warmer than normal. Three of the last 11 months (July and August, 2011, and March 2012) and two out of the last four seasons (summer 2011 and spring 2012) eclipsed their respective all-time heat records as well. June 2011 barely missed that month’s top mark, settling for the rank of second warmest. Oklahoma’s July and summer statewide average temperatures in 2011 were record marks for the United States as well. There were blasts of wintry revenge during that period, of course. Oklahoma saw its all-time lowest minimum temperature and 24-hour snowfall records fall in February 2011. Just prior to the string of warm months, the winter of 2009-10 finished as the eighth coldest – and one of the snowiest – on record at more than 4 degrees below normal.
Scattered heavy rainfall at the end of the month helped May to avoid becoming the driest on record and finished with the rank of fourth driest. The statewide average precipitation total was 1.8 inches, 3.4 inches below normal. Rainfall totals from the Mesonet ranged from around 6 inches in Grady County to a dusty 0.01 inches from both Arnett and Slapout. Much of the northern third of the state had trouble keeping the rain gauge wet and recorded less than an inch for the month. Drought relief that began last fall faded in the dry, hot weather of April and May for some areas. The latest U.S. Drought Monitor report, released on May 31, finds moderate drought creeping back into eastern Oklahoma from Arkansas. A broader area of “abnormally dry” conditions, a drought pre-cursor, covered much of eastern and southern Oklahoma. The Panhandle and southwestern Oklahoma continue with drought conditions labeled from “moderate” to “extreme.”
Despite the violent weather during its last week, May was actually one of the quietest on record for tornadoes. Preliminary numbers from the National Weather Service (NWS) estimate May’s total at three. While that number could still rise, it would not be by much. May 2010 had a record-tying 90 tornadoes and May 2011 had 46. The preliminary total for the year currently stands at 51. The average tornado count for May is 22 and the annual average is 55. Accurate tornado statistics date back to 1950.
The latest outlooks from the NWS’ Climate Prediction Center for both June and the summer months of June through August continue to indicate increased chances for above normal temperatures in Oklahoma and much of the southern United States. There are no clear signals for the state on what to expect for precipitation, however. Past that period, there are suggestions that an El Niño event could develop in the fall. That phenomenon, characterized by warmer than normal waters in the equatorial pacific, can bring cooler and wetter weather during winter to the southern tier of the United States, including Oklahoma. The last two winters have seen La Niña events enhance Oklahoma’s chances for warmer and drier weather.
