NATIONAL WEATHER SUMMARY

AUGUST 2023

July 3-Aug. 5: Weekly temperatures averaged 5 to 10°F above normal throughout the south-central U.S., with the core heat dome stretching from southeastern Arizona to the southern Mississippi Delta, extending as far north as Kansas. A secondary area of hot weather across the northern Plains, near the Canadian border, resulted in temperatures averaging as much as 5°F above normal. In contrast, below-normal temperatures prevailed from the Ohio Valley to the northern and middle Atlantic States. From North Carolina to Maine, temperatures locally averaged more than 5°F below normal. A separate area of near- or below-normal temperatures covered much of the western U.S. Meanwhile, rainfall was spotty in other areas, including the East and Intermountain West. A few showers dotted the Four Corners States, but the Southwestern monsoon circulation remained largely weak and erratic. Late in the week, a northbound slug of monsoon-related moisture interacting with a cold front sparked heavy showers in areas of the Plains and Midwest that had already received significant rain. Temperatures remained above 70°F all week in parts of the South and above 80°F in scattered locations across the Desert Southwest. With lows of 87°F on August 4, 5, and 6, Palacios, TX, tied a station record for highest minimum temperature. In Mississippi, monthly records for highest minimum temperature were tied on August 4 in Vicksburg and Jackson, with both locations reporting minima of 80°F. Maximum temperatures were also impressive. Baton Rouge, LA, reported triple-digit temperatures (highs ranging from 101 to 104°F each day from July 29 – August 5, tying a station record of eight consecutive readings of 100°F or higher, originally set from August 19-26, 1921. Elsewhere in Louisiana, New Orleans tied a July record with a high of 101°F on the 31st; previously, that city had attained 101°F on July 16, 1980, and July 23, 1981. For two consecutive weeks (July 24 – August 6), DallasFt. Worth, TX, noted triple-digit readings, including daily-record highs of 107°F on August 1 and 5. College Station, TX, reported highs of 100°F or greater each day from July 9 – August 5, a 4-week span. Late in the week, record-shattering heat returned across the Southwest, where daily-record highs for August 5 included 116°F in Phoenix, AZ, and 102°F in Albuquerque, NM. Albuquerque’s reading was also a monthly record, edging the standard of 101°F set on August 1, 1934; August 1, 1938; and August 2, 1979. In contrast, a few daily-record lows were set in the eastern U.S. For example, record-setting lows for August 2 included 49°F in St. Johnsbury, VT, and 50°F in Martinsburg, WV. The following day in North Carolina, daily-record lows for the 3rd dipped to 59°F in Elizabeth City and 61°F in New Bern.

6-12: On August 8-9, a devastating Hawaiian fire outbreak on Maui included the 2,170-acre Lahaina Fire, the deadliest single wildfire in modern U.S.

hot, dry weather plagued much of Texas and the western and central Gulf Coast regions, leading to further deterioration of pasture and crop conditions. Across the West, hitor-miss showers were mostly light and confined to the Rockies and environs.

Hot, dry weather plagued much of Texas and the western and central Gulf Coast regions, leading to further deterioration of pasture and crop conditions. Across the West, hitor-miss showers were mostly light and confined to the Rockies and environs.

Late in the week, dry weather accompanied building heat in the Pacific Northwest. Weekly temperatures averaged 5°F above normal at a few locations along the northern Pacific Coast. Farther south, readings broadly averaged at least 5 to 10°F above normal from southern New Mexico to Florida. In contrast, near- or belownormal temperatures stretched from the northern Rockies, Great Basin, and Intermountain West to the middle and northern Atlantic Coast. Temperatures averaged as much as 5°F below normal in scattered communities from eastern Oregon to western sections of Nebraska and South Dakota. Record-shattering heat over the southern Plains and the Gulf Coast region maintained significant stress on rangeland, pastures, and immature summer crops, as well as poultry and livestock. All-time records for the highest daily minimum temperature were tied or broken in several Southern locations, including Key West, FL (88°F on August 9); Palacios, TX (87°F on August 4-7 and 9-11); Baton Rouge, LA (85°F on August 10); and Shreveport, LA (83°F on August 10 and 11). In contrast, temperatures dipped below 50°F across much of the Intermountain West and portions of the nation’s northern tier. On August 8, Rapid City, SD, posted a daily-record low of 48°F. Meanwhile, several August maximum temperature records were set or tied across the Deep South, starting on August 6 in Texas locations such as El Paso (112°F) and Del Rio (110°F). El Paso’s former record of 108°F had been set on August 2, 1980. Del Rio’s highest August reading of 109°F had occurred most recently on August 26, 2019. Subsequently, Del Rio achieved another reading of 110°F on August 9, followed the next day by a record-shattering high of 111°F. San Angelo, TX, also logged a high of 111°F on the 10th, tying an August record originally set on August 4, 1943. Daily-record highs exceeding the 110-degree mark extended as far north as the Red River Valley, where Wichita Falls, TX, notched daily-record highs of 113 and 111°F, respectively, on August 9 and 12. Elsewhere in Texas, College Station reported at least 36 consecutive days (July 9 – August 13) with high temperatures of 100°F or greater, breaking the station record of 30 such days, set from July 6 – August 4, 1998. Meanwhile, monthly record heat spread to the southern Atlantic States. On August 8, monthly record highs soared to 102°F on St. Simons Island, GA, and 98°F in Naples, FL. In the central Gulf Coast region, New Orleans, LA, set records with 7 days of triple-digit heat in August (through the 13th) and 9 days so far this year. Previous records for New Orleans had been 2 days of 100-degree heat in August 2010 and 5 days in calendar year 1980. Similarly, Houston’s Hobby Airport experienced 100-degree heat each day from August 4-13, with that 10-day streak edging the standard first set from August 6-14, 1962.

13-19: The West experienced hot, mostly dry weather dominated the northern half of the region, while a monsoonrelated surge delivered Southwestern showers.

Elsewhere, weekly temperatures averaged 5°F or more above normal from central Texas to the central Gulf Coast region, along with portions of the middle Atlantic Coast. A larger area, covering much of northern California and the Northwest, experienced temperatures averaging at least 5 to 10°F above normal. In contrast, near- or belownormal temperatures dominated the northern and central Plains, mid-South, Midwest, and Northeast. Readings averaged as much as 5°F below normal from the middle Mississippi Valley into the lower Great Lakes region. As the week began, blazing heat covered the Deep South and Pacific Northwest. August 14 featured monthly record high temperatures in Oregon locations such as Troutdale (110°F), Portland (108°F), and Hillsboro (107°F). Vancouver, WA (108°F on the 14th) also posted an August record high. Portland recorded triple-digit heat each day from August 13-16, second only to a 5-day streak from July 13-17, 1941, and tied with August 7-10, 1981. Meanwhile, historic heat streaks continued in the central and western Gulf Coast States. In Texas, for example, College Station’s streak of triple-digit heat reached 6 weeks, or 42 days, from July 9 – August 19. College Station’s previous record of 30 such days had been set from July 6 – August 4, 1998. Houston’s Hobby Airport noted 100- degree readings on 16 consecutive days (August 4-19), easily surpassing the station record of 9 days, set from August 6-14, 1962. On August 19, New Orleans, LA, notched its 10th day this month and 12th day this year with triple-digit heat. Prior to this year, New Orleans had never experienced more than three 100-degree days in a month and 5 such days in a year, with both records occurring in 1980. Elsewhere in Louisiana, Baton Rouge endured its 16th day of triple-digit heat this month on August 19, tying an all-time monthly record established in August 1921. The Gulf Coast region’s heat wave further intensified at week’s end, when August 19 featured the highest temperature on record in Alexandria, LA (110°F; previously, 109°F on September 1, 2000). Additionally, an all-time station record was tied on the 19th in New Iberia, LA (104°F), while a monthly record was broken in Lafayette, LA (105°F). Farther west, Abilene, TX, attained 111°F on August 17, tying an all-time station record first established on August 3, 1943. Wichita Falls, TX, tied August records with 6 days of 110-degree heat, along with highs of 113°F on August 9 and 17. By August 19, 110-degree heat surged as far north as Kansas, where daily-record highs included 113°F in Salina and 111°F in Wichita and Topeka. For all three Kansas locations, it marked the highest temperatures in more than a decade, since 2011 or 2012. In stark contrast, scattered daily-record lows were reported across the north-central U.S., especially early in the week. Recordsetting lows for August 14 dipped to 39°F in Casper, WY, and 45°F in Yuma, CO. A day later in Nebraska, daily-record lows for the 15th included 48°F in Imperial and 50°F in McCook. A late week surge of cool air into the East delivered daily-record lows for August 19 to Parkersburg, WV (51°F), and Lynchburg, VA (54°F).

20-26: Numerous Northwestern wildfires in various stages of containment led to smoky conditions and poor air quality. In Washington, the Oregon and Gray Fires collectively burned about 21,000 acres of vegetation and destroyed more than 700 structures. Still, U.S. year-to-date wildfires had burned fewer than 2 million acres by late August, well below the 10-year average of 5 million acres.

a sudden northward and eastward expansion of extreme heat led to weekly temperatures averaging 10 to 15°F above normal from the central Plains into the western Corn Belt. Readings averaged at least 5°F above normal in a broad area extending as far south as the western and central Gulf Coast States, excluding southern Texas. In contrast, cooler-than-normal conditions affected parts of New England, as well as areas of the West impacted by cloudiness and showers associated with the remnants of Hilary. Temperatures averaged more than 5°F below normal in portions of southern California and neighboring areas. For many locations in the western and central Gulf Coast States, all-time station records were set or tied. In College Station, TX, highs soared to 112°F on August 20 and 27. College Station’s only previous occurrence of a 112-degree reading was September 4, 2000. Elsewhere in Texas, records included 111°F in Lufkin (on August 27); 109°F (on August 24 and 27) in Houston; and 108°F (on August 24) in Beaumont-Port Arthur. In Louisiana, never-before-seen temperatures were observed in Alexandria (110°F on August 19 and 24); New Iberia (109°F on August 27); and New Orleans (105°F on August 27). Shreveport, LA (110°F on August 25 and 26), tied an all-time station record originally set on August 18, 1909. Recordshattering heat extended to other Gulf Coast communities, including Gulfport, MS (107°F on August 26), and Mobile, AL (106°F on August 26). The previous all-time station record in Gulfport had been 104°F, set on August 23, 1924; August 5, 1947; and August 30, 1951. Mobile’s previous standard had been 105°F, established on August 29, 2000. Dallas-Fort Worth, TX, attained 110°F on at least 2 consecutive days (August 25-26) for only the third time on record, along with August 10-11, 1936, and June 26- 28, 1980. Amid the backdrop of heat and worsening drought, Louisiana’s largest modern wildfire on record—the Tiger Island Fire southwest of DeRidder—grew to more than 33,000 acres in less than a week, after being ignited on August 22. Farther north, the 23rd was the hottest day in Waterloo, IA (105°F), since August 17, 1988, and the hottest in La Crosse, WI (104°F), since July 13, 1995. The late-summer Midwestern heat, accompanied by mostly dry weather, potentially trimmed yield prospects for immature crops. By August 27, only 9 percent of the nation’s corn was fully mature, although 51 percent of the crop had dented. Similarly, only 5% of the U.S. soybeans were dropping leaves. Unusual heat extended into the overnight hours, when the August 22 minimum temperature of 81°F in Sioux Falls, SD, tied July 12, 1936, and August 14, 1938, for an all-time station record. On August 22-23, Sioux Falls experienced consecutive days with lows of 80°F or greater for the first time on record. Back in Louisiana, several cities—including Baton Rouge and New Orleans—have already set annual records for days with triple-digit readings. Through August 27, temperatures had attained the 100-degree mark on 30 and 17 days, respectively in Baton Rouge and New Orleans, topping former standards of 28 days in 1921 and 5 days in 1980.

 

 

Jim G. Munley, jr.
http://www.jimmunleywx.com