NATIONAL WEATHER SUMMARY

JUNE 2018

1-9: Early-season heat continued across a broad area of the country.  Notably, weekly temperatures averaged as much as 10°F above normal in many locations from the Four Corners States to the northern Plains.  Heat across the nation’s mid-section peaked on June 5, when high temperatures locally topped 100°F as far north as South Dakota.  Persistent heat gripped the south-central U.S., including much of Texas, where temperatures regularly exceeded 100°F from June 5-7.  In contrast, weekly temperatures averaged at least 5°F below normal in northern New England. In Deep South Texas, McAllen opened June with four consecutive daily-record highs (101, 103, 102, and 102°F).   Elsewhere in Texas, June 3 featured daily-record highs of 100°F in locations such as Harlingen and Victoria.  Heat stretched into the Southwest, where Douglas, AZ, notched a daily-record high (104°F) on June 3.  The following day, triple-digit, daily-record highs for June 4 included 102°F in Bullfrog, UT, and 100°F in Winslow, AZ.  Across the Plains, heat peaked on June 5 with daily-record highs soaring to 107°F in Del Rio, TX; 102°F in Valentine, NE; 100°F in Pueblo, CO; and 99°F in Pierre, SD.  In contrast, a surge of cool air into the Great Lakes and Northeastern States resulted in a daily-record low (32°F on June 5) in Hibbing, MN.  Hot weather continued, however, for several more days in Texas, where McAllen logged another pair of daily-record highs (103 and 104°F, respectively) on June 6-7.    Other record-setting highs in Texas on June 6 included 108°F in Laredo, 105°F in San Angelo, and 101°F in San Antonio.  By June 9, a surge of Western warmth pushed highs to daily-record levels in locations such as Denver, CO (95°F), and Bozeman, MT (92°F).

 

10-16: Heat in the nation’s mid-section boosted weekly temperatures at least 10°F above normal across the central Plains and southwestern Corn Belt.  A much broader area, stretching from California to the southern Atlantic States, experienced mostly above normal temperatures.  Cooler-than-normal conditions were limited to northern sections of the Rockies and High Plains and parts of the Northeast.  Despite mostly above-normal temperatures.  Showers remained active across much of the North, Southeast, and Midwest.  Rainfall was spotty for much of the week across the central and southern Plains, the western Gulf Coast region, and the mid-South. Elsewhere, seasonably dry weather prevailed in California and the Great Basin, while cool, showery conditions dominated northern sections of the Rockies and High Plains.  Cool conditions in the Northeast and Northwest resulted in several daily-record lows.  In fact, the week opened with record-setting lows for June 10 in Bangor, ME (39°F), and Klamath Falls, OR (26°F).  In Washington, Quillayute notched a daily-record low (36°F) on June 11.  Additional Northwestern record lows were established on June 12 in locations such as Wisdom, MT (21°F), and Pendleton, OR (39°F).  Later, another Northeastern cool spell led to a daily record low (37°F on June 15) in Caribou, ME.  In contrast, stifling heat gripped the nation’s mid-section.  Early-week highs soared to daily-record levels in Midland, TX (107°F on June 11), and Dodge City, KS (104°F on June 10).  A few days later, Southwestern daily-record highs for June 13 included 103°F in Douglas, AZ, and 101°F in Grand Junction, CO.  Across the northern and central Plains, heat generally peaked on June 14 with daily-record highs in 105°F in Rapid City, SD, and 103°F in Pueblo, CO, and Salina, KS.  Late in the week, heat began to overspread the Midwest, where Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN, posted a daily record high (95°F on June 15).  In Wisconsin, La Crosse registered consecutive daily-record highs (94 and 98°F, respectively) on June 16-17.

 

17-23: Generally, dry weather also prevailed in the Pacific Northwest, where a late-week rash of wildfires in Oregon and northern California collectively charred more than 100,000 acres of vegetation and destroyed more than 50 structures.  Weekly temperatures averaged as much as 10°F above normal in the Pacific Northwest, and were above normal in most other parts of the country.  Some of the hottest weather, relative to normal, affected the southern Mid-Atlantic States.  Elsewhere, cooler-than-normal conditions were limited to portions of the northern High Plains and northern Intermountain West. Early-week heat spread from the Midwest into the Northeast.  On June 17, daily-record highs soared to 98°F in La Crosse, WI, and 96°F in Alpena, MI.  Record-setting highs for June 18 climbed to 97°F in Albany, NY, and Williamsport, PA.  In Virginia, Norfolk posted a daily-record high of 101°F on June 19.  Subsequently, cooler air overspread the Northeast, where daily-record lows for June 22 dipped to 33°F in Houlton, ME, and 40°F in Watertown, NY.  Farther west, record-breaking heat arrived at mid-week in the Pacific Northwest, where highs on June 20 surged to 95°F in Portland, OR, and 91°F in Olympia, WA.  In California, Death Valley registered a daily-record high of 126°F on June 21.  Late in the week, heat across the South led to several records.  For example, St. Simons Island, GA, logged daily-record highs of 98 and 96°F, respectively, on June 21 and 23.  On June 22, Roswell, NM, notched a daily-record high of 109°F.  In Texas, Del Rio collected consecutive daily-record highs (106°F both days) on June 23-24.

 

24-30: Nearly all of the West experienced dry weather, hampering wildfire containment efforts in areas where temperatures were elevated and winds were erratic.  In particular, more than three dozen Western wildfires were active at the end of June, with some of the largest fires burning in Colorado and northern California.  Hotter-than-normal weather continued to dominate the country, with heat surging across the central and southern Plains at mid-week and into the Midwest by Friday.  Portions of California and the Southwest also experienced some very hot weather.  Near-normal temperatures were limited to a few regions, including southern Florida, the Northeast, the northern High Plains, the Northwest, and areas along the Pacific Coast.  The heat surge boosted temperatures to 100°F or higher on the Plains as far north as western and southern Nebraska.  Multiple triple digit readings were noted across the central and southern High Plains, as well as parts of California, the southern Great Basin, and the Southwest.  Late-week heat brought 90-degree heat to most Midwestern areas and highs of 95°F or greater to several Corn Belt locations. Early-week heat gripped the south-central U.S. before expanding.  On June 23-24, Del Rio, TX, posted consecutive daily-record highs (106°F both days).  Other record-setting highs in Texas for the 24th included 108°F in Midland and 107°F in San Angelo.  By mid-week, heat arrived in California, the Great Basin, and the Southwest, and surged across the central High Plains.  Daily-record highs rose to 98°F on June 26 in Nevada locations such as Tonopah and Eureka.  Colorado Springs, CO, collected consecutive daily-records highs (99 and 100°F, respectively) on June 27-28.  Elsewhere in Colorado, daily-record highs climbed to 106°F (on June 27) in Pueblo and 105°F (on June 28) in Denver.  The high in Denver tied an all-time record that had been previously achieved on August 8, 1878; July 20, 2005; and June 25 and 26, 2012.  Scottsbluff, NE, also registered a maximum temperature of 105°F on June 28, representing its highest reading since July 24, 2014 (also 105°F).  Late in the week, increasing heat in the Midwest and Northeast led to record-setting highs for June 30 in locations such as Alpena, MI (99°F), and Burlington, VT (93°F).  It was Alpena’s hottest day since August 6, 2001, when the high reached 100°F.  There was little relief at night, as Chicago, IL, reported a low of 80°F on June 30.  Chicago last failed to fall below the 80-degree mark on July 23, 2012.  In Traverse City, MI, the June 30 low of 82°F tied a monthly record originally set on June 30, 1927.

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