Today in New York Weather History: March 21

 

1871 (Tuesday)

This was the fifteenth day of the past nineteen to have measurable precipitation, and today's amounted to 1.97", making this the rainiest of them all.  In total, 4.76" was reported (0.1" was snow).

1887 (Monday)

Today's high of 49° was the mildest reading this March - the only March with its mildest reading below 50° (this reading would happen a week later as well).  By contrast, January and February each had a reading in the low 60s.  (March 1887 is the fourth coldest March on record.)

1901 (Thursday)

Although today's high was just 53°, it was the mildest temperature in March and would be the chilliest reading to be the warmest in March in the 20th century (a distinction that has continued in the 21st century). 

1921 (Monday)

Today had New York's first reading in the 80s in the month of March.  The high reached 84° shortly after 2 PM, but a strong cold front passed through around 3:00, and by daybreak on 3/22 the temperature had fallen to 37°.  Winds gusted to 35 mph during the evening.  Another reading in the 80s would occur one week later.

 

 

1958 (Friday)

The nor'easter that moved in yesterday and dropped 4.7" of wet snow continued today and dumped an additional 7.1" thru midday.  The 11.8" that fell in total came just two years after 11.6" fell on March 18-19.  Philadelphia also picked up nearly a foot of snow from this storm - but the two cities' totals paled in comparison to the 30"-40" that buried parts of central and eastern Pennsylvania.

1973 (Wednesday)

The morning low of 30° was the month's coldest reading, the mildest temperature for this distinction in the 1960-2023 period.  (The typical coldest reading in March is in the upper teens.)

 

 

1974 (Thursday)

Two inches of rain fell between 6 AM and 3 PM, with more than half of it pouring down between 10 AM and 1 PM.  Temperatures during the morning were stuck at 39°, then jumped to 55° between noon and 1:00 PM (during a thunderstorm), before falling back into the upper 30s by evening. 

1980 (Friday)

A fierce nor'easter battered the area with heavy rain and gale force winds.  The 2.21" of rainfall was a record for the date; an additional 1.04" fell the next day, ending in the early afternoon.  The 3.25" of rain that fell during this 36-hour drenching was the most since January 1979.  The winds were so strong that the 40-story office building I worked in at 800 3rd Avenue (between 49th and 50th Streets) was swaying noticeably, forcing the office to close mid-afternoon. 

 

 

1986 (Friday)

Today was 16 degrees colder than normal (low of 18°), two days after it was 16 degrees milder than average (high of 70°).

1995 (Tuesday)

The past nine days all had above-average temperatures, with a mean temperature that was nine degrees above the norm.

2003 (Friday)

0.61" of rain fell this evening, with 0.17" of it pouring down in a five-minute period between 6:21-6:26 PM.  

2010 (Sunday)

Today, with a high of 64°, was the sixth day in a row with a high that was twelve degrees or more above average.  The average high during these days was 68°, seventeen degrees above average.  (Yesterday's high was the warmest, reaching 74°)

2015 (Saturday)

For the fourth day in a row the morning low was 29° (average low is 37°).

2016 (Monday)

After beginning as light rain late last night, the last snowfall of the season fell in the wee hours of the morning, accumulating 0.5".  This snow brought the winter's total snowfall to 32.8".  Although this was above average, all but 5.3" came from the big blizzard of 1/23.

2018 (Wednesday)

On the first full day of spring, snow began falling shortly after daybreak and continued for the rest of the day into the wee hours of 3/21.  By midnight 8.2" had accumulated, making this one of New York's biggest snowstorms after March 15 (an additional 0.2" fell after midnight).  This was the fourth nor'easter that brought heavy snow through the region this month, but the first in which the temperature was 32° or colder in the City (throughout the storm temperatures hovered between 31° and 33°).  Once again, Long Island was hammered, with accumulations of 12"-18" common. 

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February 2023 Weather Recap: 3rd Mildest, 10th Driest

 

Following the mildest January on record, February 2023 was the third mildest February (behind Feb. 2018 and 2017).  One anomaly was an Arctic flash-freeze which saw the temperature drop to 3° on 2/4.  (By contrast, January’s coldest reading was 28°.)  Overall, the month was 5.2 degrees milder than average (January was 9.8 degrees above average), which was largely due to a 13-day period between Feb. 8-20 that had temperatures that were 12 degrees above average. 

 

The month was 2.4 degrees colder than January.  While the two months had similar average highs (48.6° in Feb., 48.7° in Jan.), February's average low was 4.6 degrees colder (33.6° vs. 38.2°)

 

The range in temperature during the month was 67 degrees (from 3° to 70°), which was the greatest range in February since 1961 (-2° to 65°).  Average range in February is 48 degrees (13° to 61°).  The reading of 70° on 2/16 was the twelfth time a reading of 70+ was reported in February and a year’s earliest date for a reading of 70+ since 2007.

 

Feb. 1 had the first measurable snow of the winter (0.4"), the latest date on record.  The next snowfall was nearly four weeks later (Feb. 27-28) when 1.8" fell.  32 other Februarys have had less snow than February 2023's 2.2", including last February and February 2020, which had 2.0" and a trace, respectively. 

 

1.28” of precipitation was reported, an amount that made it the tenth driest on record (0.01" less than February 1872, which was pushed out of the top 10).  The greatest amount from a storm was 0.55" on 2/27-28.  

 

The winter of 2023 was the third mildest on record (behind the winters of 2002 and 2016, but January and February 2023 became the mildest first two months of any year, easily beating Jan-Feb 1990.   Finally, the winter of 2023 was the 18th in which December was the coldest month.

 

 

 

 

Here are other February recaps:

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2015

Super Bowl Sunday Weather Highlights in New York City

 

 

 

Over the course of its 57-year history Super Bowl Sunday has slowly evolved to become, more or less, a national holiday.  Played in the midst of winter it has been scheduled as early as Jan. 9 (in the early years) and as late as Feb.15.  And while New York has had its share of cold temperatures on this day snow didn't have much of a presence until 2021 when 4.5" accumulated (and 1.6" fell the following year). 

 

Although most of the games have been played in the South or on the West Coast, the Super Bowl of 2014 was played in northern New Jersey.  And although that winter was cold and snowy, the day of the game had mild temperatures.  (But harsh winter weather returned the next day as eight inches of snow fell.)  

 

In addition to that Super Bowl, there have been six other Super Bowls of great interest to residents of New York City because of the participation of New York teams - and they won five of them.  The New York Jets were in one, Super Bowl III (1969), while the New York Giants have played in five between 1987 and 2012 (winning four).  None of these games had precipitation in NYC.  Coldest of the Giants/Jets Super Bowls in NYC was 1987's game (high/low of 25°/8°).  The mildest reading was 49°/33° in 2008.  

 

The 36 Super Bowls played in January had slightly colder than average temperatures in New York, averaging a high/low of 37°/24°, while the 21 played in February have been on days that were slightly above average, with a high/low of 44°/30°.

 

In terms of conditions in cities where the Super Bowl has been played, the coldest temperature for a Super Bowl occurred in 1972 when the game time temperature in New Orleans for Super Bowl VI was in the upper 30s (the coldest outside temperature for a game played in a domed stadium was 20° in Detroit in 1982).  Meanwhile, 1973's Super Bowl VII in LA was played with temperatures rising to 84° and thirty years later the game in Tampa saw a high of 82°.  Rain fell in Houston in for Super Bowl XVI in 2007 when Prince played in a steady rain during halftime.  The game played in Atlanta in 2000 had to contend with two ice storms during the week leading up to the game.  Finally, 1970's game in New Orleans had a threat of tornadoes while 1985's game in Stanford Stadium had to contend with foggy conditions.

 

 

The charts below focus on extreme weather conditions in New York on Super Bowl Sunday.

 

MILDEST

Four Super Bowl Sundays have had highs of 55° or milder.

• 59° on Jan. 12, 1975
• 58° on Jan. 28, 1990
• 56° on Feb. 2, 2014
• 55° on Feb. 5, 2006

 

COLDEST

Five Super Bowl Sundays had lows in the single digits, the last time being in 1987.  Eight Super Bowl Sundays have had highs of 25° or colder (the last time was also in 1987)

• 4° on Jan. 20, 1985
• 5° on Jan. 16, 1972 (also had the coldest high, 15°)

 

SNOWIEST

Nine Super Bowl Sundays have had measurable snowfall; five of them picked up an inch or more.  The most was 4.5" on Feb. 4, 2021 (during the daytime hours), the second most was the following year.

• 4.5" on Feb. 4, 2021
• 1.6" on Feb. 13, 2022
• 1.5" on Jan. 30, 2000
• 1.3" on Jan. 26, 1992
• 1.0" on Feb. 6, 2003

 

RAINIEST   

Three Super Bowl Sundays had an inch or more, and another had 0.96"

• 3.45" on Jan. 21, 1979 (before 7 AM)
• 2.19" on Jan, 26, 1986 (before 9 AM)
• 1.30" on Jan. 14, 1968
• 0.96" on Feb. 4, 2018

 

HIGHLIGHTS OF SELECTED SUPER BOWL SUNDAYS

Jan. 15, 1967 - The first Super Sunday had above average temperatures, with a high/low of 49°/37° in Central Park. Skies were a mix of sun and clouds.  (At the time, the game wasn't called the "Super Bowl".)

Jan. 16, 1972 - The morning low of 5° (coldest reading of the winter) came less than two days after the temperature reached 62° (at 10 PM on Jan. 14).  Combined with a high of only 15°, this was the coldest day of the winter.  (Only a handful of days have had a high temperature this cold.)

Jan. 9, 1977 - This was the first Super Bowl Sunday to receive measurable snow.  It began snowing at around 9 PM and by midnight 0.8" had been measured. 

Jan. 21, 1979 - 3.45" of rain fell, mostly before 7 AM.  This was the most rain to ever fall in a 24-hour period in the month of January.

Jan. 22, 1984 - High/low was 24°/9° and came at the end of an eight-day streak with highs of 32° or colder (and 11 of the past 12 days were 32° or colder).

Jan. 20, 1985 - This was the second year in a row in which the low was in the single digits, but this year it came after dark (on its way to a low of -2° the next morning).  The reading of 4° is the coldest reading NYC has had on the day of the Super Bowl.  Snow showers late in the morning produced a half-inch of snow.

Jan. 26, 1986 - 2.19" of rain fell, a record for the date, with much of it falling before 9 AM, but a second round of rain, from another low pressure system, moved in after 10 PM. 

Jan. 26, 1992 - The winter's first snowfall of an inch or more fell in the wee hours of the morning, accumulating 1.3".  This was also the first time an inch or more of snow fell on Super Bowl Sunday.  The daylight hours were mostly sunny but cold, with a high/low of 31°/20°.

Feb. 6, 2011 - Although the day had above-freezing temperatures for its entirety (high/low of 45°/37°), there was still 15" of snow left on the ground in Central Park from the 32" of snow that fell since 1/11.

Feb. 2, 2014 - Today's high of 56° made this the mildest reading of the month.  And fears that today's outdoor Super Bowl in northern New Jersey would be played in cold and/or snowy conditions were allayed when the game time temperature was in the upper 40s.  The following day conditions reverted to the nasty winter of 2014 with a snowfall of eight inches.

Feb. 4, 2018 - Nearly an inch of rain fell tonight, mostly between 5-11 PM. 

Feb. 7, 2021 - Periods of heavy snow fell between 9 AM and 6 PM, accumulating 4.5".  Central Park was low man on the totem pole as most surrounding locations reported six to eight inches.  The temperature didn't fall to freezing until early afternoon which likely kept the City's accumulation down. 

Feb. 13, 2022 - 1.6" of snow fell the day after the high reached 59°.  This was the first time measurable snow fell on consecutive Super Bowl Sundays, and this year's amount was the second biggest accumulation, behind last year's.  

 

 

 

A Look At Mild Winter Months With the Most Snow & Cold Winter Months With Little Snow

 

 

January 2023 was the mildest on record and had just a trace of snow (on three days); the two seem to go hand in hand.  That said, I was curious about mild winter months with appreciable snowfall and cold winter months with relatively little.  Call it an analysis of counter-intuitives.

 

Nearly 40% of  months that are among the 10 mildest between December and March have had no snow or just a trace.  But of the mildest months to report snow, the snowiest was February 2017 (ranked as the second mildest February) which had 9.4" of snow.  This amount fell on one day, 2/9, and came after a high temperature of 62° the day before.  The second most snowfall was in Feb. 1991 with 9.1".  8.9" of that amount was from a storm near the end of the month.

 

On average, a top-10 coldest month in the winter (December thru March) averages 12 inches of snow.  The least snowy of these coldest months was December 1989 (ranked third coldest December) which reported just 1.4" of snow that fell during three non-consecutive days (0.1" on 12/13, 0.7" on 12/15 and 0.6" on 12/30).

 

   

FYI, the snowiest month among the 10 coldest of each winter month is March 1896 which had 30.5".  Much of the snow fell from two storms, one of 11 inches and another of 10 inches.

Old Man Winter A No-Show As January 2023 Becomes NYC's Mildest January

 

 

You might say that January 2023 had a January thaw that lasted for the entirety of the month, resulting in New York's mildest January on record (0.3 degrees warmer than Jan. 1932).  Temperatures were 9.8 degrees above average, with every day being milder than average.  It joined December 2015 as the only two months to have this distinction.  Average high/low was 49°/38°.  (The high was comparable to Nashville's average high in January, the average low was comparable to Atlanta's.)

 

On average, January is 5.4 degrees colder than December, but about once every five years it's warmer than December - 2023  was one of these years as January was five degrees milder than December.  Only three other Januarys have been more than five degrees milder than the preceding December: Jan. 1990 was 15.5 degrees milder than Dec. 1989 (41.4° vs. 25.9°); Jan. 1911 was 6.3 degrees warmer (36.3° vs. 30.0°); and Jan. 2006 was 5.3 degrees milder (40.9° vs. 35.6°).

 

After December ended with three days in a row that were ten or more degrees above average, the streak continued for the first six days of January (the January portion of the streak was 17 degrees above average).  It wasn't until 1/14 that a reading of 32° or colder occurred; only Jan. 2005 had a later date for this first cold reading (occurring one day later).

 

 

The month had 14 days with highs of 50° or warmer; and 15 days were ten or more degrees above average.  The mildest reading was 66° (the only day in the 60s).  And only three days had highs chillier than 40°, with the coldest high being 38°.  Just four days had lows of 32° or colder (21 days is the January average).  The coldest reading was 28°, which is the mildest reading to be the coldest for any January.  (The previous record was 25° in 1937.)

 

The most above average day was 1/4, twenty-three degrees above average (high/low of 66°/49°), and since there were no days below average, the least above average day was on 1/14, with a high/low of 38°/31°, two degrees above average.

 

Jan. 31 was the 35th consecutive day with an above average mean temperature, breaking the previous record of 34 days during the winter of 2015-16 (Dec. 1-Jan. 3). 

 

Besides the consistent above average readings, January had no measurable snow (average amount is about nine inches); but there were traces reported on three days.  It tied 2008 and 1933 for being the second least snowy January (Jan. 1890 reported no snow, not even a trace). 

 

With no measurable snow falling in either November or December, Central Park on 1/29 broke the 1973 record for the latest date in a winter without seeing any measurable snow (the first snow finally arrived in the pre-dawn hours of 2/1 when 0.4" accumulated).  

 

Finally, the month's total precipitation of 4.38" was very similar to January 2022's 4.29", about three-quarters of an inch above average.  (However, last January's precipitation included 15.3" of snow.)  Much of the rain, 3.13", fell in the eight-day period from the 19th to the 26th; the biggest rainstorm produced 1.34" on 1/25-26.

 

 

 

One observation about the five mildest Januarys is that if Jan. 1932 didn't have a high/low of 33°/24° on the last day of the month it would likely still  be the mildest January as the first 30 days of the month had an average temperature of 43.7°, 0.2 degrees milder than Jan. 2023.  (January 2023 missed meeting the same fate as Jan. 1932 by one day as below average temperatures arrived on Feb. 1.)

 

Here are previous January recaps (no recap was published for Jan. 2016).

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2015

2014


 

2023 Weather Highlights in New York

 

 

JANUARY

1 - Temperatures were nearly as mild as a year ago (high/low of 55°/49°) but this year differed as the day featured sunny skies. 

6 - This was the ninth day in a row with a mean temperature 10 degrees or more above average, the longest such streak since another one of nine days in December 2015 (there was a 10-day streak in October 1990).  The average high/low during this streak was 56°/46°,  sixteen degrees above average.  And although  this was the last day of the streak, tomorrow would still be well above average (+7 degrees).

14 - For the first time this year the temperature fell to 32°.  Only 2005 started with a longer streak, with its first reading of 32° or colder happening on 1/15.  This was also the 18th day in a row with above average temperatures.

16 - This morning's low of 28° would be the coldest reading of the month -  the mildest coldest reading of any January on record, breaking the previous record of 25° in January 1937.  (January 2023 would become the mildest January on record.)

29 - The winter of 1973's record for latest date of the first measurable snowfall was broken today - and it would continue to be broken into February.  (The average winter in Central Park has 14.2" of snowfall by the end of January.)

 

FEBRUARY

1 - At long last Central Park had its first measurable snow of the winter as 0.4" accumulated in the pre-dawn hours.  This is the longest NYC had to wait for this event (the previous record was 1/29 during the winter of 1973).  Not only was today the end of the City's record snowless streak, it was also the end of its record 35-day streak with above average mean temperatures. Today was 2 degrees colder than average (high/low of 38°/26°).  And, finally, this morning's low was the coldest reading since the day after Christmas.

4 - This morning's frigid low of +3° was Central Park's coldest reading in four years (+2° on 1/31/19) and the coldest reading in February in seven years (-1° on 2/14/16).  And from 3-7 AM howling winds gusting between 25-35 mph produced wind chills between -10° and -15°.  Today's reading was in sharp contrast to January's coldest of 28° (the mildest coldest reading in January on record).  Finally, although today's reading was the coldest of the winter, the coldest day of the winter (based on average temperature) remained 12/24, with a high/low of 15°/7° (today's high reached 27° shortly before midnight).

Today's low was the ninth time since 2000 that a reading of 3° or colder occurred (and the fourth time it's happened in February). 

14 - Through today, just 0.05" of precipitation fell in Central Park this month, making this the second driest first half of February on record.  Only February 1980 had a smaller amount.

16 - The day after a high of 67° today was even milder as the high reached 70°, one degree shy of tying the record for the date.  This was the mildest reading in February since 2018, when the warmest reading of any February, 78°, occurred on 2/21.  And it was the earliest date for a year's first reading of 70+ since 2007 (when it occurred on 1/6).  Showers in the afternoon produced a rather meager 0.07" of rain, but it was more than what fell in the first 15 days of the month (0.05").  

Finally, this was the ninth day in a row in which the temperature remained above freezing, a period that was 14 degrees above average (average high/low of 56°/44°).

20 - Although the warmest high temperature on Presidents' Day is 64° in 2008, President's Day 2023 has the distinction of having the mildest mean temperature, with a high/low of 61°/47° (2008's low was 40°), 17 degrees above average. 

23 - A new winter record (meteorological winter) was established as Central Park had its 59th frost-free day, surpassing the 58 days experienced during the winters of 2012 and 1998.  Average number is 35 days.

27 - The second measurable snowfall of the winter (the first was on 2/1) began this evening and brought 1.8" of snow (half of it fell today, the other half in the overnight hours).  Three to six inches fell in outlying suburbs, where temperatures were colder.  

 

 

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December 2022 Weather Recap: Rainy Month Ends With Wild Temperature Swings

 

 

December 2022 was the rainiest month of the year and also featured the coldest reading of all of 2022; this reading of 7° was the coldest temperature in December since 1989.  The month's s other stand-out weather story unfolded during its last nine days when there were wild swings in temperature.  Overall, the month's average temperature was 0.6 degrees below average (average high was just about average, while the average low was a degree below average.).

 

From 12/24 to 12/30 temperatures swung from 25 degrees below average (7° on 12/24) to 21 degrees above average (62° on 12/30).  But the wildest swing was on 12/23 when the mercury plunged 50 degrees between 4 AM and midnight, from 58° to 8°.  This was the greatest daily change in temperature on record (breaking a 101-year record, of 48 degrees in March 1921).

 

This was just the fourth December to be the wettest month of a year (the other years were 1957 <5.26">; 1973 <"9.98">; and 2019 <7.09">).  Although the amount of precipitation measured, 5.83", was 1.45" above average (making it the 20th wettest December on record), it was about three inches less than the average amount of a year's wettest month. 

 

Three rainstorms in December produced more than an inch of rain.  The last of them, on 12/22-23, produced the most, with 2.06" measured.  Much of the rain (1.33") came down in an hour when a blast of Arctic air collided with a fast-moving coastal storm in the pre-dawn hours of 12/23. 

 

Although a typical December averages nearly five inches of snow, this December had no measurable snow (LGA and Newark, however, had 0.4" and 0.1", respectively).  This was the 21st December with no snow and the 14th in which neither November or October had measurable snow (the previous time this happened was in 2015).

 

December had two days with lows in the 50s, which was the most such days since Dec. 2015 (the mildest December on record), which had 11.  This December also had seven days with highs of 55° or warmer, which was one less than Dec. 2021 (which was 4.3 degrees above average) and one more than 2020 (which was 1.7 above average).

 

Christmas Eve was sunny and bitterly cold (high/low of 15°/7°, with sub-zero wind chill) while one week later New Years Eve was mild (high/low of 55°/50°) and foggy with showers.  Christmas Day was sunny and cold (28°/14°) but relatively bearable compared to Christmas Eve.

 

Here are December recaps from the previous seven years:

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

 

 

 

 

       

A History of Biggest & Smallest Swings in Daily Temperatures in New York City

 

 

The range in daily temperature in Central Park, also known as diurnal variation, is typically 14 degrees, and ranges from 11 degrees in December and January, to 17 degrees in May.  However, variations by individual days generally range between five and thirty degrees.  Variations are affected by atmospheric conditions such as humidity, cloud cover, passage of cold/warm fronts, wind direction, and precipitation.

 

On Dec. 23, 2022 mild air drawn up the coast by a fast-moving coastal storm crashed into a strong Arctic front moving southeastward, resulting in a drop in temperature from 58° to 8°.  This 50-degree plunge established a new record for greatest temperature drop of any calendar date, breaking the previous record of a 48-degree nosedive more than 100 years earlier, on March 28, 1921.  (That drop, however, is more impressive because it happened in just 10 hours while 2022’s drop took twice as long.)

 

Drops in temperature of 40 degrees or more in a day are infrequent, with just 19 such instances reported since 1869 (about once every seven years).  However, this year’s was the first drop of 40+ degrees of the century; the previous occurrence was on Dec. 22, 1998.  (Oddly enough, 1962 and 1990 each experienced two of these drops.)

 

At the other end of the spectrum are daily variations of, one, two, or three degrees.  There have been only seven instances of days with a one-degree change (in other words, happening once every generation).  The last time was on Dec. 14, 1996 (the high/low was 40°/39°).  Days with variances of two degrees occur, on average, once every two years (most recently on May 13, 2018 when the high/low was 54°/52°).  And an average year sees one or two days with three-degree variations (most recently on Jan. 28, 2022 when the high/low was 32°/29°).

 

Most of the big daily swings in temperature have occurred between January and May. For the purposes of this analysis I chose changes of 33 degrees or more as the qualifier.  Swings of this magnitude have occurred nearly 200 times (thru 2022), an average of 1.3 days per year.  1990 has had the most - seven days.  (Sixteen years have had no such days, including three in a row from 1982 to 1984.)

 

By month, the smallest difference between the average high and low occurred in November 1977, when it was only 8.4 degrees (high of 51.5°/low of 43.1°).  The greatest difference between the high/low was 21.6 degrees in May 1941 (high of 75.5°/low of 53.9°).

 

Half of the months with variations less than 11 degrees have occurred since 2001, while just 20% of variations greater than 18 degrees have occurred in this century (the last time was in May 2015 when there was a 19.8 degree variation). This is likely a function of global warming, as overnight temperatures have risen at a faster rather than high temperatures.

 

Although daily temperature variations of two or three degrees occur just a couple of times each year, in 1970 there were five such occurrences in a fifteen-day period, between Dec. 11-25.

 

Finally, the most instances of a variation of 33+ degrees by date have occurred on April 19 and April 25, both which have had it happen six times.  April 25th's include the consecutive years of 1960, 1961 and 1962.

 

  

Despite Very Mild Start, November 2022 Fails to Rank Among 10 Mildest Novembers

 

 

Never before has the month of November started with such a sustained string of unseasonably mild days.  With an average high/low of 68°/55° the first twelve days were eleven degrees above average.  This included five days in the 70s and three days with lows in the 60s.  Ten of the days had highs of 66° or warmer (including three in a row with highs of 75°+). 

 

The month’s warmest high and low of 77° and 66°, respectively, were warmer than October’s warmest (76° and 61°).  The reading of 77° on 11/7 was the warmest in November in 19 years, while only Nov. 1, 1971 had a warmer low in November than this November's.  Five days were fifteen degrees or more above average.

 

Despite this record-warm start, the month was denied a spot among the 10 mildest Novembers.  This was due to an eight-day streak of unseasonably chilly conditions mid-month (11/14-11/21) that was seven degrees colder than average (high/low of 44°/34°).  This included the fall’s first low of 32° or colder on 11/19 (31°).  Overall, the month was 2.9 degrees above average and finished as the 13^th mildest November on record (FYI, six of the top 10 are from this century).

 

The five days with highs in the 70s tied for fifth place for most in the month of November (November 1952 has the most - seven).  The three days with lows in the 60s were the most in November since 1975, which had four (the most).  However, November 2022 had five days with lows of 59° or milder -  the most of any November.

 

Another streak worth noting was one of eight days featuring sunny skies from 11/17 to 11/24; the last day fell on Thanksgiving Day.

 

The month’s rainfall of 3.15” was slightly below average.  This is the seventh time this amount has been reported as a monthly total.  The occurrence before this one was also in November, in 2013.  The month's rainiest day was 11/11, when 0.89" fell from the remnants of late-season hurricane Nicole.

 

The NYC Marathon on 11/6 had a high/low of 75°/66° making it the mildest of the races run in November (since 1986).

 

Although last November was 4.7 degrees colder than this November, this year's coldest reading was three degrees colder than November 2021 (27° vs. 30°).  Additionally, while November 2021 had 14 days that were five degrees or more below average, this year November had 14 that were five or more above average.

 

Here are November recaps from previous years:

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

 

October 2022 Weather Recap - Month's Overall Story Largely Determined In First 9 Days

 

Although it was just one degree chillier than average, October 2022 was the chilliest October since 2009.  This below average outcome was driven largely by the first nine days of the month, which were five degrees below average; the rest of the month was one degree above average.  Although the month was 1.0 degree below the 30-year average for October, it was 2.4 degrees cooler than Octobers since 2010 (and five degrees chillier than last October).

 

The month's rainfall of 5.08" made it the wettest month of the year (a low amount for this distinction since a year's wettest month  typically sees between seven and eight inches).  The last month with more precipitation was last October (5.26").  3.28" of the rain fell in the month's first five days (from the remnants of Hurricane Ian); then the rest of the month was drier than average.  The 1.85" of rain that fell on 10/4 tied 7/18 as the rainiest day of the year.

 

Despite the chill, the chilliest reading was just 42°; typically the chilliest reading is in the upper 30s.  Days with highs in the 70s occurred in three pairs: 10/6 & 10/7; 10/11 & 10/12; and 10/25 & 10/26.  10/6 had the warmest reading of the month, 76°.

 

Last fall, October had a record streak in the first half of the month, when 13 days in a row had lows in the 60s.  This October had only two lows this warm, and they didn't happen until 10/25 and 10/26.   

 

Finally, at the beginning of the month there were back-to-back days that were ten or more degrees chillier than average, and then there were two days in the closing week of the month that were ten or more degrees warmer than average.

• Oct. 3:   53°/47°: 13 degrees below average
• Oct. 4:   55°/46°: 11 degrees below average

• Oct. 25: 70°/61°  11 degrees above average
• Oct. 26: 72°/60°  12 degrees above average

 

Previous October recaps:

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

 

 

 

 

 

Friday the 13th Weather Highlights

 

 

Friday the 13th appears on the calendar one to three times each year.  But despite the date's association with impending doom, the weather on this date has been a mixed bag of weather conditions.  Of the dates listed below, half had inclement conditions - but none cataclysmic in nature.  Therefore, from a weather perspective, there's no need to fear Friday the 13th more than the other days of the year.

 

Hottest: 95° (July 13, 1979)

Coldest: -1° (Feb. 13, 1914)

Rainiest: 2.61" (March 13, 1953)

Snowiest: 7.8" (Feb. 13, 1939)

 

September 13, 1889 

A dissipating hurricane stalled off the Delmarva Peninsula and brought bands of rain over the course of the past four days, amounting to 4.46", with much of it (3.34") falling yesterday and today.  Except for one hour this afternoon, the temperature was stuck in the 60s.  

 

August 13, 1909

The day's 0.81" of rain poured down between 10 AM and noon.

 

February 13, 1914

The morning low of -1° is the most frigid reading to occur on any Friday the 13th (in the years since 1900).  After dark, snow began falling and by midnight 1.6" had accumulated and the temperature rose to 26°.  This evening's snow was followed by 8.1" during the morning of the 14th.

 

January 13, 1939 

Beginning mid-afternoon, a snowfall of 8.8" (1.0" of it fell on 1/14) tied the Thanksgiving snowstorm of 11/24-25 as the biggest snowfall of the season.  It was also the most snow to fall on any Friday the 13th.

 

August 13, 1943

A strong thunderstorm dumped 0.80" of rain in less than an hour between 10:00 and 11:00 this morning.

 

March 13, 1953

The 2.61" of rain that fell during the morning made this the rainiest Friday the 13th in the years since 1900.  This rain was from a nor'easter that moved in yesterday afternoon (when 1.17" of rain fell).  The amount was a record for the date (broken in 2010 when 3.86" of rain fell). 

 

September 13, 1957

Today's high of 91° was the century's first reading in the 90s on a Friday the 13th (it would happen three more times: July 1962, August 1976 and July 1979).

 

April 13, 1962 

After going four years without a National League baseball team to call its own, the New York Mets played their first home opener, in unseasonably cold conditions, with a high/low of 43°/38° (nine degrees below average).  Windy and overcast, there were showers before daybreak and again late in the afternoon, amounting to 0.13".  As for the game, the Mets lost to the Pirates, 4-3.

 

November 13, 1970

A nor'easter produced 1.66" of rain that fell through early evening.

 

January 13, 1978

A nasty winter storm brought snow in the morning and early afternoon and an onslaught of sleet and rain after dark.  The ice and snow accumulated 3.0"; liquid precipitation amounted to one inch.  The temperature was at 32° or colder all day until after 10 PM when it rose to 33.°  (One week later 13.6" of snow would bury the City.)

 

July 13, 1979

The day's high was 95°, and with dew points during the afternoon in the the 73°-75° range, the heat index reached 106°

 

December 13, 1985 

A breeze out of the northeast, low clouds and periods of drizzle kept the temperature from moving much as just two degrees separated the high (40°) and low (38°).  

 

October 13, 1995 

Today's high hit 86°, twenty degrees above the average high for the middle of October.

 

February 13, 1998 

Today was the 30th day in a row with above-average temperatures - and 42nd out of the last 43 (beginning Jan. 2).  The mean temperature during this six-week period was nine degrees above average.  

 

May 13, 2005 

For the third day in a row the high was an unseasonably warm 86°, seventeen degrees above average.  

 

April 13, 2012 

Despite it being Friday the 13th, skies were clear, temperatures pleasant (low 60s, a few degrees above average), and the Yankees won their home opener, beating the Angels, 5-0.  However, from Yankee Stadium smoke could be seen in the distance, rising from a brush fire in Central Park as very low humidity posed a threat for brush fires throughout the area.

 

June 13, 2014 

Heavy showers moved through the area around 9 AM, and a severe thunderstorm struck between 5:45 and 7:30 PM.  In between, during the afternoon, the sun broke through for the first time in five days.  The 1.28" of rain that fell came one year after 1.26" fell on the same date.

 

February 13, 2015

Although the coldest low on Friday the 13th is -1°, set in February 1914, the coldest high temperature occurred today, when it was only 21° (the day's low was 8°; in 1914 the high was 26°)

 

April 13, 2018 

Today's high soared to 82° the day after the high reached 63° (which was the mildest reading in more than seven weeks).  This was eight days earlier than a year's typical first 80-degree reading.  And this morning's low of 60° was what the average high should be.

 

August 13, 2021

A sweltering high/low of 94°/78° produced the hottest mean temperature of any Friday the 13th (as mentioned earlier, July 13, 1979 has the hottest high temperature of any Friday the 13th - 95°).