The greatest storm snow totals approached 21 inches (53 cm). Twenty-five fatalities and at least 166 injuries were caused by tornadoes during the year. The dryness extended to the east side of the Sierra Nevada into the Great Basin; Reno, Nevada saw its second driest year since 1938 with 2.72 in (69.09 mm, 37% of normal). Wilmington, Delaware; Huntington, West Virginia; and Charleston, West Virginia, set/tied their greatest number of March days with measurable precipitation. There were at least four ground fires in Vermont this year, which is atypical. Washington, D.C. (18842020), Blacksburg, VA (18932020), and Mt. Conditions worsened during September, with moderate and severe drought expanding and the introduction of extreme drought in New England for the first time since February 2017. Greenville-Spartanburg, SC (18842020) and Hickory, NC (19492020) observed their wettest February day on record, with 5.36 and 5.31 inches (136 and 135 mm) of precipitation, respectively. In addition, almost 400,000 customers lost power. 2020 was a year of transition for the High Plains region, as cool, wet conditions over the past two years gave way to a warmer and drier regime. Population figures correspond to data from the closest year available. About 30 percent (1,154 of 3,843) of these reports were observed during April. This EF-4 tornado, with a path length of more than 24 miles (39 km) and a maximum path width of 1,300 yards (1,189 meters), damaged and destroyed many residences, including mobile and single-family homes. Showing: All Year January February Several major storms affected the Northeast during 2020. Across the region, there were hundreds of closed roads, stranded vehicles, water rescues, and buildings affected by flooding. All values that fell below or above two standard deviations are defined as climatic anomalies; cooler/wetter than or warmer/drier than the historical norm, respectively. For a second year in a row the Southwest monsoon failed to produce much needed rainfall. lived in counties with wetter, Utqiagvik reported an annual temperature of 14.6 F (-9.7 C), 3.1 F (1.7 C) above normal and the 8th warmest since 1921. Water restrictions were in place for hundreds of locations in New England, as well as some locations in New York and Pennsylvania. Numerous trees and branches were felled due to a combination of strong winds, drought stress, and being fully leafed. Of the 17 lightning fatalities across the United States during the year, seven occurred within the Southeast region, which is below the median annual frequency of 11 fatalities from 20002019. One particularly notable event was severe flash flooding in the northern suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 6. The US average is 38 inches of rain per year. Back-to-back storms from February 5 to 8 brought an extreme mix of weather conditions to the Northeast. In May, a Midland, Michigan dam failed due to heavy rains over three days, 17th-19th. Damage in the form of snapped and uprooted trees occurred to the west of the school, along with the more significant roof uplift and partial outer wall collapse of the schools gymnasium. Summer High: the July high is around 90 degreesWinter Low: the January low is 17Rain: averages 15 inches of rain a yearSnow: averages 43 inches of snow a year. On average, June is the driest month with 0.2 inches (4 mm) of precipitation. Iowa had its 3rd driest August in history. For example, in New Hampshire, an emergency drought law banning outdoor fires near public woods was in effect for a month, and several communities and the White Mountains National Forest had burn bans. Straight-line winds of up to 80 mph (36 m/s) caused extensive damage in several locations. Quick rises on waterways were observed. To the west, West Virginia saw flood-inducing heavy rain, with the greatest totals approaching 4 inches (102 mm). During June, abnormal dryness expanded to include parts of every state except New Jersey and moderate drought was introduced in parts of New England and New York. The contiguous U.S. average annual precipitation was 30.28 inches, which is 0.34 inches above the long-term average, ranking in the middle third of the historical record. During the fall, some Florida citrus growers reported extremely heavy fruit drop within their groves, which was partially attributed to premature blooming during the winter 20192020 season as well as a persistence of heavy rainfall throughout the year. Prolonged saturated soil caused some farmers to abandon portions of their soybean and cotton fields. in November 2022, population by difference from average precipitation in November 2022. This could be concerning as spring planting gets underway. WebAnnual average precipitation is 24 inches. The U.S. There were road closures, some evacuations, and reports of water in houses. For instance, severe drought eased everywhere except southeastern New Hampshire and coastal Maine and moderate drought eased in a large portion of New England. Newark, New Jersey, had its wettest July on record with 11.17 inches (283.72 mm) of rain. Twenty-seven of the 30 named storms were the earliest named storm, for their respective number, on record. This switch from wet to dry was so pronounced that some locations went from having a top 10 wettest year in 2019 to a top 10 driest year in 2020. Storm snow totals exceeded 24 inches (61 cm) in an area stretching from central Pennsylvania through New York and into northern New England, where snow fell at rates of at least 3 to 4 inches (8 to 10 cm) per hour. Flash flooding was reported from Delaware to New York, resulting in road closures and water rescues. In addition, Columbus, GA (18912020) and Macon, GA (18922020) observed their wettest and second wettest April day on record, with 5.92 and 4.41 inches (150 and 112 mm) of rainfall, respectively. Like most years, 2020 temperatures were quite variable throughout the year. Rainfall is fairly even throughout the year, with May being the wettest month. Storm reports noted numerous road closures, multiple water rescues, some evacuations, and a few homes taking on water. Five of the six warmest years on record at Hilo have occurred since 2015. Hurricane Sally made landfall near Gulf Shores, AL on September 16th, with peak sustained winds of 105 mph (47 m/s) and a maximum wind gust of 121 mph (54 m/s) reported at Fort Morgan, AL. The transformations to these climatic data were done to provide users with an intuitive understanding of whether a given months total precipitation or average temperature were similar to or different than the corresponding historical average. Drought conditions continued to worsen across much of the region during the fall as precipitation deficits mounted. On May 26th, Miami, FL observed a 24-hour rainfall total of 7.40 inches (188 mm), which is its third wettest May day on record. The U.S. Drought Monitor released on October 1 showed 45 percent of the Northeast in an extreme, severe, or moderate drought and 25 percent as abnormally dry. Above-average conditions were observed across much of the North Slope, West Coast and the Aleutians, primarily due to the lack of coastal sea ice. This years tornado reports were particularly low, with only 129 reported through October. Indeed, nearly the entire Southeast region was covered with above-average annual precipitation totals, except for a few small pockets of unusual dryness in southwestern Alabama, the Big Bend region of Florida, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Snowfall January through June, September through December are months with snowfall in Mantua, Utah. Portions of the lower Mississippi Valley had daytime temperatures that were below average during 2020. This ranked as the 37th wettest in history since 1895. Lower than usual streamflow on the Hudson River in New York in October led to increased sodium levels in Poughkeepsies water supply. For the year, there were areas in all six states that averaged between 1 to 2 degrees F (0.56 to 1.11 degrees C) above normal, while parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee averaged 2 to 3 degrees F (1.11 to 1.67 degrees C) above normal. Climate Data. Utah, Utah gets 15 inches of rain, on average, per year. The event, which qualified as a derecho, caused widespread damage, downing trees and wires, knocking out power to more than 500,000 customers, and causing four deaths. Excessive rainfall, paired with high humidity, in Georgia slowed the drying down of corn, with many farmers battling whiteflies and boll rot in cotton. Every state experienced a warmer than normal winter, with every state experiencing a top-20 warmest winter on record while Tennessee experienced its sixth-warmest winter on record. Climate Extremes Index (USCEI) for 2020 was 80 percent above average and ranked as seventh highest in the 111-year record. Washington, D.C. observed its lowest annual snowfall total since records began in 1884, while Washington Dulles International Airport, VA observed its third lowest annual snowfall total (4.7 inches, 119 mm) since records began in 1962. These areas included portions of northern New England, New York, and Pennsylvania. Warm conditions continued into March, but, overall, spring temperatures were below normal due to cooler conditions in April and May. Coldest highest max temperatures for April were recorded at several major climate sites including Bridgeport and Hartford, Connecticut; Boston and Worcester, Massachusetts; Newark, New Jersey; Binghamton, Islip, and Kennedy Airport, New York. Strong thunderstorm winds accounted for about 85 percent (3,256 of 3,843) of the severe weather reports and caused at least 10 fatalities and 34 injuries across the region. Arkansas experienced its seventh-wettest August on record. June was cooler than normal for every state except Oklahoma and Texas, while precipitation was mixed, as three states (Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi) experienced wetter than normal conditions while three states (Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas) experienced drier than normal conditions. From September through early October conditions remained relatively steady, but by the end of October conditions began to deteriorate rapidly. To provide a comprehensive account of climate across the United States, we supplemented the dataset with individual station data for each county in Hawaii. Nome logged its 15th warmest year on record since 1907 at 29.4 F (-1.4 C), 2.1 F (1.2 C) above normal. Thirteen tropical cyclones (Tropical Storm Arthur, Tropical Storm Bertha, Tropical Storm Cristobal, Tropical Storm Fay, Hurricane Isaias, Tropical Storm Kyle, Hurricane Laura, Hurricane Marco, Hurricane Sally, Tropical Storm Beta, Hurricane Delta, Hurricane Zeta, and Tropical Storm Eta) brought high winds, heavy rainfall, inland flooding, storm surge, and tornadoes to widespread portions of the Southeast region, including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Annual temperature departures were above normal for nearly all of the Western U.S. Population by Winter wheat was also impacted, with at least 15 percent of the crop in poor to very poor condition at the start of 2021 in Colorado (34 percent), Kansas (17 percent), and Nebraska (15 percent), according to the USDAs National Agricultural Statistics Service. There were more than 250 wind damage reports in the Philadelphia/Mt. Spring was warmer and wetter than normal for the Southern Region. Numerous long-term stations observed their highest or second highest annual count of days with a minimum temperature at or above 70 degrees F (21.1 degrees C), including West Palm Beach, FL (18882020; 261 days, 71 percent of the year), Orlando, FL (18922020; 177 days, 48 percent of the year), Lumberton, NC (19032020; 87 days, 24 percent of the year), and Roanoke, VA (19122020; 45 days, 12 percent of the year). Try refreshing your browser, or try again later. Hints of this transition began in the fall of 2019, when drought conditions developed across southern Kansas and western and southern Colorado. While 25 long-term stations observed average daily maximum temperatures that were ranked within their five warmest values on record, more than four times the number of stations (102) observed average daily minimum temperatures that were ranked within their five warmest values on record. Livestock producers in Georgia had to travel far to buy hay since supplies were short from the drought conditions in autumn 2019. Temperatures were below normal in the Interior, Southcentral, and Southeast regions of Alaska. The U.S. Drought Monitor released in June 25 showed 16 percent of the Northeast in a moderate drought and 26 percent was abnormally dry. Annual snowfall accumulations were below average across much of the Southeast region, particularly in the higher elevations of North Carolina and Virginia. Kentucky was the wettest state with 9.97 inches (253 mm) above normal which ranked as the 8th wettest in its history. While agricultural and livestock production was satisfactory across much of the Southeast during the year, exceptional wetness and numerous landfalling tropical cyclones did produce some significant impacts. Some cattle farmers also thinned their herds earlier than usual. On the northern side of the city, Frankford Creek reached moderate flood stage for the second time in a week. The seven other states ranked between 13th and 26th in their respective histories. Although the season was below average, it was more than the 1993 to 2020 minimum of 23,000 acres set in 2004. There were three months (January, February, and September) where every state was wetter than normal and one month (November) where every state was drier than normal. In Maine, potato yields were expected to be down by at least 20 percent and wild blueberry yields were reduced due to drought and frost. Above-average temperatures were also seen in portions of Bristol Bay, Central Interior and Northeast Interior regions. Spring freeze damage was reported in a mid-April freeze despite not being particularly late in the season. A rare tornado outbreak occurred on February 7 in Maryland where five tornadoes touched down: an EF-0 and four EF-1s. Wet weather continued to delay field work across North Carolina, with reports of negative impacts on the wheat crop due to waterlogged soils. Annual mean temperatures were at least 2 degrees F (1.1 degrees C) above average for approximately 52 percent of the 168 long-term (i.e., period of record equaling or exceeding 50 years) stations across the region. These six regions differ spatially from the nine climatic regions of the National Climatic Data Center. Baker City, in northeast Oregon, saw its warmest year on record going back to 1944 with an annual average temperature 48.3 F (9.1 C), 3.9 F (2.2 C) above normal. 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