000 NOUS42 KTAE 032229 PNSTAE FLZ017-272100- PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TALLAHASSEE FL 530 PM EST MON JAN 3 2011 ...DECEMBER 2010 WAS THE COLDEST DECEMBER ON RECORD AND THIRD COLDEST MONTH OF ALL TIME FOR TALLAHASSEE... ...DECEMBER 2010 WAS ALSO MUCH DRIER THAN NORMAL FOR TALLAHASSEE... THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE FOR DECEMBER IN TALLAHASSEE WAS 44.6 DEGREES...9.1 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. THIS MAKES DECEMBER 2010 THE COLDEST DECEMBER ON RECORD AND THE THIRD COLDEST MONTH OF ALL TIME AT TALLAHASSEE. ONLY JANUARY 1981 (44.3 DEGREES) AND JANUARY 1977 (43.9 DEGREES) WERE COLDER IN THE OBSERVATIONAL PERIOD OF RECORD DATING BACK TO APRIL 1885. THE TOP FIVE COLDEST DECEMBERS APPEAR BELOW. DECEMBER 2010 44.6 DEGREES DECEMBER 1963 45.2 DEGREES DECEMBER 1989 45.5 DEGREES DECEMBER 1935 47.0 DEGREES DECEMBER 1909 47.7 DEGREES THE HIGHEST TEMPERATURE DURING THE MONTH WAS 76 DEGREES ON THE 22ND AND THE LOWEST WAS 18 DEGREES ON THE 28TH...WHICH ESTABLISHED A NEW RECORD LOW FOR THAT DAY. ONE OTHER RECORD LOW WAS SET ON THE 8TH WITH A READING OF 21 DEGREES. THERE WERE 24 DAYS WITH MINIMUM TEMPERATURES AT OR BELOW THE FREEZING MARK WHICH WAS 14 BELOW NORMAL. THE AVERAGE LOW TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 30.2 DEGREES...11.4 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL. RAINFALL AT THE TALLAHASSEE REGIONAL AIRPORT FOR DECEMBER MEASURED 1.48 INCHES...2.62 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. DECEMBER WAS ONE OF 6 MONTHS WITH BELOW NORMAL RAINFALL. OUR ANNUAL RAINFALL MEASURED 58.54 INCHES WHICH WAS 4.67 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THERE WERE 6 DAYS WITH MEASURABLE RAINFALL DURING THE MONTH WHICH WAS 2 BELOW NORMAL. THE GREATEST AMOUNT IN A 24-HOUR PERIOD WAS 0.66 INCHES ON THE 17TH - 18TH. ON THE 26TH...SEVERAL LOCATIONS ACROSS THE TRI-STATE REGION REPORTED SNOW FLURRIES...INCLUDING THE TALLAHASSEE AIRPORT. THIS WAS THE SECOND OCCURRENCE OF A TRACE OF SNOW FOR TALLAHASSEE IN THE YEAR 2010. THE PREVIOUS WAS ON FEBRUARY 11TH. THERE WERE NO DAYS WITH THUNDERSTORMS AT THE AIRPORT WHICH WAS 2 BELOW NORMAL. THE PEAK WIND GUST WAS 39 MPH FROM THE SOUTHWEST ON THE 12TH. THE OUTLOOK FOR JANUARY FROM THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER CALLS FOR AN ENHANCED CHANCE FOR BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES AND BELOW NORMAL RAINFALL. THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE FOR JANUARY IS 51.4 DEGREES AND NORMAL RAINFALL IS 4.34 INCHES. ACCORDING TO THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER THERE IS A 38% CHANCE FOR THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE DURING THE 3-MONTH PERIOD FROM JANUARY THROUGH MARCH WILL BE HIGHER THAN 57.1 DEGREES...A 33% CHANCE FOR THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE TO BE BETWEEN 54.6 AND 57.1 AND A 29% CHANCE TO BE LOWER THAN 54.6 DEGREES. THERE ARE NO 3-MONTH PRECIPITATION OUTLOOKS FOR SPECIFIC POINT LOCATIONS AT THIS TIME. HOWEVER...THE GENERALIZED OUTLOOK FOR THE TALLAHASSEE AREA CALLS FOR AN ENHANCED CHANCE FOR BELOW NORMAL RAINFALL. THE NORMAL 3-MONTH RAINFALL FOR TALLAHASSEE IS 15.19 INCHES. PLEASE BE AWARE THAT CLIMATE NORMALS ARE UPDATED EVERY 10 YEARS AND FOR THE PAST 10 YEARS OUR NORMALS WERE BASED ON THE 30 YEAR PERIOD FROM 1971 TO 2000. STARTING JANUARY 2011 ALL CLIMATE SITES INCLUDING TALLAHASSEE WILL BE USING UPDATED 30 YEAR NORMALS FROM THE PERIOD 1981 TO 2010. THE FOLLOWING WEBSITE CAN BE ACCESSED TO RECEIVE 3-MONTH AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FORECASTS FOR SEVERAL OTHER LOCATIONS IN THE LOCAL TRI-STATE REGION: HTTP://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/CLIMATE/CALENDAR_OUTLOOK.PHP?WFO=TAE $$ BARRY