PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 1136 AM CDT WED JUN 24 2009 ...YES...IT`S BEEN HOT... ...YES...IT`S BEEN DRY... THERE IS NO WAY TO SUGARCOAT THE CURRENT WEATHER REGIME. IT HAS BEEN HOT AND IT HAS BEEN VERY DRY. LET`S START WITH THE TEMPERATURES. THE MONTH IS NOT OVER YET...SO MUCH CAN CHANGE. AT THE CURRENT TIME...HOUSTON IS SUFFERING THROUGH IT`S 7TH WARMEST JUNE. AT HOBBY AIRPORT...THIS IS THE 6TH WARMEST JUNE. GALVESTON IS ENDURING IT`S 10TH WARMEST JUNE AND COLLEGE STATION IS ENDURING IT`S 7TH WARMEST JUNE. TO PUT THIS IN PERSPECTIVE...THE FIRST SEVEN DAYS OF JUNE WERE COOLER THAN NORMAL SO THE INTENSE HEAT OVER THE LAST 16 DAYS HAS MADE UP THE TEMPERATURE DEFICIT WITH CHANGE TO SPARE. THIS LATEST HEATWAVE SHOWS NO SIGN OF RELENTING SO THE MONTHLY AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WILL LIKELY INCREASE. 2009 AVG TEMP WARMEST AVG TEMP (ENTIRE MONTH) IAH 84.1 7TH WARMEST 85.5 IN 1998 HOU 83.5 6TH WARMEST 86.2 IN 1998 GLS 83.6 10TH WARMEST 85.6 IN 1881 CLL 84.6 7TH WARMEST 86.7 IN 1998 THE TEMPERATURE CLIMBED TO 101 DEGREES AT INTERCONTINENTAL AIRPORT ON JUNE 23RD. THE LAST TIME THE MERCURY CLIMBED ABOVE 101 DEGREES IN JUNE WAS BACK ON JUNE 14 1998. THE LAST TIME TIME THE TEMPERATURE REACHED 101 DEGREES IN HOUSTON WAS ON AUGUST 2 2008. THE WARMEST TEMPERATURE EVER RECORDED IN JUNE WAS 103 DEGREES ON JUNE 30 1980. THE TEMPERATURE IN HOUSTON HAS REACHED OR EXCEEDED 100 DEGREES 36 TIMES IN THE MONTH OF JUNE. THERE WERE 10 DAYS IN 1902 WHERE THE TEMPERATURE REACHED OR EXCEEDED 100 DEGREES. BACK IN 1980...THERE WERE 8 DAYS THAT REACHED OR EXCEEDED 100 DEGREES. MORE MISCELLANEOUS TRIVIA...THERE WERE 7 CONSECUTIVE DAYS WITH 100 DEGREE HEAT IN 1902 AND 6 CONSECUTIVE DAYS IN 1980. THE LONGEST STRETCH OF CONSECUTIVE 100 DEGREE DAYS OCCURRED BACK IN 1980. THE TEMPERATURE REACHED OR EXCEEDED 100 DEGREES FOR 14 CONSECUTIVE DAYS BETWEEN JULY 6 1980 AND JULY 19 1980. THE TEMPERATURE ALSO REACHED 100 DEGREES OR GREATER FOR 11 STRAIGHT DAYS BETWEEN JULY 26 1998 AND AUGUST 5 1998. HOUSTON - NUMBER OF 100 DEGREE DAYS IN JUNE 10 IN 1902 (7 IN A ROW) 8 IN 1980 (6 IN A ROW) 4 IN 1906 2 IN 1998 2 IN 1934 2 IN 1930 2 IN 1911 HOUSTON - NUMBER OF CONSECUTIVE 100 DEGREE DAYS (ALL TIME) 14 07/06/1980 THROUGH 07/19/1980 11 07/26/1998 THROUGH 08/05/1998 9 06/25/1980 THROUGH 07/03/1980 8 08/29/2000 THROUGH 09/05/2000* 8 08/14/1993 THROUGH 08/21/1993 8 08/07/1962 THROUGH 08/14/1962 * ALL TIME RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURE FOR HOUSTON OCCURRED DURING THIS STRING OFF 100 DEGREE DAYS. THE HIGH TEMPERATURE REACHED 109 DEGREES ON SEPTEMBER 4TH 2000. BELOW IS A LIST OF HOUSTON WARMEST MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE AND WARMEST MINIMUM TEMPERATURES FOR JUNE: MAXIMUM TEMP MINIMUM TEMP 96.3 IN 1980 76.1 IN 1906 96.2 IN 1902 76.0 IN 1953 95.7 IN 1906 75.9 IN 1998 95.3 IN 1990 75.9 IN 1958 95.1 IN 1998 75.7 IN 1965 95.1 IN 2009 75.3 IN 1944 95.1 IN 2008 75.1 IN 1963 94.3 IN 1890 75.0 IN 1964 93.8 IN 1911 75.0 IN 1962 93.5 IN 2005 74.8 IN 1981 73.0 IN 2009 SO IT`S BEEN HOT!! BUT IT HAS ALSO BEEN DRY! HOW DRY? CURRENTLY...HOUSTON INTERCONTINENTAL AIRPORT HAS GONE 30 CONSECUTIVE DAYS WITHOUT MEASURABLE RAIN. THE DRIEST STRETCH OF WEATHER EVER RECORDED FOR HOUSTON WAS BACK IN 1904. THERE WAS NO MEASURABLE RAIN BETWEEN JANUARY 8 1904 AND FEBRUARY 16 1904 - 40 DAYS! BELOW IS A TABLE WITH THE DRIEST PERIODS ON RECORD DATE NUMBER OF DRY DAYS 01/08/1904 - 02/17/1904 40 09/11/1917 - 10/17/1917 37 09/20/1963 - 10/25/1963 36 05/01/1937 - 06/03/1937 34 09/22/1978 - 10/24/1978 33 04/25/2009 - 06/23/2009 30* * THIS TIES FOR THE 17TH LONGEST PERIOD WITHOUT MEASURABLE RAIN. THE LAST TIME HOUSTON WENT 30 DAYS WITHOUT RAIN WAS FROM MAY 3 2003 THROUGH JUNE 1 2003. OTHER COMMUNITIES ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS HAVE SUFFERED A SIMILAR FATE. COLLEGE STATION...HUNTSVILLE AND CONROE HAVE NOT RECORDED MEASURABLE RAINFALL DURING JUNE. ANGLETON...BAY CITY AND EDNA HAVE YET TO RECEIVE 10 INCHES OF RAIN THIS YEAR. EXTREME TO EXCEPTIONAL DROUGHT CONDITIONS ARE AFFECTING PARTS OF JACKSON...MATAGORDA... WHARTON AND BRAZORIA COUNTIES. HOUSTON HAS RECEIVED 16.85 INCHES OF RAIN IN 2009. THE NORMAL VALUE THROUGH JUNE 23 IS 23.04 INCHES. THIS IS 6.19 INCHES BELOW NORMAL AND THIS DEFICIT IS LIKELY TO GROW. IF NOT FOR THE FREAKISH HEAVY RAIN AT THE END OF APRIL...THE HOUSTON AREA WOULD BE 10 TO 12 INCHES OF RAIN BELOW NORMAL. SINCE MAY 1...HOUSTON HAS ONLY RECEIVED 0.38 INCHES OF RAIN. THIS IS THE SECOND DRIEST MAY 1 THROUGH JUNE 23 ON RECORD. BELOW IS A TABLE WITH THE FIVE DRIEST MAY 1 THROUGH JUNE 23 ON RECORD: RAINFALL DATE 0.35 1906 0.38 2009 0.45 1931 1.01 1960 1.15 1901 IF ADDITIONAL RAIN DOES NOT FALL BY THE END OF THE MONTH...THIS WILL BE THE DRIEST MAY/JUNE RAINFALL TOTAL IN RECORDED HISTORY. HERE ARE THE FIVE DRIEST MAY/JUNE IN RECORDED HISTORY: MAY/JUNE RAIN * 0.38 IN 2009 (THROUGH JUNE 23) 0.98 IN 1931 1.78 IN 1915 1.82 IN 1934 1.87 IN 1901 1.96 IN 1906 SO IS THERE ANY HOPE FOR RAIN? HOW DOES A VAGUE "MAYBE" SOUND? A WEAK BACK DOOR COLD FRONT WILL SLIDE SOUTHWEST TOWARD SOUTHEAST TEXAS ON THURSDAY MORNING. THIS FEATURE COULD TRIGGER SOME SHOWERS ACROSS THE AREA. THE EXPANSIVE RIDGE WHICH HAS TAKEN UP RESIDENCE OVER SOUTHEAST TEXAS IS ALSO FORECAST TO SHIFT NORTHWEST BY THE END OF THE MONTH. THIS WILL WEAKEN THE CAPPING INVERSION AND ALLOW DIURNALLY DRIVEN SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS TO DEVELOP BY EARLY JULY. LONG RANGE MODELS HAVE TEASED US BEFORE ABOUT THE RIDGE WEAKENING AND MOVING WEST. BUT LIKE AN UNWELCOME HOUSE GUEST...THE RIDGE SHOWS NO SIGNS OF LEAVING. $$ CR