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| Storm Reports |
| Are you interested in what happened during a recent event? Check out the
report below. |
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Hundred Degree Days |
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A big dome of high pressure settled over the middle of
the country to begin August. Temperatures
in Little Rock (Pulaski County) climbed above 100 degrees for the first time in 2007, with dangerous heat index values. |
| In the picture:
The pattern on 08/12/2007...with high pressure ("H")
over the central United States. Storm systems went around the
high well to the north, with little in the way of rain in Arkansas. |
| On August 12th, the temperature at Little Rock National
Airport/Adams Field (Pulaski County) maxed out at 106 degrees...which
was the warmest temperature since August 31, 2000. The 100 degree mark
was reached every day from August 9th through the 16th (8 consecutive
days). The record for the most consecutive days reaching at
least the century mark is 15 from July 5-19, 1980. |
| 100 Degree Days
in 2007 |
|
Day |
Temperature |
| Aug 9 |
102 F |
| Aug 10 |
102 F |
| Aug 11 |
102 F |
| Aug 12 |
106 F |
| Aug 13 |
103 F |
| Aug 14 |
104 F |
| Aug 15 |
104 F |
| Aug 16 |
102 F |
| Aug 22 |
100 F |
| Aug 23 |
100 F |
| Aug 24 |
100 F |
| Aug 27 |
100 F |
| Total Days = 12 |
| The
Most Consecutive 100 Degree Days |
| Dates |
Number
of Days |
| July 5-19, 1980 |
15 |
| August 25-September 4,
2000 |
11 |
| August 20-30, 1983 |
11 |
| August 6-15, 1980 |
10 |
| August 10-19, 1954 |
10 |
| August 9-16, 2007 |
8 |
| July 22-29, 1952 |
8 |
| August 2-9, 1947 |
8 |
| September 2-9,
1925 |
8 |
| July 27-August
3, 1896 |
8 |
| The years with the most 100 degree days were 1980 with 47 and 1954
with 46 (since 1879). After 1980, there were two years (1998 and 2000) with at
least 20 days of 100 degree temperatures (27 days and 26 days
respectively). Climatologically, the average number of 100 degree days
each year is around 5. |
| The
Most 100 Degree Days |
| Year |
Number
of Days |
| 1980 |
47 |
| 1954 |
46 |
| 1998 |
27 |
| 2000 |
26 |
| 1943 |
23 |
| 1896 |
19 |
| 1947 |
17 |
| 1934 |
16 |
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| In the pictures:
Hundred degree days at Little Rock (Pulaski County) since
1900. |
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Since 1900 (through 2006), there were 41 years when temperatures failed to
reach 100 degrees (38% of the time). The frequency of these years decreased with time, with only 9 years with no 100 degree temperatures
since 1975 (28% of the time). Since 2000, there were 2 years (2002
and 2004).
|
| Years
with No 100 Degree Temperatures |
|
Years |
Number
of Years |
| 1900 - 1924 |
15 |
| 1925 - 1949 |
9 |
| 1950 - 1974 |
8 |
| 1975 - 1999 |
7 |
| Since 2000 |
2 |
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Interestingly enough, from a forecast standpoint...100 degree days do
not often occur when there is a lot of ground water. This year, for
example, there was well above normal rain in early July (across central
and southern Arkansas). This pushed soil moisture to at or above normal levels...with green
vegetation. As a result, temperatures in July never made it above 95
degrees (on the 8th and 28th).
When soil moisture is depleted and vegetation dries out (turns brown), temperatures
tend to reach 100 degrees more easily. That was the case in August, with
a lack of rain and drought conditions developing.
There was no measurable rain from July 30th through August 28th (30
consecutive days)...which is one of
the top 12 driest periods on record. The record stands at 39 days from July
27 through September 3, 1995.
|
| Consecutive
Days Without Measurable Rain |
| Dates |
Number
of Days |
| July 27-September 3, 1995 |
39 |
| August 3-September 8, 1936 |
37 |
| June 14-July 19, 1944 |
36 |
| May 19-June 22, 1966 |
35 |
| May 29-July 2, 1952 |
35 |
| December 15-January 17, 1956 |
34 |
| July 2-August 3, 1930 |
33 |
| September 28-October 30, 1924 |
33 |
| September 29-October 30, 2005 |
32 |
| June 29-July 30, 1986 |
32 |
| September 29-October 30, 1963 |
32 |
| July 30-August 28, 2007 |
30 |
| May 30-June 28, 1954 |
30 |
| October 8-November 6, 1944 |
30 |
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