PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEMPHIS TN
1200 PM CST MON JAN 3 2000

...1999 YEAR-END CLIMATOLOGICAL AND SIGNIFICANT WEATHER SUMMARY FOR MEMPHIS INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT...
...MEMPHIS EXPERIENCES THIRD WARMEST YEAR SINCE 1875...

1999 WILL GO DOWN IN THE RECORD BOOKS AS A MUCH WARMER THAN AVERAGE YEAR...IN FACT THE THIRD WARMEST. THE FIRST FEW MONTHS OF THE YEAR WERE WELL ABOVE AVERAGE WITH TEMPERATURES 25 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL FOR DAYS AT A TIME. ONLY MARCH WAS BELOW AVERAGE...WITH MAY EQUALING THE NORMAL. PRECIPITATION WAS BELOW NORMAL...BUT NOT IN THE TOP 20 DRIEST...WITH A WET SPRING BUT A BONE DRY LATE SUMMER. BELOW IS A TABLE OF EACH MONTHS AVERAGE TEMP AND PRECIP:
 

MONTH AVGTEMP DEPARTURE RAINFALL DEPARTURE RAINDAYS
JANUARY 46.9 +7.2 6.15 +2.42 11
FEBRUARY 51.5 +7.3  2.10  -2.25 8
MARCH  50.7 -2.4  6.59 +1.18 14
APRIL 67.1 +4.2 8.92 +3.46 8
MAY 71.2 0 4.79 -0.19 9
JUNE 79.7 +0.6 2.42 -1.15 8
JULY  83.7 +1.1 3.63  -0.16 4
AUGUST 82.7  +1.7 1.18   -2.25 2
SEPTEMBER  75.2 +1.0  1.11 -2.42 7
OCTOBER 64.3  +1.2 1.53 -1.48 3
NOVEMBER 57.0 +4.5  2.37 -2.73 5
DECEMBER 45.7 +2.0 4.73  -1.01 6
YEARLY 64.6  +2.4 45.52 -6.58 85
(NOTE: RAINDAYS INDICATE NUMBER OF DAYS WITH AT LEAST 0.01" OF RAIN.)

THE WIDE RANGE OF TEMPERATURES AND CONDITIONS IN ANY GIVEN YEAR OFTEN LEADS TO RECORDS BEING SET OR TIED. BELOW IS A LIST OF RECORDS SET OR TIED (DOES NOT INCLUDE COOLEST HIGHS OR WARMEST LOWS) IN 1999:

JAN 21...NEW RECORD HIGH...75 DEGREES...PREVIOUS RECORD 72 SET IN 1959
FEB 08...NEW RECORD HIGH...77 DEGREES...PREVIOUS RECORD 75 SET IN 1950
FEB 11...NEW RECORD HIGH...76 DEGREES...PREVIOUS RECORD 75 SET IN 1938
NOV 07...TIE RECORD HIGH...81 DEGREES...PREVIOUS RECORD 81 SET IN 1980
NOV 14...NEW RECORD HIGH...81 DEGREES...PREVIOUS RECORD 79 SET IN 1971

...OTHER SIGNIFICANT WEATHER INFORMATION...

FEBRUARY'S AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 51.5 DEGREES WAS THE 8TH WARMEST FEBRUARY ON RECORD...WHILE APRIL'S AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 67.1 DEGREES WAS THE 6TH WARMEST ON RECORD. IN ADDITION...6  'WARMEST LOWS' WERE SET OR TIED DURING THE YEAR.

MISCELLANEOUS CLIMATOLOGICAL INFORMATION FOR MEMPHIS:
 

PARAMETER MEASURED THIS YEAR 30 YEAR NORMAL DEPARTURE
AVERAGE HIGH 74.5 72.1 +2.4
AVERAGE LOW 54.7 52.4  +2.3
HIGHEST TEMPERATURE 100 ON 8/11 and 8/18
LOWEST TEMPERATURE 12 ON 1/ 5
DAYS LOW 32 OR LESS  29 DAYS 56 DAYS -27 DAYS
DAYS HIGH 90 OR MORE 74 DAYS 63 DAYS +11 DAYS
DAYS HIGH 100 OR MORE  2 DAYS  3 DAYS  - 1 DAY
LAST FREEZE (SPRING)  3/15 3/24 + 9 DAYS
FIRST FREEZE (FALL) 11/03 11/12 + 9 DAYS
GROWING SEASON 232 DAYS 232 DAYS  0 DAYS
HEATING DEGREE DAYS 2396 3082  -686
COOLING DEGREE DAYS 2364 2118 +246
GREATEST 24 HR RAIN 3.50 ON 5/ 5
SNOWFALL TRACE  5.7 -5.7