March 2010 Climate Records

March 2010 was a month of extremes across Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The month started off with several 90 degree days across the San Juan metropolitan area, followed by record cold temperatures and record precipitation - both associated with a cold front that stalled across the region over the first weekend of the month. However, dry weather quickly returned and temperatures rebounded to levels well above normal by the middle of the month. In fact, by the end of March, the average temperature of 80.7 degrees in San Juan and 80.9 degrees recorded at the airports on both Saint Thomas and Saint Croix, represented temperatures much more characteristic of May than March.

Over the course of the month, a total of 42 climate records were either tied or broken at the official reporting sites in San Juan, Saint Thomas and Saint Croix. The vast majority of these new records were record warm minimum temperatures - likely influenced by the above normal water temperatures that have been recorded across the local Atlantic and Caribbean waters for the past several months. Below is a summary of all the new climate records either tied or broken across the local islands during the month of March and a complete climate report for March 2010 can be found in the Local Data/Records section of our Climate web page under Local Climate Studies.

March 2010 Temperature Records

(Warm / Cool Records)

Location/Record Type	New Record/Date	Old Record (Year)	Location/Record Type	New Record	Old Record
San Juan – High Temperature	92F March 4^th	91F (1978)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	80F March 4^th	77F (1979)
San Juan – High Temperature	92F March 14^th	92F (1993)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	80F March 5^th	75F (2007)
San Juan – High Temperature	92F March 20^th	92F (1981)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	77F March 11^th	77F (1996)
Saint Croix – High Temperature	88F March 4^th	88F (1998)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	80F March 14^th	78F (1993)
San Juan – High Temperature	77F March 6^th	79F (1969)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	77F March 16^th	76F (2003)
San Juan – High Temperature	74F March 7^th	80F (1985)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	79F March 17^th	78F (1981)
San Juan – High Temperature	78F March 11^th	78F (1967)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	79F March 18^th	78F (2003)
Saint Thomas – High Temperature	75F March 7^th	79F (2009)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	79F March 19^th	78F (1960)
Saint Croix – High Temperature	81F March 8^th	81F (2008)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	78F March 20^th	76F (1993)
San Juan – Low Temperature	76F March 1^st	76F (1983)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	77F March 21^st	77F (1993)
San Juan – Low Temperature	78F March 3^rd	76F (2009)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	77F March 22^nd	77F (2005)
San Juan – Low Temperature	77F March 19^th	77F (1983)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	80F March 23^rd	78F (1987)
San Juan – Low Temperature	76F March 20^th	75F (2007)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	77F March 30^th	77F (2005)
San Juan – Low Temperature	76F March 26^th	75F (2008)	Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	78F March 31^st	77F (1958)
San Juan – Low Temperature	76F March 28^th	76F (2006)	Saint Croix – Low Temperature	79F March 3^rd	78F (1981)
San Juan – Low Temperature	77F March 31^st	76F (1981)	Saint Croix – Low Temperature	78F March 4^th	77F (1998)
Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	78F March 1^st	76F (1983)	Saint Croix – Low Temperature	79F March 14^th	78F (1993)
Saint Thomas – Low Temperature	80F March3^rd	77F (1992)	Saint Croix – Low Temperature	79F March 19^th	77F (1983)

March 2010 Precipitation Records

Location/Record Type	New Record/Date	Old Record (Year)	Location/Record Type	New Record	Old Record
San Juan Precipitation	0.26” March 6^th	0.24” (1982)	Saint Thomas Precipitation	0.88” March 6^th	0.73” (2009)
San Juan Precipitation	1.05” March 7^th	0.34” (1995)	Saint Thomas Precipitation	0.75” March 7^th	0.49” (1983)
San Juan Precipitation	1.04” March 11^th	0.84” (1990)	Saint Croix Precipitation	0.89” March 11^th	0.42” (1955)

(Official records for San Juan begin January 1, 1956, records for Saint Thomas begin January 1, 1953 and records for Saint Croix begin January 1, 1951)

National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office