The latest State of The Climate for May and it continues with warm records being set all of the country.
Here are a few of the Spring highlights:
- The national temperature of 57.1 degrees F during spring was 5.2 degrees F above the long-term average, besting the previous warmest spring of 1910 by 2.0 degrees F. This marked the largest temperature departure from average of any season on record for the contiguous United States. The spring of 2012 was the culmination of the warmest March,third warmest April, and second warmest May. This marks the first time that all three months during the spring season ranked among the ten warmest, since records began in 1895.
- Record and near-record warmth dominated the eastern two-thirds of the nation during spring. Thirty-one states were record warm for the season, and 11 additional states had spring temperatures ranking among their ten warmest. Only Oregon and Washington had spring temperatures near their average.
And here are a few highlights for May:
- The average temperature for the contiguous U.S. during May was 64.3 degrees F, which is 3.3 degrees F above average — the second warmest May on record
- Tropical Storm Beryl made landfall near Jacksonville, Florida on May 28th, bringing beneficial rainfall to parts of the drought-stricken Southeast. Beryl occurred on the heels of Tropical Storm Alberto, marking only the third time on record that two tropical cyclones reached tropical storm strength during May in the North Atlantic basin.
A few highlights for January - May:
- January-May was the warmest such period on record for the contiguous United States, with an average temperature of 49.2 degrees F, 5.0 degrees F above the long-term average. Twenty-nine states, all east of the Rockies, were record warm for the five-month period and an additional 14 states had temperatures for the period among their ten warmest.
- The year’s first five months brought dry conditions to much of the East. The Southwest to the Central Rockies was also drier than average. Wetter-than-average conditions persisted for the Pacific Northwest, Upper Midwest, and the western Gulf Coast. Thenational precipitation total for the five-month period was nearly 1.0 inch below average.
And last but not least, highlights for the last 12 month period (June 2011-May 2012):
- The June 2011-May 2012 period was the warmest 12-month period of any 12 months on record for the contiguous United States. The nationally-averaged temperature of 56.0 degrees F was 3.2 degrees F above the long-term average, surpassing the previous record, set last month (May 2011-April 2012), by 0.4 degrees F. The 12-month period encapsulated the second warmest summer, fourth warmest winter, and the warmest spring on record.
- Every state across the contiguous U.S. had warmer than average temperatures for the period, except Washington, which was near normal.Every state from the Rockies eastward had a top five warmest June-through-May period, and twenty-six states had their warmest such period on record.
Of course, you can read the entire report here at DaculaWeather.com!
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