If recent weather patterns in the Mount Airy area had to be described in a single word, it would be “wet.”
But since more than this is needed to fill a news hole, it also bears mentioning that the local precipitation total for 2020 as a whole, through Nov. 30, is 45% above normal for the year.
This translates to a total of 64.69 inches measured at F.G. Doggett Water Plant, the city’s official weather-monitoring station. That is 20.07 inches above what the Mount Airy area normally receives during the first 11 months of the year, 44.62 inches.
Last month certainly contributed to that output, with 5.51 inches measured at the water plant, more than two inches above the all-time average for November locally of 3.38 inches. Weather records have been kept in Mount Airy since 1924.
A whopping 2.04 inches of that were registered on Nov. 12 amid a lashing by Tropical Storm Eta which caused severe flooding around the state. This was the most noted for a single day here last month.
In all, measurable rainfall occurred on 10 of November’s 30 days.
October had been even wetter, with 8.67 inches falling in Mount Airy, dwarfing the local average for that month of 3.44 inches.
Eight days of rain were recorded during October, with the most falling during a single day — 2.48 inches — logged for Oct. 30 (the remnants of Hurricane Zeta).
September also contributed to the yearly trend with a 6.13-inch output, which outdid the all-time local average for that month of 4.40 inches. There were 12 days of rainfall during September, with a 1.60-inch downpour logged for Sept. 18 taking top honors for the period.
Fog was noted on three days during November, five in October and seven in September.
Prevailing warmth
The above-normal rainfall in recent weeks has been accompanied by higher temperatures for the most part.
In November, the mercury averaged 49.7 degrees, more than two degrees above the usual monthly average of 47.2.
October’s temps averaged 58.8 degrees, topping the norm of 57.2 degrees, but September was cooler than usual, with an average of 66.1 degrees compared to the all-time local figure for September of 68.4.
Both ends of the thermometer have been used heavily in recent months.
November produced a three-day trio of 75-degree readings, the high for the month, on Nov. 8-10, along with a monthly low of 25 degrees recorded on Nov. 20.
October had a monthly high of 84 on Oct. 30 and a low of 32 on the 19th.
September also was a time of temperature extremes with a monthly high of 91 degrees on Sept. 4 and low of 37 on both Sept. 22-23.
Frost was noted on eight days during November and two in October.
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com
Be First to Comment