Beautiful Summer Weather
By Russell Russ
Maybe it wasn’t the best August on record, but it was pretty nice as far as the weather goes. It was one of the nicer ones in recent memory anyway. Not too hot or cold, plenty of sunshine and just the right amount of rain. Sometimes we can get a cold snap during August, but not this year. If you like to complain about the weather there wasn’t much to say this month.
The month’s high temperature of 88 degrees was observed on August 4 and the low temperature of 46 degrees was observed on August 30. No daily temperature records this month and no days above 90 degrees. The 91 recorded on July 18 was the only time we broke 90 this summer. Our average for getting to 90 or above is 2 to 3 times per year. The average mean temperature for August was 68.7 degrees, 2.5 degrees above normal. The daytime temperatures were about normal, what keeps us warmer on average these days is that the nighttime temperatures don’t seem to be as low as they normally are. It was the warmest August since 2005 and ranked as the ninth warmest August over the last 81 years. Norfolk’s warmest August, based on our records, was in 2001 with an average temperature of 71.0 degrees.
The total precipitation for the month was 4.90 inches, 0.37 inch above normal. It was only the second time this year that we have been above normal in precipitation for a month. There were five thunderstorms observed at the weather station this month. Unlike recent years we saw no direct affects from any hurricanes.
Through August this year, the total precipitation amount for the year was 26.57 inches. This is 7.86 inches below normal for this period. We are below average in rainfall, but not overly dry and certainly much better off than many regions of the country. Norfolk has seen its fair share of bad weather, and will again for sure, so enjoy the good weather while you can.
