THE FOUR-INCH RAIN GAUGE -- HOW IS IT CALIBRATED?   from CoCoRaHS: "An observer from Alabama writes: 'I've always tried to figure out how rain gauges are calibrated and I read somewhere that the principle is how much water falls on one square inch of ground. In that case, a gauge with a one inch square opening would need to be six inches tall to measure six inches of rain. Trying to reconcile this knowledge with my new gauge, I figured that a 4" opening represents 12.56 square inches (A=pi*r*r), and that the tube should be 12.5" tall to measure an inch of water. However, from the bottom of the tube to the inch mark it isn't that tall. Could you help me understand the principle? Great question! Here is our answer: Rainfall is a DEPTH measurement and not a "volume" measurement. In other words, it's not "an inch per square inch" but it's an inch for any area in your immediate vicinity that the rain happens to land on. In the case of your new rain gauge, the "inch" of rain is falling into a cylinder that has an inside diameter of slightly less than 4" is then being funneled into a calibrated cylinder of a much smaller diameter (just greater than 1.2 inside diameter). The area of the opening of the inner cylinder is exactly 1/10th the area of the funnel and outer cylinder. This means, the inner tube will magnify the depth of rain by a factor of exactly 10. What this means is that 1.00" of rain will fill that inner cylinder to a depth of 10.0". It is then scaled accordingly." (Editor's note: By the way, have you joined the CoCoRaHS network? It's a really good way to archive your data, provide useful precip reports to the NWS, as well as to the media, and local authorities!)

NEW NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STORM SURGE MAPS A LIFE-SAVING TOOL   New maps from the National Weather Service to warn of storm surges from hurricanes will give local and state emergency management coordinators a new tool to help local communities avoid harm — and may help save lives from the deadliest impact of tropical storms. More details with a click here: http://www.dailypress.com/news/dp-nws-sci-hurricanes-forecast-20160401-story.html

SCIENTISTS SCURRY TO SOUTHEAST TO STUDY STORMS, CHASE TORNADOES   Dixie also has a tornado alley! Details in this link to CNN.com: http://edition.cnn.com/2016/03/30/weather/southeast-tornado-experiment-vortex-se/index.html

CLIMATE EXPERTS FIELD QUESTIONS FROM THE CROWD   from Kevin Shaw, ACON DC/MD/DE: "I watched most of this Severe Storms and Tornado conference. Excellent presentations. All the presentations are broken up on this website - so you can pick and choose which one you would like to see and hear. Dr. Louis Uccellini, NWS Director, made an excellent presentation (And he goes into the big blizzard of Jan 2016 in good detail) that on this website is divided up in 6 parts. I heartily recommend you check some or all of these presentations out. They will remain on WGN's website in the future so no rush to get to them but do try to watch at least a few of them. The entire conference lasted most of the day today." More details with a click here: http://wgntv.com/category/news/fermilab/

NWS AKQ Monthly Rainfall Analysis      From NWS Wakefield compiled from ASOS...COOP...RAWS REPORTS | Monthly Rainfall Analysis - http://www.weather.gov/akq/MONTHLY_RAINFALL_ANALYSIS -

TRACK APRIL 2016 NWS STORM REPORTS FOR YOUR STATE   The Storm Prediction Center archives reports of severe weather - tornado, wind, hail - to the National Weather Service. To view these reports, start here with a click to April 1, 2016. While visiting, you will learn how to navigate the daily reports using forward and backward navigation arrows ( < > ) or by replacing the date in your browser's URL line with a date you wish to view. For starters, click here for April 2016 reports: http://www.spc.noaa.gov/climo/reports/160401_rpts.html

   DROUGHT MONITOR       Information on drought can be found at NOAA's Drought Information Center (http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/)

REMINDER   All National Weather Service station data listed herein is preliminary and may be subject to change.  The data has not been certified and cannot be used in legal actions.  Only reports certified by the National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, NC can be used for these purposes.

ACON VA/NC/SC Station Extremes - APRIL 2016

State	Maximum Temperature	Minimum Temperature	Warmest Average Temperature	Coldest Average Temperature	Maximum Precipitation	Minimum Precipitation
Virginia	89° Glen Allen	19° Blacksburg	58.3° Norfolk (FHC) Portsmouth	53.0° Blacksburg	4.19" Newport News	1.13" Roanoke
North Carolina	91° Fayetteville	27° Asheville Raleigh (RAL)	62.8° Wilmington	56.8° Asheville	4.04" Elizabeth City	1.62" Beaufort
South Carolina	91° Columbia Charleston Orangeburg	31° Greenville-Spartanburg	66.0° Charleston	62.0° Greenville-Spartanburg	5.34" Florence	0.99" North Myrtle Beach

( For an explanation of column headers in the following tables,
please note the column denotations table below. )

TEMPERATURE / WINDS/ ELEMENTS FOLLOWED BY
PRECIPITATION / BAROMETRIC PRESSURE
VIRGINIA | NORTH CAROLINA | SOUTH CAROLINA [Reminder: All NWS DATA HEREIN IS NOT OFFICIAL]

STATION	A	B	C	C1	D	E	F	G	H	I	J	K	K1	L	M	N	N1	N2	O	P	Q	R	R1	CWA	TIME RECORDED
BCB	66.5	39.5	53.0	2.3	83	18	19	10	0	0	8	0	61%	45	310	2	5.7		1	1	0	0	2	LWX	2400
CHT	67.6	43.6	55.6	1.2	86.1	26	25	6	0	0	3	0	62%	24	158	11	0.8	180	0	0	0	0	0	LWX	2400
CHO	68.8	44.9	56.9	1.6	88	18	26	6	0	0	3	0		41	280	2	6.8		4	0	0	0	0	LWX	2400
DAN	71.2	44.9	58.0	-0.2	87	18,19	24	10	0	0	4	0	60%	43	290	9	7.0		4	0	0	0	0	RNK	2400
DCA	67.0	46.7	56.9	0.1	86	26	30	5	0	0	3	0	56%	58	310	2	10.1		0	0	0	0	0	LWX	2400
IAD	65.9	42.3	54.1	-0.3	84	26	24	6	0	0	5	0	58%	65	310	2	8.7		0	0	0	0	0	LWX	2400
GAV	69.64	45.32	57.48	-1.4	89	26	25	10	0	0	3	0	62%	36	203	4			4	1	0	0	0	AKQ	2400
HAM	66.0	43.0	57.0	-1.0	85	26	30	6	0	0	2	0		45	360	3	12.0		1	0	0	0	0	AKQ	2400
HDV	65.6	43.1	54.3	-1.6	84	26	26	6	0	0	3	0	63%	22	270	1		45	1	0	0	1	0	LWX	2400
LYH	68.2	42.8	55.5	0.1	85	19,26	22	10	0	0	4	0	59%	38	300,190	3,11	6.4		3	0	0	0	1	RNK	2400
NPN	67.3	46.6	56.8	-2.1	85.9	26	28.7	6	0	0	1	0		44	270	3	4.4	203	4	0	0	0	0	AKQ	2400
FHC	67.7	48.9	58.3	0.1	87	26	33	6	0	0	0	0	63%	38	270	9	8.0	203	2	1	0	0	0	AKQ	2400
NOR	66.0	47.0	56.5	-1.4	84	26	29	6	0	0	1	0		40	270	9			2	0	0	0	0	AKQ	2400
ORF	66.5	48.9	57.7	-0.5	86	26	32	6	0	0	1	0	63%	46	340	5	11.6		2	0	0	0	0	AKQ	2400
POR	68.6	48.0	58.3	-1.0	87	26	30	6	0	0	1	0	69%	46	270	9	8.0	45	2	1	0	0	0	AKQ	2400
CTR	70.6	44.1	57.4	0.2	88.6	18	24.4	6	0	0	6	0	63%	28	315	3	0.5	239	0	0	0	1	0	AKQ	2400
MEC	69.63	46.30	58.16		88	19,20	26	10	0	0	1	0	42%	22		5	8.5		5	0	0	0	0	AKQ	2400
RIC	68.6	44.6	56.6	-1.6	87	19,26	27	6,10	0	0	3	0	61%	50	220	7	9.6		3	0	0	0	0	AKQ	2400
ROA	70.3	45.8	58.0	1.3	88	18	25	10	0	0	3	0	53%	57	330	3	8.5		1	0	0	0	0	RNK	2400
SVC	65.2	43.8	54.5	-1.1	84	18	28	6	0	0	3	0							0	0	0	0	3	LWX	2400
WAL	63.0	43.8	53.4	-0.5	85	26	26	6	0	0	3	0		52	310,290	2,3	11.8		3	0	0	0	1	AKQ	2400
WSH	65.2	43.8	54.5	-1.16	86.5	18	27.2	10	0	0	4	0	61%	28	180	1	1.1	68	1	0	0	0	0	LWX	2400
Averages	67.50	44.90	56.32	-0.33	86.1		26.7		0.0	0.0	3.0	0.0	60%	43.4			7.2		2.0	0.2	0.0	0.1	0.3
STATION	A	B	C	C1	D	E	F	G	H	I	J	K	K1	L	M	N	N1	N2	O	P	Q	R	R1	CWA	TIME RECORDED
STATION	A	B	C	C1	D	E	F	G	H	I	J	K	K1	L	M	N	N1	N2	O	P	Q	R	R1	CWA	TIME RECORDED
AVL	69.4	44.2	56.8	1.6	84	28	27	10	0	0	2	0	56%	48	340	9	7.4		3	0	0	0	0	GSP	2400
MRH	69.2	52.2	60.7	-0.3	87	19	35	6	0	0	0	0		48	290	9	11.4		1	0	0	0	0	MHX	2400
CLT	73.5	50.0	61.8	2.4	88	19	34	6,10	0	0	0	0	55%	37	180,210	7,9	7.7		2	0	0	0	0	GSP	2400
ECG	68.1	47.6	57.9	-0.8	86	19	28	6	0	0	2	0	67%	51	280	9	11.6		3	0	0	0	1	AKQ	2400
FAY	74.6	50.5	62.6	-0.1	91	19	31	6,10	1	0	2	0	58%	45	230	7	9.1		4	0	0	0	1	RAH	2400
GSO	71.8	48.7	60.3	1.5	87	19	29	10	0	0	2	0	55%	47	300	9	8.6		3	0	0	0	1	RAH	2400
HSE	66.8	53.2	60.0	0.5	78	19	40	5	0	0	0	0	71%	47	300	3	10.6		1	0	0	0	0	MHX	2400
HKY	71.5	47.4	59.5	1.0	86	18,29	30	10	0	0	2	0		40	290	2	6.1		5	0	0	0	2	GSP	2400
LBT	75.0	49.9	62.4	0.7	90	19	29	6,10	1	0	2	0	63%	42	300	9	7.3		3	0	0	0	1	ILM	2400
EWN	72.3	49.2	60.7	-1.1	88	19,27	34	6,10	0	0	0	0	63%	41	280	9	8.7		6	0	0	0	1	MHX	2400
RDU	72.2	49.1	60.6	0.4	88	19	29	6,10	0	0	2	0	59%	43	290	9	8.0		4	0	0	0	0	RAH	2400
RAL	72.6	48.1	60.4	0.2	89	19	27	6	0	0	2	0		29		9			2	0	0	0	0	RAH	2400
ILM	73.9	51.6	62.8	-0.1	89	19	35	6,10	0	0	0	0	62%	43	260	9	9.4		6	0	0	0	1	ILM	2400
Averages	71.61	49.36	60.50	0.45	87.00		31.4		0.2	0.0	1.2	0.0	61%	43.2			8.8		3.3	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.6
STATION	A	B	C	C1	D	E	F	G	H	I	J	K	K1	L	M	N	N1	N2	O	P	Q	R	R1	CWA	TIME RECORDED
STATION	A	B	C	C1	D	E	F	G	H	I	J	K	K1	L	M	N	N1	N2	O	P	Q	R	R1	CWA	TIME RECORDED
AND	75.0	50.4	62.7	2.4	88	29	35	10	0	0	0	0		39	250	2	7.2		6	0	0	0	1	GSP	2400
CAE	78.1	53.6	65.8	2.4	91	29	38	10	2	0	0	0	56%	51	240	1	7.6		4	0	0	0	2	CAE	2400
CRE	72.5	53.0	62.8	1.2	88	19	36	10	0	0	0	0	66%	36	250	2	9.1		3	0	0	0	1	ILM	2400
CHS	77.3	54.7	66.0	1.2	91	29	41	5	1	0	0	0		37	290,320,190	2,9,28	9.0		1	0	0	0	0	CHS	2400
CXM	72.0	59.6	65.8	0.4	84	29	45	10	0	0	0	0		34	50	13	8.5							CHS	2400
FLO	75.4	52.2	63.8	0.5	89	19	33	6,10	0	0	0	0	62%	46	270	2	8.3		3	0	0	0	2	ILM	2400
GSP	73.7	50.3	62.0	1.5	87	19,29	31	10	0	0	1	0	56%	36	280	7	7.5		5	0	0	0	2	GSP	2400
OGB	76.9	53.6	65.2	1.8	91	29	38	10	1	0	0	0		40	270	2	7.2		3	0	0	0	3	CAE	2400
Averages	75.11	53.43	64.26	1.4	88.6		26.4		0.5	0.0	0.1	0.0	60%	39.9			8.1		3.6	0.0	0.0	0.0	1.6
STATION	A	B	C	C1	D	E	F	G	H	I	J	K	K1	L	M	N	N1	N2	O	P	Q	R	R1	CWA	TIME RECORDED
STATION	A	B	C	C1	D	E	F	G	H	I	J	K	K1	L	M	N	N1	N2	O	P	Q	R	R1	CWA	TIME RECORDED
TRI	71.5	43.1	57.3	2.1	85	20	24	10	0	0	6	0		46	250	7	5.8		4	0	0	0	2	MRX	2400
DAV	55.9	32.3	44.1		73	19	5	11	0	2	13	0												PBX	2400
STATION	T	T1	U	U1	V	V1	W	X	Y	Z	1	2	3	4	5	6	6A	7	7A	8	CWA	TIME RECORDED
BCB	1.75	-1.73	0.41	22	0.41	11	11	0	11.46	0.6	9	4	0	0.6	25.6						RNK	2400
CHT	1.97	-1.50	0.92	7	0.92	7	13	0	11.79					0.0	33.7	30.463	17	29.366	2	29.952	LWX	2400
CHO	3.37	0.01	1.00	28	1.84	27-28	9	1	10.98									29.390	2		LWX	2400
DAN	2.80	-0.66	0.87	27	1.42	27-28	8	0	11.98	0				0.0	11.1	30.450	17	29.470	2	29.960	RNK	2400
DCA	2.05	-1.01	0.70	7	0.70	7	12	0	9.68	T	3,5,9	3	0	T	32.3			29.390	2		LWX	2400
IAD	1.88	-1.59	0.94	7	0.94	6-7	12	0	11.78	T	3,5,9	3	0	T	34.3			29.390	2		LWX	2400
GAV	2.45		0.57	22	0.57	22	11	0	11.93	T	9	1	0	T	19.9	30.490	17	29.430	2	29.960	AKQ	2400
HAM	2.30	-0.76	0.56	2	0.58	1-2	10	0	12.96	T	5	1	0	T	4.0	30.460	10	29.470	2	29.965	AKQ	2400
HDV	2.11	-1.45	1.04	7			12	1	12.55	T	3,5,9	3	0	T	34.2	30.450	17	29.360	2	29.905	AKQ	2400
LYH	2.12	-1.19	0.78	7	0.78	6-7	8	0	12.77					0.0	15.6	30.470	17	29.480	2	29.975	RNK	2400
NPN	4.19	0.25	1.04	22	1.04	22	10	1	17.97					0.0	9.9	30.430	17	29.440	2	29.935	AKQ	2400
FHC	2.94	-0.47	0.62	22	0.98	27-28	10	0	16.10	T	5,9	2	0	T	5.0	30.431	17	29.472	2	29.952	AKQ	2400
NOR	2.71	-1.13	0.81	2	0.81	2	10	0	17.98	T	5,9	2	0	T	5.0						AKQ	2400
ORF	2.78	-0.63	0.70	2	0.70	2	9	0	17.11	T	5,9	2	0	T	5.0	30.440	17	29.470	2	29.955	AKQ	2400
POR	3.22	-0.29	0.77	2	0.88	27-28	10	0	17.68	T	9	1	0	T	4.6	30.429	10	29.456	2	29.943	AKQ	2400
CTR	2.93	-1.03	0.87	28	0.87	28	12	0	13.49					0.0	17.6	30.420	17	29.390	2	29.905	AKQ	2400
MEC	2.53		0.47	23	0.56	1-2	11	0	13.29	T		1	0	T	20.1						AKQ	2400
RIC	2.17	-1.10	0.60	22	0.60	22	11	0	10.84					0.0	12.0	30.480	17	29.440	2	29.960	AKQ	2400
ROA	1.13	-2.24	0.26	28	0.26	28	8	0	11.61	T	3.9	2	0	T	23.0	30.480	17	29.500	7	29.990	RNK	2400
SVC	2.87	-0.67	1.13	7	1.13	7	12	1	15.11	T	9	1	0	T	36.3						LWX	2400
WAL	1.68	-1.39	0.41	12	0.42	4-5	12	0	10.73	0.6	5	2	0	0.6	12.3	30.440	17	29.410	2	29.925	AKQ	2400
WSH	2.11	-1.94	0.86	28	0.86	21	15	0	11.25	T	3,5,8,9	4	0	T	27.7	30.500	17	29.440	2	29.970	LWX	2400
Averages	2.46	-1.03	0.74		0.82		10.7	0.2	13.23	0.1				0.1	18.5	30.456		29.431		29.950
STATION	T	T1	U	U1	V	V1	W	X	Y	Z	1	2	3	4	5	6	6A	7	7A	8	CWA	TIME RECORDED
STATION	T	T1	U	U1	V	V1	W	X	Y	Z	1	2	3	4	5	6	6A	7	7A	8	CWA	TIME RECORDED
AVL	2.50	-0.83	1.07	30	1.07	30	7	1	13.04					0.0	13.9	30.440	17	29.650	7	30.045	GSP	2400
MRH	1.62	-1.93	0.63	7	0.71	6-7	7	0	16.33					0.0	T	30.450	10	29.540	2	29.995	MHX	2400
CLT	2.03	-1.01	0.78	30	0.78	29-30	7	0	8.81					0.0	3.3	30.450	17	29.590	2	30.020	GSP	2400
ECG	4.04	0.90	1.12	22	1.76	22-23	8	1	13.85					0.0	1.8	30.450	10	29.510	2	29.980	AKQ	2400
FAY	3.53	0.71	1.37	28	1.37	28	6	1	12.38									29.520	2		RAH	2400
GSO	2.20	-1.37	0.62	27	1.06	27-28	10	0	10.30					0.0	4.5			29.520	2		RAH	2400
HSE	2.31	-1.33	0.92	1	0.92	1	7	0	21.39					0.0	T			29.500	2		MHX	2400
HKY	2.71	-0.97	0.96	30	0.96	30	9	0	10.92							30.420	17	29.550	7	29.985	GSP	2400
LBT	3.17	0.35	1.32	22	1.32	22	5	1	12.63							30.440	10	29.540	2	29.990	ILM	2400
EWN	1.68	-1.49	0.42	12	0.42	12	9	0	16.03					0.0	T	30.460	10	29.540	2	30.000	MHX	2400
RDU	2.98	0.06	1.02	22	1.02	21-22	7	1	13.43					0.0	1.4			29.520	2		RAH	2400
RAL	3.43	0.51			0.86	11-12	7	0	15.49					0.0	1.9	30.360	15	29.820	26	30.090	RAH	2400
ILM	1.91	-0.91	0.80	22	0.86	22-23	9	0	16.81					0.0	T	30.440	10	29.540	2	29.990	ILM	2400
Averages	2.62	-0.56	0.92		1.01		7.5	0.4	13.95					0.0	2.7	30.434		29.565		30.011
STATION	T	T1	U	U1	V	V1	W	X	Y	Z	1	2	3	4	5	6	6A	7	7A	8	CWA	TIME RECORDED
STATION	T	T1	U	U1	V	V1	W	X	Y	Z	1	2	3	4	5	6	6A	7	7A	8	CWA	TIME RECORDED
AND	2.09	-1.03	0.78	30	0.78	30	7	0	9.96							30.410	17	29.680	7	30.045	GSP	2400
CAE	2.80	0.18	1.49	1	1.49	1	6	1	11.31					0.0	T	30.110	25	29.790	27	29.950	CAE	2400
CRE	0.99	-1.97	0.43	7	0.43	7	5	0	10.53							30.440	10	29.570	2	30.005	ILM	2400
CHS	2.61	-0.30	1.47	28	1.47	28	8	1	14.09					0.0	T	30.420	10	29.650	2	30.035	CHS	2400
CXM	1.23	-1.30	0.45	1	0.45	1	6	0	12.75									29.640	2		CHS	2400
FLO	5.34	2.72	2.56	22	2.56	22	7	2	14.43							30.440	10	29.570	2	30.005	ILM	2400
GSP	2.32	-1.04	0.91	30	0.91	30	7	0	12.27					0.0	2.6	30.420	17	29.630	7	30.025	GSP	2400
OGB	1.26	-1.59	0.58	22	0.80	1-2	6	0	8.43							30.430	10	29.670	2	30.050	CAE	2400
Averages	2.33	-0.54	1.08		1.11		6.5	0.50	11.72					0.0	0.9	30.381		29.650		30.016
STATION	T	T1	U	U1	V	V1	W	X	Y	Z	1	2	3	4	5	6	6A	7	7A	8	CWA	TIME RECORDED
STATION	T	T1	U	U1	V	V1	W	X	Y	Z	1	2	3	4	5	6	6A	7	7A	8	CWA	TIME RECORDED
TRI	3.59	0.26	0.59	1	0.95	27-28	9	0	11.93					0.0	18.4	30.410	17	29.570	7	29.990	MRX	2400
DAV	4.32		0.93	29			14	0	16.57	9.6	10	8	4	21.2	123.8						PBX	2400
STATION	T	T1	U	U1	V	V1	W	X	Y	Z	1	2	3	4	5	6	6A	7	7A	8	CWA	TIME RECORDED

Virginia:

Arlington/Washington, D.C. - "WASHINGTON DC...REAGAN NATIONAL AIRPORT... THE MONTHLY AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS NEAR NORMAL. MONTHLY PRECIPITATION WAS BELOW NORMAL. THIS WAS THE COOLEST APRIL SINCE 2007...AND THE DRIEST SINCE 2012. REAGAN NATIONAL AIRPORT HAD ITS FIRST 80-DEGREE DAY OF 2016 ON THE 1ST. A RECORD DAILY HIGH MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OF 64 DEGREES WAS SET ON THE 1ST...BREAKING THE OLD RECORD OF 62 SET IN 1998. A RECORD DAILY HIGH MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OF 65 DEGREES WAS SET ON THE 26TH...TYING THE RECORD PREVIOUSLY SET IN 1881. " - [ + - ] - from NWS Sterling, VA

Chantilly - "April temperatures were slightly above average and precipitation was below average. The mean monthly temperature was 55.6° (+1.2°). The mean high temperature was 67.6° (+0.9°) and the mean low temperature was 43.6° (+1.5°). A record high temperature was tied on the 1st (85°). A record high minimum temperature was set on the 1st (64°) and 22nd (64°). April precipitation of 1.97” was below average (-1.50”). No snow was observed. Season snowfall for 2015-16 was 33.7”. *Please note, anemometer is currently partially obstructed from the North and East " - [ + - ] - from member Russ Toping

Seven Corners/Fairfax County - from member John Iekel: " APRIL 2016 WAS A HARD MONTH FOR GARDENERS. SEVERE FREEZES, THEN VERY DRY WITH ONLY 0.56” DURING A THREE-WEEK PERIOD. " - [ - - ]

Dulles - from NWS Sterling (KLWX): "DULLES INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT... THE MONTHLY AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS NEAR NORMAL. MONTHLY PRECIPITATION WAS WELL BELOW NORMAL. THIS WAS THE DRIEST APRIL SINCE 2012. A RECORD DAILY HIGH MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OF 64 DEGREES WAS SET ON THE 1ST...BREAKING THE OLD RECORD OF 57 SET IN 2006. A RECORD DAILY LOW TEMPERATURE OF 24 DEGREES WAS SET ON THE 6TH...TYING THE OLD RECORD PREVIOUSLY SET IN 1966. A RECORD DAILY HIGH MINIMUM TEMPERATURE OF 62 DEGREES WAS SET ON THE 22ND...TYING THE RECORD PREVIOUSLY SET IN 1977. " - [ - - ]

Herndon - from member Randy Ashby: " April was below normal for temperature and precipitation. The temperatures ranged between a high of 84 and a low of 26 and was 1.6 degrees below normal. On the precipitation side, the month was 1.45” below normal, with 2.11” measured. We had a trace of snow three times during the month. The total snow for the year was 34.2”. " - [ - - ]

Norfolk - from NWS Wakefield (AKQ): " View the NWS AKQ Wakefield April 2016 Climate Summary with a click here " - [ - - ]

Portsmouth - from Bill Trotter: " The month's average temperature of 58.3° was 1.0° BELOW NORMAL. Precipitation (3.22") was BELOW NORMAL by 0.29" or 92% of the April average rainfall during the period from 1977 to 2015. At month's end, rainfall for the year totaled 17.68" (+3.20" or 122% of normal). Frontal passages: 3rd, 5th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 12th, 19th, 23rd, and 28th. Frost was noted on the 6th. . STATION RECORDS: 1st - TEMPERATURE Max low 68° [previously 66° 1998], 2nd - TEMPERATURE Minimum 30° [previously 31° 1982], 7th - WIND GUST 39mph [previously 38mph in 1989], and 9th - WIND GUST 46mph [previously 38mph 1998]. To view the station monthly and year-to-date climatological summary (LCD) for this Portsmouth station, please click here. " - [ - - ]

Glen Allen - from Lowell Koontz: " April was cooler than average by -1.4°F. The monthly mean temperature for April was 57.5°F the third lowest on record for April. The average minimum temperature was only 0.4°F from being a new low record for April. April was the third driest at Glen Allen with a total of 2.45 inches, a departure of -0.93 inches based on the average of the past 7 years. Measurable precipitation occurred on 11 days and none was intense as the most rain to fall in an hour was 0.33 inches and 0.14 inches in five minutes. The maximum precipitation to occur in 24 hours was only 0.57 inches on the 22nd; the previous record was 0.65 in 2010. The cloud cover and average relative humidity were both near average for April but the 16% relative humidity on the 18th was the second lowest on record which added to the Virginia fire threat and the Shenandoah National Park fire. The high temperature for April was only 88.5°F on the 26th. This April had five 80 degree days. The maximum daily temperature range was only 43.5°F on the 18th which set a new record for Glen Allen; the previous record was 39°F in 2009. April 28th had only a 6.4°F temperature range which tied for the lowest range for April. The lowest minimum was 25.2°F recorded on the 10th which is now the lowest temperature on record at Glen Allen for April; the previous record was 26.4°F on April 3, 2013. The small difference in these two records and the very warm March made a big difference in plants. Damage occurred on the young growth on nandina bushes, roses, hydrangeas, tea olive shrubs and even slight damage to bloom of spice bush viburnum, and lilacs. April had three days with freezing temperatures and six days with some frost. The coldest day (lowest daily mean temperature) was 40.8°F occurring on the 10th and was the second lowest on record for April. The warmest day (highest daily mean temperature) was 76.5°F occurring on the 26th. The maximum wind gust was 36 mph from the SSW that occurred on the 4th at 1601 preceding a strong cold front. April was also the second windiest on record with a wind run of 2595.9 miles. There was a short snow flurry that occurred April 9th from 10:58 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. " - [ - - ]

Richmond - from contributor Lowell Koontz (GAV): " The Airport tied two daily records one for lowest minimum temperature on April 6th of 27°F that also occurred in 1975. It was also 27°F on the 10th but the record for that date was 23°F. Only 11 Aprils since 1897 have had a lower minimum temperature than the 27°F of this April. The second tie was for the high daily mean temperature for April 1st which was 71.5°F that tied with 1979 for the warmest first day of April. The highest maximum temperature in April was 87°F that occurred on the 19th and 26th. The Richmond International Airport’s April mean temperature was 56.6 °F which was a departure of negative 1.6°F and was the 49th coolest April in the past 119 years. The daily temperature range on the 18th was 44°F which wasn’t a record for the date but only 12 Aprils since 1897 have had a higher temperature range recorded in April. The April precipitation total was 2.17 inches which was a departure of -1.10 inches. Only 29 Aprils in the past 129 years have been drier. The Airport had 0.28 inches less precipitation than Glen Allen during April. The Airport reported no snow in April. The last measurable snow for Richmond in April was one inch on April 7, 2007. " - [ - - ]

Richmond - from NWS Wakefield (AKQ): " View the NWS AKQ Wakefield April 2016 Climate Summary for Richmond with a click here " - [ - - ]

North Carolina:

Fayetteville - from NWS Raleigh RAH: " THE MINIMUM TEMPERATURE APRIL 6TH AT FAYETTEVILLE REGIONAL AIRPORT WAS 31 DEGREES. THIS TIED THE RECORD MINIMUM SET IN 1920. " - [ - + ]

Greensboro - from NWS Raleigh RAH: " THE MINIMUM TEMPERATURE APRIL 1ST AT PIEDMONT TRIAD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT WAS 63 DEGREES. THIS BROKE THE OLD RECORD HIGH MINIMUM OF 59 DEGREES SET IN 1998. " - [ + - ]

Raleigh - from NWS Raleigh RAH: " THE MAX MINIMUM TEMPERATURE APRIL 1ST AT RALEIGH DURHAM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT WAS 67 DEGREES. THIS BROKE THE OLD RECORD HIGH OF 64 DEGREES SET IN 1998. " - [ + + ]

Raleigh - from member Bob Woodson (RAL): " THE AVERAGE DAILY TEMPERATURE FOR APRIL WAS NEAR NORMAL (+0.2 DEGS) WHILE PRECIPITATION WAS 0.51 INCHES ABOVE NORMAL. THE LAST FREEZE OF THE SEASON OCCURRED ON APRIL 10TH WITH A LOW OF 28 DEGREES. SEVERE WEATHER OCCURRED ON ARIL 27TH WITH STRAIGHT LINE WIND DAMAGE AND HAIL. " - [ + + ]

COLUMN DENOTATIONS:

A  maximum mean temperature	T total precipitation (inches) T1 departure from normal
B  minimum mean temperature	U maximum calendar day precipitation (inches)
C  monthly mean temperature C1 departure from normal	U1 date of maximum calendar day precipitation
D  maximum temperature	V date(s) of maximum daily precipitation
E  date(s) of maximum temperature	V1 maximum 24-hour precip. & date(s)
F  minimum temperature	W number of days with precip. >= .01"
G  date(s) of minimum temperature	X number of days with precip. >= 1.0"
H  days with maximum temperature >=90	Y year-to-date precipitation (inches)
I  days with maximum temperature <=32	Z maximum calendar day snowfall (inches)
J  days with minimum temperature <=32	VRB Variable
K  days with minimum temperature <= 0	1 date of maximum calendar day snowfall (inches)
K1 average relative humidity	2 number of days with snowfall
L  peak wind gust (miles per hour)	3 number of days with snowfall >= 1.0"
M  direction of peak wind gust	4  total snowfall for month (inches)
N  date(s) of peak wind gust	5 total snowfall for 2015-2016 season (inches)
N1   average wind speed (miles per hour)	6 maximum barometric pressure (inches)
N2 dominant wind direction	6A date of maximum barometric pressure
O  number of days with thunder	7 minimum barometric pressure (inches)
P  number of days with hail	7A date of minimum barometric pressure
Q  number of days with glaze	8   average sea-level pressure
R  number of days with ice pellets	STN  Station
	NR not recorded
R1 number of days with dense fog [1/4 mile and less visibility]	(i) incomplete data
S  local observation time for temps/precipitation	(M) missing, if listed in data table
~ "about"	E estimated
+  additional indeterminate number of days	CWA - NWS Office County Warning Area

For Weather Headlines visit the National Weather Service Homepage
or conduct a Google.com Search
http://www.weather.gov
 

National Weather Service Web Sites & Current Email Addresses
Within or Nearby the ACON VA/NC/SC Area Can Be Found At:

     NWS Washington/Baltimore, VA/MD
     NWS Wakefield, VA
     NWS Blacksburg, VA
     NWS Raleigh, NC
     NWS Newport/Morehead City, NC
     NWS Wilmington, NC
     NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
     NWS Columbia, SC
     NWS Charleston, SC
     NWS Morristown, TN

     National Weather Service Homepages

     National Climatic Data Center, Asheville, NC

STATION / LOCATION (MILES & DIRECTION FROM MAIN POST OFFICE)/OBSERVER / YEAR RECORDS BEGAN / EMAIL ADDRESS:
[ includes current stations, inactive stations, and closed stations since database inception ]

    

AKQ    Wakefield, VA NWS Wakefield Municipal Airport 36-58-53N 077-00-04W 33M	SVC    Seven Corner, Fairfax County, VA John Iekel Latitude 38.857404 Longitude -77.151696
DCA    Arlington, VA Washington, DC, Reagan Washington National Airport 38-50-54N 077-02-03W 18M	WSH   Washington, VA  David Yowell runamok@runamok.com
BCB    Blacksburg, VA NWS Virginia Tech Airport 37-13N 080-25W
	WOO  Woodstock, VA 5NW Lauck Walton 12/1/85 STATION CLOSED 08/2014
	LDY Ladysmith, VA Danny Jessee 2003 STATION CLOSED 8/31/2010 danny@dannyjessee.com
BRI     Bridgewater, VA Clayton Towers Ctowers19@aol.com	WAL   Wallops Island, VA 37° 56'26" N 75° 27'47" W Wallops Flight Facility Airport
CEN  Centreville, VA Paul Bassett 1985, 38° 50.9788' N LAT. 77° 25.6374' W LON. | Elevation 324' | STATION CLOSED	AVL    Asheville, NC  Asheville Regional Airport 35-25-55N 082-32-15W 670M
CHO   Charlottesville, VA  Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport ASOS  (Rappahannock County) 38-08-18N 078-27-21W 192M	MRH    Beaufort, NC  Michael J. Field Airport 34-44-01N 076-39-38W 3M
DAN  Danville, VA, Danville Regional Airport, 36-34-22N 079-20 10W 175M	CLT    Charlotte, NC NWS Charlotte/Douglas International Airport 35-12-48N 080-56-55W 220M
IAD   Dulles - Washington-Dulles International Airport  38-56-05N 077-26-51W 93M
FCH    Falls Church, VA Erica Page 3/7/94 Windie1970@aol.com	HKY  Hickory, NC
HAM    Hampton, VA 5NE Dave Kessel 1989 kesseld1@cox.net	ECG  Elizabeth City, NC,  Coast Guard Air Station 36-15-47N 076 10-58W 11M
LYH     Lynchburg, VA NWS Lynchburg Regional Airport 37-19-15N 079-12-24W 295M	ILM     Wilmington, NC NWS New Hanover International Airport 34-16-06N 077-54-22W 9M
CTR  Winterpock in Chesterfield County, VA Albert Arnold 06/03	FAY  Fayetteville, NC Fayetteville Regional Airport, 34-59-22N 078-52-48W 55M
	GSO   Greensboro, NC NWS Piedmont Triad International Airport 36-05-51N 079-56-37W 275M
CHT   Chantilly, VA Russ Topping -  12/2006  russ.topping@gmail.com	HSE   Cape Hatteras, NC  Mitchell Field 35-13-56N 075-27-21W 3M
HDV    Herndon, VA  Randoplh W. Ashby, 3.3 SM South, Lat: 38.922127, Lon: -77.38015, Elev: 390'. 1993 randy_ashby@msn.com	LBT    Lumberton, NC  Lumberton Municipal Airport 34-36-26N 079-03-36W 37M
GAV - Glen Allen, Henrico County, VA - Lowell Koontz  8/1/08  wwkoontz@verizon.net	EWN    New Bern, NC  Craven County Regional Airport 36-04-03N 077-02-50W 3M
	MON    Moncure, NC  Chatham County - Mac McIlwain mac.mcilwain@embarqmail.com
	RAL    Raleigh, NC 7NNW  Bob Woodson -  6/1/93 kf4mmm@qsl.net
LKU     Louisa, VA 1N Joseph Bowers 1944 - NWS ID  44-5050-02 STATION CLOSED	RDU   Raleigh-Durham, NC Raleigh-Durham International Airport 35-52-14N 078-47-11W 130M
LOU     Louisa, VA 6S John Bullock (about 1970) STATION CLOSED	ROX    Roxboro, NC 2SE Merriell A. Jay 1/93 ending 12/13
	WHI   North Whiteville, NC Christopher Crawley 12/10 34.413744N / 078.751908W ccawley.kk4csr@gmail.com
LYH     Lynchburg, VA NWS Lynchburg Regional Airport 37-19-15N 079-12-24W 295M	ILM     Wilmington, NC NWS New Hanover International Airport 34-16-06N 077-54-22W 9M
NEW    Newmarket, VA 2W Joyce Winfree STATION CLOSED 5/31/10	CHS   Charleston, SC NWS Charleston Air Force Base 32-53-56N 080-02-26W 13M
	CXM    Downtown Charleston, SC NWS 32.77° N 79.93 W
NPN     Newport News, VA 7N Gary Leonard -  6/91 mikey0781@cox.net	CAE    Columbia, SC NWS Columbia Metropolitan Airport 33-56-31N 081-07-05W 73M
NOR     Norfolk, VA 3NE Jim Fentress 6/1/77	FLO    Florence, SC Florence Regional Airport 34-11-16N 079-43-51W 44M
ORF     Norfolk, VA 5NE 36-54-13N 076-11-31W 14M  1871	GSP   Greenville-Spartanburg, SC NWS Greenville-Spartanburg Airport 34-53-02N 082-13-15W 286M
POR     Portsmouth, VA 36.81° North 76.33° West 3S Bill Trotter -  7/1/76 wxr@cox.net	CRE    North Myrtle Beach, SC Grand Strand Airport 33-48-42N 078-43-26W 10M
MEC     Mechanicsville, VA Glen Martin 11/19/91	OGB   Orangeburg, SC  Orangeburg Municipal Airport 33-27-50N 080-51-13W 59M
FHC    Norfolk, VA  Fred Heutte Center 36° 54'N 76° 16'W 01/01/03 fhcgarden@cox.net	AND   Anderson, SC
RIC     Richmond, VA Richmond International Airport 37-30-40N 077-19-24W 50M	TRI     Tri-cities, TN  (Bristol / Johnson / Kingsport), Tri-City Regional Airport 36-28-47N 082-23-56W 474M
ROA    Roanoke, VA Roanoke Regional Airport 37-19-01N 079-58-27W 362M	DAV  Davis, WV Dave Lesher canaanwx@yahoo.com