The Atlantic Coast Observer Network - Virginia/North Carolina/South Carolina
http://members.cox.net/wxr/acon.htm

SUMMARY OF CLIMATOLOGICAL DATA 


AUGUST 2009


...TEMPERATURES IN CLOSE PROXIMITY THROUGHOUT THE 3-STATE REGION
WITH ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURE AVERAGES AND BELOW NORMAL RAINFALL FOR MOST STATIONS...
...TRAINING THUNDERSTORMS OVER SOUTHEAST VIRGINIA AND NORTHEAST NORTH CAROLINA CONTRIBUTE TO HIGH RAINFALL TOTALS...
  • NORTH CAROLINA WEATHER REVIEWS DISCONTINUED   Word from the NWS RAH Webmaster ... the monthly Weather Reviews summaries have been discontinued.


  • CLEAN UP TIME! (from the CoCoRaHS website)   Good advice for all of us: "CLEAN UP TIME! Is your rain gauge inner-cylinder starting to look a little grungy these days? It's that time of year! For most of us dirt will eventually build up on the bottom of your standard NWS rain gauge inner-cylinder. In humid climates, algae growth can also be a bother. If you want to keep your gauge clean and looking like new, put some warm water with a little gentle liquid hand soap in the tube and let it soak for a few minutes. Then twist a thin soft towel and spin it into the cylinder until it reaches the bottom. This will wipe out most of the dirt. It is not recommended to use a firm bottle brush to clean the gauge, nor is using your automatic dishwasher (This will gradually scuff and haze the inside of the gauge). Another method is to take a newspaper, role it to make a tight cylinder, and then rotate the paper on the inside of the tube all the way to the bottom. It will usually clean out the dirt. If you have other great solutions for keeping your gauge clean and looking like new, send them to: info@cocorahs.org with a subject line “Clean Gauge”."


  • HURRICANES and the MIDDLE ATLANTIC STATES    Rick Swartz is the author of Hurricanes and the Middle Atlantic States, the first book-length reference that examines this region's surprisingly violent hurricane history. For more information on Rick Swartz' Past Hurricanes Underscore the Risk to the Middle Atlantic States visit http://www.midatlantichurricanes.com/.


  • CoCoRaHS AND PRISM    From the CoCoRaHS website comes this info: "We would like to make you aware of our recent collaboration with PRISM (Parameter-elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model). PRISM is a climate information mapping research group at Oregon State University. For nearly 20 years this group has been learning how to more accurately map elements of our climate -- such as precipitation and temperature -- in challenging environments such as mountains, coastal areas and everything in between. If you have a moment to check out some of their scientific handiwork, including maps of monthly precipitation for recent months or maps of climate averages, check out their website at by clicking here: http://prism.oregonstate.edu/. Christopher Daly, the director of the PRISM Climate Group, has extended an unusual "special offer" to our CoCoRaHS observers. The more data that are available, the better they can make maps. They have created a new "Tool" where you type in your location (latitude and longitude). The PRISM model then provides a best estimate of the average monthly temperatures and precipitation for your area. It even provides an estimate of the history of precipitation for your area (based on surrounding official weather stations operated for the past century). Please keep in mind that the results are not actual data for your community but estimates made by a computer model. When you have some time give it a try. Here are the instructions: Go to http://prism.oregonstate.edu/ and click the "Data Explorer" link in the "What's New" section or the "Internet Map Server" link under quicklinks. You will be presented with a map which you can use to zoom-in/navigate to the area of interest. Note that clicking on the map will update the Lat/Lon coordinates in the table. Alternately you can manually enter the coordinates. Clicking on the "TimeSeries" button will return a table of values for the given cell and years. Clicking on the "Normals" button will return a table of TMAX, TMIN, and Precip values for the selected grid cell.


  • DROUGHT MONITOR    http://www.drought.unl.edu/dm/monitor.html    More information on drought can be found at NOAA's Drought Information Center http://www.drought.noaa.gov/

  • 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 Member Station Extremes - AUGUST 2009
    State
    Maximum Temperature
    Minimum
    Temperature
    Warmest
    Average
    Temperature
    Coldest
    Average
    Temperature
    Maximum
    Precipitation
    Minimum
    Precipitation
    Virginia
    98°
    Dulles,
    Richmond
    52°
    Front Royal
    79.9°
    Norfolk (FHC),
    Richmond
    71.4°
    Blacksburg
    17.92"
    Norfolk (NOR)
    1.47"
    Front Royal
    North Carolina
    100°
    Fayetteville
    58°
    Asheville
    81.1°
    Fayetteville
    72.4°
    Asheville
    9.81"
    Elizabeth City
    1.65"
    Raleigh (RDU)
    South Carolina
    99°
    Columbia,
    Orangeburg
    59°
    North Myrtle Beach
    81.6°
    Charleston,
    Columbia
    78.9°
    Greenville-Spartanburg
    10.12"
    Charleston
    1.21"
    Greenville-Spartanburg


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

    TEMPERATURE / WINDS/ ELEMENTS

    VIRGINIA
    [Reminder: All NWS DATA HEREIN IS NOT OFFICIAL]
    
     STN  A      B    C     C1     D    E  F    G    H  I  J K K1  L  M      N   N1   N2   O P Q R R1 S   CWA
     ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     BCB 81.4  61.4  71.4   +1.8  86 16,17 56  4,7   0  0  0 0 82% 20 300°   9   2.2       6 0 0 0 14 2400 AKQ
     BRI 84.76 64.90 74.83  +2.33 90   16  59   30   1  0  0 0 68%                         0 0 0 0  0 0510/1600 LWX
     CEN 85.3  67.8  76.6   +3.3  93   20  57   31   4  0  0 0 65% 20 320°  10   1.5  315° 7 0 0 0  0 2400 LWX
     CHT 87.7  68.0  77.8   +2.7  97.3 18  58.4 31  10  0  0 0 75% 16 200°  20   0.3  180° 4 0 0 0  0 2400 LWX
     CHO 86.1  65.3  75.7         94    9  57   31   6  0  0 0     24 210°   2   2.8       1 0 0 0  5 2400 LWX
     DAN 89.1  67.8  78.5   +1.4  97   10  60   31  15  0  0 0 73% 44 310°  11   3.4       8 0 0 0  7 2400 RNK
     DCA 88.4  71.3  79.8   +2.4  97   10  62   31  12  0  0 0 64% 36 310°  21   6.5       9 0 0 0  0 2400 LWX
     IAD 88.6  68.1  78.3   +3.9  98   18  59   31  12  0  0 0 65% 32 300°  21   5.0       7 0 0 0  0 2400 LWX
     FCH                                                                                              2400 LWX
     FRV 86.6  65.1  76.4         95   10  52   31  11  0  0 0                             9          2400 LWX
     GAV 88.77 69.94 79.35  +4.1  97   10  61   31  14  0  0 0 73% 28 045°  24             5 0 0 0  0 2400 AKQ
     HAM                                                                                              2400 AKQ
     HDV 86.8  67.7  77.2   +1.0  95   10  58   31  10  0  0 0 72%                         6 0 0 0  0 2400 LWX
     LDY 85.9  69.9  77.1   -0.4  93   18  63    7  10  0  0 0 63%                         3 0 0 0  1 2400 AKQ
     LYH 86.0  65.3  75.6   +1.8  94   10  60    3   6  0  0 0 75% 32 330°  11   2.9      10 0 0 0  3 2400 RNK
     NEW 85.38 62.83 74.1   +2    92   20  55   31   7  0  0 0 63% 23 270°   2  12.25      1        7 1700 LWX
     NPN 88.8  71.5  79.1   +2.1  96.9 10  63.6 31  14  0  0 0     32 290°   2   2.7  203°10 0 0 0  0 2400 AKQ
     NOR 87.7  71.7  79.7   +2.1  95   10  65   31  13  0  0 0                             5 0 0 0  0 2400 AKQ
     ORF 86.6  72.5  79.5   +2.1  94   10  66   31   9  0  0 0 77% 46 180°   4   6.7      10 0 0 0  0 2400 AKQ
     FHC 87.76 72.04 79.90  +2.3  94.9 10, 65.6 31  14  0  0 0 84% 26        5   2.0  203°            2400 AKQ
                                       20                                      
     POR 87.8  71.2  79.5   +1.2  95   10  64   31  13  0  0 0 88% 38 360°   5   2.4  160° 8 2 0 0  0 2400 AKQ
     CTR 87.9  67.8  76.8   +0.5  95.6 10  59.8 31  13  0  0 0 79% 11 113°  13   0.1  149° 1 0 0 0  0 2400 AKQ
                                                                   11 113°  15                                                                                        11 225°  20
                                                                   11 135°  21
     MEC 89.83 69.52 79.77        97   10  62    7   4  0  0 0                             4 0 0 0  0 1700 AKQ
     RIC 89.5  70.3  79.9   +3.6  98   10  62   31  13  0  0 0 68% 64 280°  22   5.8       4 0 0 0  0 2400 AKQ
     ROA 85.3  66.8  76.1   +1.4  92    9  63 7,25   4  0  0 0 69% 37 220°   5   3.9       8 0 0 0  0 2400 AKQ
     WAL 84.9  70.9  77.9   +2.4  92   10  63   31   5  0  0 0     37 310°  24   6.7       1 0 0 0  3 2400 AKQ
     WOO 80.1  65.6  72.9   -0.5  88 10,18 57   31   0  0  0 0                             5 0 0 0  7 2400 LWX
     WSH 86.1  66.0  76.0   +1.87 95.4  9  54.7 31   8  0  0 0 77% 12 225°  21   0.2  203° 0 0 0 0  0 2400 LWX
    NORTH CAROLINA
    [Reminder: All NWS DATA HEREIN IS NOT OFFICIAL]     
        
     STN  A      B    C     C1    D    E  F      G  H  I  J K K1  L  M     N    N1   N2  O P Q R R1 S    CWA
     -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     AVL 81.9  62.8  72.4  +0.6  87     9 58   4,7  0  0  0 0 76% 43 350° 11    3.7      7 0 0 0  9 2400 GSP
     MRH 85.0  74.1  79.5        87 21,27 69   7,8  0  0  0 0     37 320° 13    8.3     11 0 0 0  0 2400 MHX
     CLT 88.2  68.7  78.5  -0.4  96 10,11 63     7 13  0  0 0 71% 41 180°  5    4.6      4 1 0 0  4 2400 GSP
     ECG 88.8  73.1  80.9  +2.6  95 10,11 67  7,31 14  0  0 0 72% 44 240° 21    6.4     14 0 0 0  2 2400 AKQ
     FAY 90.3  71.8  81.1       100 10,11 67    31 19  0  0 0 71% 39 300°  5    5.0      6 0 0 0  3 2400 RAH
     GSO 87.8  69.6  78.7  +2.5  96    10 62    31 12  0  0 0 68% 45 310° 11    5.4      4 0 0 0  2 2400 RAH
     HSE 85.4  74.7  80.0  +1.4  89 20,21 69     8  0  0  0 0     32 140° 28    7.2      0 0 0 0  0 2400 MHX
     HKY 87.1  67.1  77.1  +0.8  95  9,10 62    31 11  0  0 0     35 240° 19    3.0      9 0 0 0  7 2400 GSP
     LBT 89.2  71.2  80.2  +2.6  98    10 66    25 16  0  0 0 78% 37 240°  2    3.7     14 0 0 0  6 2400 ILM
     EWN 88.0  71.2  79.6  +0.5  96    10 66     8 14  0  0 0     43 260° 22    4.2     12 0 0 0  4 2400 MHX
     RDU 90.3  70.4  80.3  +3.1  99 10,11 65    31 18  0  0 0 70% 45 090°  1    4.9     10 0 0 0  2 2400 RAH
     RAL 89.2  68.5  78.9  +1.7  98    10 62    31 17  0  0 0     18      22               0 0 0  0 2400 RAH
     ROX 88.2  68.4  78.5  +3.6  97    10 61    31 14  0  0 0 73% 39 360° 11        180° 5 0 0 0  2 2400 RAH
     ILM 88.4  72.7  80.5  +0.9  97    11 68  8,24 13  0  0 0 75% 46 190°  4    5.3     12 0 0 0  0 2400 ILM
    SOUTH CAROLINA
    [Reminder: All NWS DATA HEREIN IS NOT OFFICIAL]     
       
     STN  A      B    C     C1    D    E  F      G  H  I  J K K1  L  M     N   N1   N2   O P Q R R1 S    CWA
     -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     AND 89.2  68.9  79.1  +0.7  98 10,11 65    29 14  0  0 0     35 260° 22   4.2      12 0 0 0  3 2400 GSP
     CAE 91.0  72.2  81.6  +1.3  99 10,11 65    24 21  0  0 0 70% 39 250° 30   4.1       4 0 0 0  1 2400 CAE
     CRE 87.8  73.8  80.8  +1.9  92 10,11 59     7  9  0  0 0 75% 32 240° 21   6.7       8 0 0 0  2 2400 ILM
                                                                  32 270° 22
     CHS 89.7  73.4  81.6  +1.1  96    11 69    24 17  0  0 0     37 310° 12   5.6       8 0 0 0  1 2400 CHS
     FLO 89.8  71.3  80.6  +0.8  97    11 65    25 20  0  0 0 76% 29 110° 28   4.6       4 0 0 0  8 2400 ILM
     GSP 89.4  68.4  78.9  +1.4  98    10 65    13 18  0  0 0 67% 31 330° 11   4.4       7 0 0 0  1 2400 GSP
     OGB 91.0  70.8  80.9        99    11 62    24 21  0  0 0     36 290° 12   3.6       9 0 0 0  4 2400 CAE
    NEARBY STATIONS
    [Reminder: All NWS DATA HEREIN IS NOT OFFICIAL]     
       
     STN  A      B    C     C1    D     E  F     G  H  I  J K K1  L  M     N   N1   N2   O P Q R R1   S    CWA
     ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     TRI 83.8  63.2  73.5  +0.7   89  9,10 58   24  0  0  0 0     31 200° 18   2.4       7 0 0 0  4   2400 MRX
     DAV              65    0.0   81    13 45   30  0  0  0 0                                         0700 PBZ

    (Please note the column denotations table below.)
    PRECIPITATION / BAROMETRIC PRESSURE

    VIRGINIA
    [Reminder: All NWS DATA HEREIN IS NOT OFFICIAL]
       
     STN  T      T1     U  U1   V    V1   W X   Y      Z  1   2 3    4    5     6   6A   7    7A    8    S
     -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     BCB  3.25  -0.43 1.12  5 1.12     5 15 1 36.41  0.0  0   0 0  0.0 19.1                             2400
     BRI  2.25  +1.65 0.63 19 0.65 19-20 13 0 23.33  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  9.5  30.25 16, 29.84  29        0510/1600
                                                                                    30             
     CEN  2.98  -0.63 1.65 21 1.68 21-22  3 2 30.21  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  8.7  30.23  16 29.70  29 29.97  2400
     CHT  3.42  -0.36 1.65 21 2.67 21-22  7 2 32.45  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  7.1  30.235  8 29.688 29 30.007 2400
     CHO  3.59        1.75  6 1.78   5-6  8 1 24.54                                    29.70  29        2400
     DAN  3.35  -0.19 1.16 22 1.61 21-22 13 1 29.11  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  4.5  30.27   8 29.75  29        2400
     DCA  2.46  -0.98 1.29 22 1.38 21-22  9 1 26.66  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  7.5            29.70  29        2400
     IAD  2.75  -1.03 1.28 28 2.79 21-22 10 1 31.17  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  5.5            29.69  29        2400
     FCH                 through July 2009--> 27.51  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  9.5                             2400
     FRV  1.47        0.46  7             9
     GAV  3.80  -0.28 1.66 24 1.74 23-24 11 2 28.12  0.0  0   0 0  0.0 11.6  30.24   8 29.73 22, 30.01  2400
                                                                                              29                  
     HAM                 through July 2009--> 17.85  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  0.0                             2400
     HDV  4.12  +0.13 2.48 21             7 1 32.50  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  8.5  30.18   8 29.63  29        2400
     LDY  4.34  +0.39 1.90 22 1.90    22  6 2 21.99  0.0  0   0 0  0.3 10.4  30.24   8 29.73  29 30.03  2400
     LYH  2.37  -1.04 0.57 22 0.57    22 14 0 26.68  0.0  0   0 0  0.0 11.2            29.75  29        2400
     NEW  2.23  -1.50 0.79  2                 27.47  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  9.8  30.54  17 30.04  29,       1700
                                                                                              30
     NPN 10.60  +5.86 2.05  8 2.22 12-13 11 4 36.97  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  2.0  30.25   8 29.69  22        2400
     NOR 17.92 +12.07 5.32 22            17 5 45.09  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  0.5                             2400
     ORF 13.22  +8.43 3.40 22 3.60   5-6 17 4 36.50  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  0.5  30.25   8 29.71  22        2400
     FHC 10.42  +5.63 4.75 12 4.85 12-13 16 0 36.32  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  0.5                      30.001 2400
     POR 12.03  +6.62 4.23 12 4.40 12-13 16 2 40.00  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  0.7  30.24   8 29.69  22 30.002 2400
     CTR  2.80  -0.75 0.91 28 0.92 28-29 11 0 26.04  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  8.5  30.22   8 29.71  29 29.997 2400
     MEC  4.20        2.15 24 2.17 23-24  7 2 26.36  0.0  0   0 0  0.0 10.6  29.97  16 29.53  29 29.80  0700
     RIC  4.04  -0.14 1.63 14 1.63    14  9 2 23.02  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  6.6  30.25   8 29.73  22        2400
     ROA  4.43  +0.69 1.66 20 1.66    20 14 1 32.29  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  4.0  30.27   8 29.75  29        2400
     WAL  7.14  +3.43 1.69  6 1.69     6 12 3 27.01  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  7.9  30.24   8 29.69  29        2400
     WOO  5.52  +2.11         1.93 17-18 16 2 28.82  0.0  0   0 0  0.0  9.6  30.47  15 30.08  29        0800
     WSH  3.13  -0.19 0.79 21 0.79    21 11 0 30.30  0.0  0   0 0  0.0 10.2  30.25  16 29.73  29        2400
    NORTH CAROLINA
    [Reminder: All NWS DATA HEREIN IS NOT OFFICIAL]
       
     STN  T      T1     U  U1   V    V1   W X   Y      Z    1 2 3   4    5     6    6A   7    7A    8     S
     -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     AVL  3.69  -0.61 0.85 21 0.96 20-21 17 0 34.04   0.0   0 0 0  0.0  4.7            29.73  22         2400
     MRH  6.86        2.28 12 3.02 12-13 12 2 27.87   0.0   0 0 0  0.0    T  30.26   8 29.70  29         2400
     CLT  1.66  -2.06 0.43  5 0.43     5  9 0 30.80   0.0   0 0 0  0.0  4.0            29.73  22         2400
     ECG  9.81  +5.21 2.16 14 3.26 14-15 13 6 34.63   0.0   0 0 0  0.0  0.8  30.27   8 29.70  29         2400
     FAY  6.72        3.35 14 3.51 13-14 12 2 22.01                0.0                 29.77             2400
     GSO  3.12  -0.59 1.14 22 1.14    22 11 1 25.26   0.0   0 0 0  0.0  6.9            29.77             2400
     HSE  5.00  -1.56 0.93 15 1.05 14-15 15 0 26.26   0.0   0 0 0  0.0  2.3  30.27   8 29.67  29         2400
     HKY  6.34  +2.49 1.73 31 2.29 30-31 15 2 32.39   0.0   0 0 0  0.0   T             29.73  22         2400
     LBT  4.75  -0.41 1.41 30 1.44 30-31 13 2 20.95                          30.25   8 29.75  22         2400
     EWN  8.11  +1.27 1.84 12 2.04 12-13 19 2 33.07   0.0   0 0 0  0.0  1.5  30.27   8 29.67  29         2400
     RDU  1.65  -2.13 0.27  2 0.41   5-6 11 0 22.98   0.0   0 0 0  0.0  6.7            29.77             1900
     RAL  1.81  -0.12         0.43   3-4 13+0 29.48   0.0   0 0 0  0.0 10.1  30.22  16 29.76  29         2400
     ROX  2.82  -1.68 1.10 22 1.10    22 10 1 33.21   0.0   0 0 0  0.0  8.3  30.29   8 29.80  29   30.07 2200
     ILM  6.33  -0.98 1.68 21 1.69 20-21 13 2 34.54   0.0   0 0 0  0.0  1.0  30.25   8 29.77  29         2400
    SOUTH CAROLINA
    [Reminder: All NWS DATA HEREIN IS NOT OFFICIAL]
       
     STN  T      T1     U  U1   V    V1   W X   Y     Z   1  2 3  4     5     6    6A   7    7A    8     S
     ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
     AND  1.73  -2.02 0.90 12  0.90    12 10 0 29.76  0.0  0 0 0   0.0    T  30.26  17 29.75  22         2400
     CAE  3.82  -1.59 2.11 13  2.39 12-13  7 1 28.63  0.0  0 0 0   0.0    T  30.25   9 29.73  22         2400
     CRE  2.95  -2.63 0.98  2  1.25   2-3 10 0 25.68                         30.26   8 29.79  29         2400
     CHS 10.12  +3.21 1.85  4  1.85     5 11 1 45.11  0.0  0 0 0   0.0    T  30.24  17 29.79  23         2400
     FLO  2.23  -3.10 0.53 28  0.68 12-13  8 0 25.16                         30.26   8 29.79  29         2400
     GSP  1.21  -2.87 0.43 12, 0.53 11-12 10 0 28.69  0.0  0 0 0   0.0  4.4            29.73  22         2400
                           20   
     OGB  1.90        1.52 12  1.52    12  7 1 29.86                         30.26   9 29.76  22         2400
    NEARBY STATIONS
    [Reminder: All NWS DATA HEREIN IS NOT OFFICIAL]
       
     STN  T      T1     U  U1   V      V1  W X   Y      Z  1  2  3   4     5     6   6A   7    7A 8      S
     -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
     TRI  1.52  -1.48 0.54  2 0.54     2 13 0 29.75  0.0   0  0  0   0.0   8.3 30.24 17 29.82  22        2400
     DAV  4.3   -0.6  0.97  1            12 0 45.1   0.0   0  0  0   0.0 189.0                           0700

    Virginia:

    Arlington - From NWS WBC come these notes: " TEMPERATURES IN WASHINGTON DC AS MEASURED AT REAGAN NATIONAL AIRPORT (DCA) THIS AUGUST WERE ABOVE NORMAL. THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE WAS THE 14TH WARMEST AUGUST ON RECORD AT DCA DATING BACK TO 1872. THE HIGH TEMPERATURE REACHED 90F OR HIGHER 12 TIMES DURING THE MONTH...THE MOST SINCE THE 14 DAYS IN JULY 2008. RAINFALL FOR THE MONTH WAS BELOW NORMAL. ABOUT HALF OF THE MONTHLY RAINFALL WAS MEASURED ON THE 22ND AS TROPICAL MOISTURE FROM HURRICANE BILL INTERACTED WITH A FRONTAL BOUNDARY OVER THE AREA. NO TEMPERATURE OR PRECIPITATION RECORDS WERE BROKEN AT DCA THIS MONTH. FOR THE 2009 METEOROLOGICAL SUMMER (DEFINED AS JUNE-AUGUST) THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS NEAR NORMAL...WITH THE TOTAL RAINFALL OF 9.39 INCHES SLIGHTLY LESS THAN AN INCH BELOW NORMAL. THE NUMBER OF DAYS HITTING 90F DEGREES OR BETTER WAS 21 FOR JUN-AUG 2009...WHICH IS ABOUT 10 LESS THAN THE AVERAGE OF 31.3 DAYS...AND WAS THE FEWEST NUMBER OF 90F DAYS SINCE THE SUMMER OF 2004...WHEN EIGHT 90F OR BETTER DAYS WERE RECORDED. " [ + - ] 

    Bridgewater - " The temperature was 2.33 degrees above normal while the precipitation 1.65 inches below normal. There were no thunderstorms during the month, which should be some kind of record. There have been no severe thunder- storms in Bridgewater during the year. In spite of the dry spells, the farmers' cornfields look pretty good. - [ + - ] - Clayton sent these additional notes

    Centreville - " With the summer recess of Congress still in effect, that could help explain the lack of hot air to drive our average maximum monthly temperature to just 0.2° above the 85.5° normal for August. Six days during the month equaled or exceeded 90°. While the hottest day of the month came in at 93° on the 20th it came no where near the record setting high of 104° set back in 1983. By the way, the record setting low of -18° occurred in 1984, just a year later. Amazing facts from sunny Centreville! Our low for August was 57° set on the 31st. There were four days that qualified for the average low of 67.8° and according to my records; this is the first straight time that this has happened. This figured to be 6.7° above the normal low of 61.1° and the greatest deviation from normal so far this year. This brought the average low temperature deviation to +4.0° for the year, which is running a degree cooler than last year. Sometimes friends comment that a 0.63" rainfall deficit for the month isn't bad but when they are reminded that 90% of that fell in one 24 hour period and no appreciable amount had fallen from 19 days before that, then it's enough to leave the GEICO gecko speechless. August 21st and 22nd brought on the flood of the month with a steady moderate to heavy rain beginning around 1445 on Friday the 21st and lasting for another 28 hours. A welcome rain for sure with 2.68" in the bucket but that was the last of it for the remainder of the month. This coupled with 0.30" from an easy rain on the 2nd was all that we could squeeze out August. For the year we are still ahead of the game by just 1.48" with 30.21" recorded. This amount was helped along by rainfall surpluses during April, May and June when precipitation averaged 66% above normal. Cheers to all, fall is on the way! " - [ + - ] - additional notes from Paul

    Chantilly - Russ reports: August was hot and dry. The total precipitation for the month was 3.42", which was 0.36" below normal. That doesn't tell the whole story though, as 2.85" fell when tropical moisture interacted with a front on the 21st and 22nd. Both days set a new record with 1.65" (21st) and 1.20" (22nd). Other than that event, the only significant rainfall was the 0.31" that fell on the 2nd. A record high temperature was tied on the 10th (96°) and 18th (97°), and broken on the 21st (95°). Thunderstorms were observed on the 1st, 2nd, 21st and 22nd. *Please note, anemometer is currently partially obstructed from the Southeast " - [ + - ]

    Dulles - from NWS Sterling (KLWX) come these notes: " TEMPERATURES AT DULLES (IAD) THIS AUGUST WERE ABOVE NORMAL. THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE WAS THE 3RD WARMEST AUGUST ON RECORD DATING TO 1962. THE HIGH TEMPERATURE REACHED 90F OR HIGHER 12 TIMES DURING THE MONTH...THE MOST IN ANY MONTH SINCE 17 DAYS IN AUGUST 2007. RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURES WERE SET TWICE IN AUGUST...97F ON THE 10TH AND 98F ON THE 18TH. THE HIGH OF 94F ON AUGUST 21ST TIED THE PREVIOUS RECORD HIGH SET IN 2005. RAINFALL FOR AUGUST WAS DRIER THAN NORMAL. ABOUT FOUR-FIFTHS OF THE MONTHLY RAINFALL FELL IN A 24-HOUR PERIOD FROM THE EVENING OF THE 21ST TO THE 22ND AS TROPICAL MOISTURE INTERACTED WITH A FRONTAL BOUNDARY OVER THE AREA. A DAILY RAINFALL TOTAL OF 0.94 INCHES ON AUGUST 22ND BROKE THE OLD DAILY RECORD OF 0.40 INCHES IN 1990. FOR THE 2009 METEOROLOGICAL SUMMER (DEFINED AS JUNE-AUGUST) THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS ABOUT TWO DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL AT DULLES. RAINFALL TOTALED 11.62 INCHES FOR THIS METEOROLOGICAL SUMMER... WHICH IS NEAR NORMAL. " - [ + - ]

    Front Royal - Mike reports: " As I look over all the number and notes in the written weather log I can find nothing really outstanding that August had to offer weather wise. It was much warmer then July as 11 days saw temps 90 or greater, whereas July saw only three. The highest temperature of 95° was on the 10th with highs of 91° on either side of that. There was a chance at a seven-day stretch of 90° weather, but the high of 89° on the 18th destroyed that. This will be the first year since living here that we could not get at least a seven-day stretch of 90° weather during the summer. I doubt it will happen in September. The lowest temperature of 52° was at 11:59pm on the 31st. No precipitation event gave us more then .49", which surprised me. There were nine days of measurable precipitation and nine days, which included thunder. However, not all measurable rainfall occurred with a thunderstorm. Areas in the greater Washington, DC metro area saw much more in the way of rainfall. Enough so that flooding was an issue on more then one occasion. The greatest daily total was .46" on the 7th from an early morning thunderstorm. Precipitation ended by 2am and the remainder of the day was sunny. Other then a few other random thunderstorms associated with frontal passages or short waves daily precipitation amounts ranged from .33" to .02" totaling 1.47" by month's end. August 2009 will be remembered as warmer and dryer then normal here in Front Royal, VA. A typical boring summer month in my mind. Hopefully September will provide a little more entertainment in the weather department. If not winter is right around the corner and I'm optimistic that we will have a winter this year. " - [ + - ] 

    Glen Allen - Lowell Koontz sends these additional notes: " August was a little drier and much warmer than average. August's mean average temperature (79.4°F) was a +4.1°F departure when compared to Ashland's average and was 2.9°F warmer here when compared to last August. The 3.80 inches of rainfall for August was a -0.28 inch departure when compared to Ashland's average. August had 11 days with measurable rain that was four more than last year. The 0.40 inches of rain that occurred in five minutes on the 22nd was the fourth most intense in the past thirteen months. August had 14 days with 90°F or above temperatures. The maximum temperature for 2009 and for August is 97°F recorded on August 10th, which is the warmest day since July 21st, 2008 when the maximum was 98°F. The minimum temperature on the 21st was 76.6 at 0625 or 77°F, which makes it the warmest night recorded at the Glen Allen Springfield Park area station since its start in July of 2008. At the Richmond International Airport the minimum was 76°F a new 113-year HIGH minimum temperature record for the 21st; the old record was 75°F in 1968. The average minimum temperature was 69.94°F, which makes it the highest minimum monthly average recorded at the Glen Allen station since its start in July of 2008. On 18 nights the minimum temperature was 70°F or higher. A wind gust of 28 mph from the NE on the 24th at 0237 was the strongest wind gust recorded for August. " - [ + - ] 

    Herndon - Randy adds: " August was above normal for both temperature and precipitation. The temperatures ranged between a high of 95 and a low of 58. The average high and low were both about 1 degree above normal. On the precipitation side, the month was relatively dry. There were occasional storms in the area, but most gave my site very little rain. On the 21st and 22nd, heavy thunderstorms hit the area and we received 3.39" in a little over a day. Without that storm system, we would have been way below normal for the month. We ended up with 4.12" for the month, which was a little more than 0.13" above normal. The rainfall for the year is now 1.5" above normal. " - [ + + ]

    Ladysmith - Danny notes: " August finished with slightly below normal temperatures and above normal precipitation. Year-to-date precipitation is still well below normal and is comparable to 2008 YTD precip. " - [ - + ]

    Portsmouth - " The month of August 2009 was the 3rd Wettest August in West Cradock, Portsmouth. (database 1976-2009) The top 5 wettest Augusts include: 1) 15.06" in 1992, 2) 12.92" in 1990, 3) 12.03" in 2009, 4) 11.11" in 2000, and 5) 10.23" in 2004. The excessive rainfall was due mostly to training thunderstorms on the 5th and 12th. August was a warmer and much wetter month relative to normal Augusts for the period from 1976 to 2008. The 12.03" or rain was 6.62" ABOVE normal rainfall (223% of normal). The month's average temp was 1.2° ABOVE normal. COLD FRONTAL PASSAGES OCCURRED ON THE 6th, 12th, 23rd, and 29th continuing the trend of above normal cold frontal passages in the summer months June, July, and August. STATION RECORDS: 5th - RAINFALL 3.10" [previous 1.82" in 1994]l 5th - WIND GUST TIED 38mph [previous 2007]; 12th - RAINFALL 4.23" [previous 1.54" in 1984]; 20th - TEMPERATURE TIED MAXIMUM MINIMUM 75° [previous 2002]; and 21st - TEMPERATURE TIED MAXIMUM MINIMUM 75° [previous 2002]. At month's end, rainfall for the year totaled 40.00", which was 121% of normal through the end of August, or 6.85" ABOVE normal. " - [ + + ] 

    North Carolina:

    Greensboro Word from NWS RAH... the North Carolina Weather Reviews have been discontinued. " - [ + - ]

    Raleigh - Bob sends these additional notes: " August was fairly quiet regarding severe weather, however the average daily temperature was well above normal. 90 degree readings were observed on 17 days during the month, with a high of 98 degrees (highest this season) recorded on August 10th. Rainfall was below normal with only 1.81" measured. " - [ + - ]

    Raleigh - NWS Raleigh (RAH) reports: " Word from NWS RAH... the North Carolina Weather Reviews have been discontinued. " - [ + - ]

    Nearby Cities:

    Davis, WV - from Dave Lesher's website: " August ended with a mean temperature that was NORMAL and with BELOW NORMAL rainfall (-0.6) No snow for the month was NORMAL. Year-to-date rainfall of 45.10" was 5.9" ABOVE normal. " - [ +/- + ]



    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 2007-2008 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 ACON VA/NC/SC Recent Weather News, Search GOOGLE at CNN
    http://www.cnn.com/WEATHER
     

    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:

      
       ROK   Roanoke, VA 6SW Wendell Prillaman  4/76 wlprillaman@cox.net
      AKQ    Wakefield, VA NWS Wakefield Municipal Airport 36-58-53N 077-00-04W 33M
    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   
    BRI     Bridgewater, VA Clayton Towers Ctowers@rica.net WOO  Woodstock, VA 5NW Lauck Walton - 12/1/85 jwalton@shentel.net
    CEN  Centreville, VA Paul Bassett 1985, 38° 50.9788' N LAT. 77° 25.6374' W LON. | Elevation 324' | m.psb@verizon.net LDY Ladysmith, VA Danny Jessee 2003 danny@dannyjessee.com
       WAL   Wallops Island, VA 37° 56'26" N 75° 27'47" W Wallops Flight Facility Airport
    CHO   Charlottesville, VA  Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport ASOS  (Rappahannock County) 38-08-18N 078-27-21W 192M AVL    Asheville, NC  Asheville Regional Airport 35-25-55N 082-32-15W 670M
      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 Airpot 35-12-48N 080-56-55W 220M
    IAD   Dulles - Washington-Dulles International Airport  38-56-05N 077-26-51W 93M  SSB    Sunset Beach, NC   33.9° N 78.5° W  Tom Myers
    FCH    Falls Church, VA Erica Page - 3/7/94 Windie1970@aol.com HKY  Hickory, NC 
    HAM    Hampton, VA 5NE Dave Kessel 1989 david82@verizon.net ECG  Elizabeth City, NC,  Coast Guard Air Station 36-15-47N 076-10-58W 11M
    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 - new location December 2006 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'. Randolph_Ashby@Raytheon.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
    FRV     Front Royal, VA  Michael Perritt -  04/08 snowyat9@yahoo.com RAL    Raleigh, NC 7NNW  Bob Woodson -  6/1/93 kf4mmm@qsl.net
    LKU     Louisa, VA 1N Joseph Bowers 1944 - NWS ID  44-5050-02jmbiii@earthlink.net RDU   Raleigh-Durham, NC Raleigh-Durham International Airport 35-52-14N 078-47-11W 130M
    LOU     Louisa, VA 6S John Bullock (about 1970) INACTIVE 1/1/02 - MEMBER DECEASED FALL 2004 ROX    Roxboro, NC 2SE Merriell A. Jay 1/93
    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 joywood@shentel.net CHS   Charleston, SC NWS Charleston Air Force Base 32-53-56N 080-02-26W 13M
    NPN     Newport News, VA 7N Gary Leonard -  6/91 GaryMLeonard@aol.com 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@canaantv.tv