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

SUMMARY OF CLIMATOLOGICAL DATA 


DECEMBER 2006


... A WARMER AND DRIER DECEMBER FOR MOST ALL STATIONS ...

This December will be remembered as one of the warmest in the 3-state area. In general, the month was rather dry early with more rain at the end of the month.
Click here to enlarge image.
Member Russ Topping's Weather Office in Chantilly, VA - Click to enlarge.

  • WE WELCOME BACK MEMBER RUSS TOPPING    Russ, as you may remember, moved from Herndon to Chantilly. After adjusting to his new home and setting up a new station there, he will be submitting data henceforth from Chantilly, Virginia (see link to location map in the station abbreviations below). Welcome back Russ!


  • WEATHER INSTRUMENTS FOR AUCTION AT EBAY!    We were reminded recently in an email from ACON MD/DE/DC member Kevin Shaw that you can visit the Ebay website and conduct a search for weather instruments. At times there are some super buys and if you're into auctioning, might be worth your time. Indeed, Kevin's web friend Larry noted a recent auction of a Belfort Instruments Microbarograph for an amazing $310 (and just calibrated!). In the 1970s he purchased one for about $325; in recent years, Larry noted Belfort has been selling this instrument for over over $4700. So, this might be a good place for you to look for new and vintage weather instruments!


  • DROUGHT MONITOR    http://www.drought.unl.edu/dm/monitor.html
  • 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 - DECEMBER 2006
    State
    Maximum Temperature
    Minimum
    Temperature
    Warmest
    Average
    Temperature
    Coldest
    Average
    Temperature
    Maximum
    Precipitation
    Minimum
    Precipitation
    Virginia
    77°
    Richmond
    Roanoke
    11°
    Bridgewater
    New Market
    49.6°
    Norfolk (FHC)
    39.3°
    Blacksburg
    2.96"
    Wallops Island
    1.38"
    Ladysmith
    North Carolina
    78°
    Wilmington
    13°
    Raleigh (RAL)
    Asheville
    53.5°
    Cape Hatteras
    42.6°
    Asheville
    4.98"
    New Bern
    1.06"
    Elizabeth City
    South Carolina
    78°
    Charleston
    16°
    Columbia
    56.4°
    Charleston
    48.0°
    Anderson
    5.57"
    North Myrtle Beach
    2.33"
    Charleston


    ( 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 R2   S    CWA
         -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
         ANN 52.68 34.26 43.47 +5.8  73    1 16    9   0  0 10 0 66% 39 W     27             0 0 0 0  2      2400 LWX
         BCB 51.4  27.3  39.3  +5.2  72    1 13    8   0  1 22 0 67% 39            4.7       0 0 0 0  6      2400 RNK
         BRI 52.1  32.3  42.2  +6.3  73    1 11    8   0  0 17 0 49%                                         2400 LWX
         CEN 53.3  32.9  43.1  +7.4  75    1 16    9   0  0 15 0 34% 42 327°   7   2.7  ESE  0 0 0 0  0      2400 LWX
         CHT 52.6  29.9  40.7  +4.7  73.7  1 13.4  9   0  1 20 0 68% 32 S      1        S    0 0 0 0  3      2400 LWX
         CHO 54.5  32.0  43.3  +4.0  75    1 18    9   0  0 16 0     40 200°   1   4.0       0 0 0 0  3      2400 LWX
         DAN 57.1  31.6  44.4  +4.3  75    1 15  8,9   0  0 16 0 64% 35 250°   1   5.1       0 0 0 0  7      2400 RNK
         DCA 52.8  35.6  44.2  +4.7  75    1 19    9   0  0  9 0 64% 48 200°   1   7.1       0 0 0 0  4      2400 LWX
         IAD 53.0  30.8  41.9  +5.9  76   18 15    9   0  0 20 0     53 190°   1   5.6       0 0 0 0  5      2400 LWX
         FCH 53.9  35.4  44.7        75    1 20    8   0  0  7 0     55       12             0 0 0 0  3      2400 LWX
         HAM 58    39    47.0  +4    73 ,18  21    9   0  0  6 0 40% 34 N      8   6.0  WSW  0 0 0 0  6      2400 AKQ
         HDV 53.8  32.0  43.0  +4.6  75 1,18 16    9   0  0 17  0                            0 0 0 0  0      2400 LWX
         LDY 55.3  32.2  43.7  +3.7  73.6  1 14.2  9   0  0 19  0 68%                        0 0 0 0  3      2400 AKQ
         LYH 54.5  30.8  42.7  +4.5  75    1 12    8   0  0 18  0 62% 40 210°  1   5.0       0 0 0 0  5      2400 RNK
         NEW 52.35 28.35 40.35 +3.0  74    1 11    9   0  0 21  0 35% 40 SW    1   7.61 W    0 0 0 0  0      1700 LWX
         NPN 59.1  36.1  47.6        74 1,18 18    9   0  0 11  0     35 NW    8             0 0 0 0  1      2400 AKQ
         NOR 58.5  37.0  47.8  +4.4  76    1 20    9   0  0 10  0                            0 0 0 0  1      2400 AKQ                                                          
         ORF 58.7  37.6  48.2  +4.0  76    1 21    9   0  0  9  0 64% 45 210°  1   7.8       0 0 0 0  4      2400 AKQ
         FHC 58.58 40.62 49.6        75.8  1 24.2  9   0  0  4  0 70% 33       12  3.0       0 0 0 0  4      2400 AKQ
         POR 59.4  37.6  48.5  +4.2  76    1 20    9   0  0 11  0 72% 37 N     7  3.7  214°  0 0 0 0  2 31%  2400 AKQ
         CTR 57.0  31.6  43.5  +3.1  74.4  1 13.5  9   0  0 17  0 75% 27 SW    1  0.7  SSW   0 0 0 0  0 35%  2400 AKQ
         MEC 54.84 36.19 46.87       75    1 15    9   0  0 10  0     16 W     8             0 0 0 0  3      1700 AKQ
         RIC 58.5  36.0  47.3  +6.9  77    1 18    9   0  0 12  0 59% 44 200°  1  6.5        0 0 0 0  4      2400 AKQ
         ROA 55.6  34.5  45.0  +5.9  77    1 20  8,9   0  0 13  0 53% 44 230°  1  6.3        0 0 0 0  4      2400 AKQ
         AKQ 59    33    46          76    1 14    9   0  0 16  0                                            2400 AKQ
         WAL 54.6  35.1  44.9  +4.5  70    1 19    9   0  0  9  0 69% 43 320°  7  8.2        0 0 0 0  7      2400 AKQ
         WOO 54.0  35.5  44.8  +6.7  72    2 15    9   0  1  8  0                            0 0 0 0  6      2400 LWX
         WSH 51.9  33.9  42.9  +6.22 70.8  1 17.1  9   0  1 10  0 62% 27 ENE   7  1.8  N     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 R2  S    CWA
         -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
         AVL 55.4  29.8  42.6  +3.6  70  1,16 13     9  0  0 19 0 62% 45 320   7   6.1       1 0 0 0  6     2400 GSP
         MRH 61.9  41.7  51.8        72     1 19     9  0  0  6 0     38 340°  8   7.3       0 0 0 0  8     2400 MHX
         CLT 59.6  35.2  47.4  +3.0  76     1 14     9  0  0 12 0 61% 33 180°  1   4.9       0 0 0 0  0     2400 GSP
         ECG 59.8  36.8  48.3  +2.4  76     1 20     9  0  0 15 0 69% 40 170°  1   7.5       0 0 0 0  9     2400 AKQ
         FAY 62.4  38.2  50.3        77     1 17     9  0  0 10 0 63% 43 220°  1   5.9       0 0 0 0  3     2400 RAH
         GSO 57.7  34.8  46.2  +5.2  75     1 16     8  0  0 12 0 58% 40 230°  1   6.2       0 0 0 0  3     2400 RAH
         HSE 60.8  46.3  53.5  +3.5  70    25 30     8  0  0  2 0     38 230° 26   8.2       0 0 0 0  1     2400 MHX
         HKY 58.1  34.4  46.2  +4.4  74  1,18 16     9  0  0 13 0     44 230°  1   4.3       0 0 0 0  4     2400 GSP
         LBT 63.0  38.1  50.5  +5.8  77     1 16     9  0  0  9 0     37 330°  7   4.9       0 0 0 0  5     2400 ILM
         EWN 63.0  38.3  50.6  +3.6  76     1 17     9  0  0  9 0     45 160°  1   4.4       0 0 0 0 11     2400 MHX
         RAL 60.5  33.1  46.8  +3.8  75    18 13     9  0  0 16 0     28     1,7             0 0 0 0  1     2400 RAH
         RDU 60.1  35.5  47.8  +4.8  76    18 16     9  0  0 12 0 62% 37 210°  1   4.4       0 0 0 0  3     2400 RAH
         ROX 58.0  36.7  47.5  +7.6  73  1,2, 16     8  0  0 11 0 63% 42   N   7         W   0 0 0 0  0 38% 2400 RAH
                                           18
         ILM 63.9  40.1  52.0  +3.1  78     1 19     9  0  0  9 0     44 200°  1   5.9       0 0 0 0  8     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 R2  S    CWA
         -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
         AND 60.1  35.8  48.0  +3.6  73 18,19 17     9  0  0 10 0     39 280°  7   5.4       0 0 0 0  6     2400 GSP
         CAE 63.0  37.2  50.1  +3.1  75 18,19 16     9  0  0 11 0 66% 33 320°  1   4.4       0 0 0 0  6     2400 CAE
         CRE 63.8  42.2  53.0  +5.2  74    19 19     9  0  0  8 0     39 200° 22   6.0       0 0 0 0  9     2400 ILM
         CHS 67.5  45.3  56.4  +5.9  78    19 19     9  0  0  4 0     43 190° 25   6.1       0 0 0 0  6     2400 CHS
         FLO 63.7  39.7  51.7  +4.2  76     1 17     9  0  0  8 0     36 210°  1   5.6       0 0 0 0  5     2400 ILM
                                                                      36 010°  7
         GSP 60.4  36.6  48.5  +5.0  76    18 18   8,9  0  0  9 0 56% 43 230°  1   5.7       0 0 0 0  4     2400 GSP
         OGB 64.9  40.5  52.7        77    19 19     9  0  0  7 0     37 220°  1   4.8       0 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 R2  S    CWA
         ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
         TRI 54.7  27.8  41.3 +4.0   71     1  8        0  1 23 0     47 210°  1   3.5       0 0 0 0  5     2400 MRX
         DAV 41.7  26.5  34.1        61     2  5     9  0  7 22 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
         -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
         ANN  1.84        0.89 22 0.93 22-23  8 0 53.30    T  7   1 0    T    T  30.61  29 29.48  26 30.21  2400
         BCB  1.83  -1.04 0.72                    43.36  0.1      3 0  0.1  0.1                             2400
         BRI  2.20  -0.36 1.29 20 1.29    20  5 1 44.72  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.43 12, 29.48  26        2400
                                                                                        30                               
         CEN  1.51  -1.51 0.83 22 0.87 22-23  6 0 47.93  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.59  26 29.49  29 30.04  2400
         CHT  1.80  -1.27 0.88 22 0.93 22-23  7 0 40.11  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.590 29 29.501 26 30.21  2400
         CHO  1.71  -1.55 0.82 22             5 0 43.46  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.58  29 29.48  26        2400
         DAN  1.57  -1.59 0.66 25                 40.66  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.56  29 29.55  26        2400
         DCA  1.56  -1.49 0.70 22 0.76 22-23  7 0 47.77    T  7   1 0    T    T  30.61  29 29.47  26        2400
         IAD  1.74  -1.33 0.87 22 0.91 22-23  7 0 45.98    T  7   1 0    T    T  30.61  29 29.46  26        2400
         FCH  2.22        0.87 22 0.90 21-22  6 0 51.73  0.0           0.0  0.0                             2400
         HAM  2.40  -0.80 1.13 25 1.13    25  6 1 40.84  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.58  25 29.54  27 30.25  2400
         HDV  1.68  -1.34 0.81 22             7 0 48.25  0.0           0.0  0.0                             2400
         HER  1.75  -1.32 0.84 22 0.89 22,23  7 0 45.51  0.0           0.0  0.0                             2400
         LDY  1.38  -2.04 0.78 25 0.78    25  4 0 54.85  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.58  29 29.52  26 30.19  2400
         LYH  1.66  -1.57 0.81 22 0.81 21-22  6 0 44.30  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.58  29 29.54  26        2400
         NEW  1.92  -1.00 0.43  1             5 0 45.68  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.70  20 29.82  26        1700
         NPN  2.89        1.82 25 1.82    25  6 1 56.03  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.57  29 29.53  26        2400
         NOR  2.22  -1.03 1.15 25 1.15    25  6 1 49.77  0.0           0.0  0.0                             2400
         ORF  2.06  -0.97 1.15 25             6 1 49.16  0.0           0.0  0.0                             2400
        *FHC  2.14        1.29 25             6 1 65.89* 0.0           0.0  0.0                      30.216 2400
        *(Rain gauge found to be overreporting by average of 14% for entire year - gauge replaced last week of 2006)
         POR  2.18  -0.87 1.30 25 1.30 25-26  5 1 50.59  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.58  29 29.55  26 30.241 2400
         CTR  1.41  -1.80 0.62 25 0.62    25 10 0 52.95  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.58  29 29.54  26 30.232 2400
         MEC  1.48        0.61 25 0.63 25-26  6 0 56.04  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.33   9 29.38  26        1700
         RIC  1.42  -1.70 0.63 25             6 0 52.14  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.59  29 29.53  26        2400
         ROA  1.98  -0.88 0.87 22             5 0 37.45    T      1 0    T    T  30.59  29 29.54  26        2400
         AKQ  2.59                                57.52  0.0           0.0  0.0                             2400
         WAL  2.96  -0.18 1.73 23 1.75 25-26  6 1 46.93  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.58  29 29.49  26        2400
         WOO  1.54  -0.97         0.79 22-23  8 0 35.38  0.0           0.0  0.0  30.63 2,  29.66  26        0800
                                                                                    9,12                  
         FCH  2.22        0.87 22 0.90 21-22  6 0 51.73  0.0           0.0  0.0                             2400
         WSH  2.20  -1.26 1.21 22 1.21    22  8 1 49.62    T  7  1 0     T    T  30.61 29  29.50 26         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  4.64  +1.24 1.84 31             7 3 48.29    T   7 1 0    T    T                              2400
         MRH  3.17        1.47                6 1 54.12  0.0          0.0  0.0                              2400
         CLT  2.37  -0.81 1.07 25             5 1 44.42  0.0          0.0    T                              2400
         ECG  1.06  -2.00 0.59 25             7 0 58.97  0.0          0.0  0.0  30.58  29 29.57  26         2400
         FAY  3.25        1.84 25 1.84 24-25  6 2 50.12  0.0          0.0  0.0                              2400
         GSO  1.73  -1.33 1.08 25             5 1 49.41  0.0          0.0  0.0                              2400
         HSE  4.09  -0.47 2.09 23 2.10 22-23  6 2 53.85  0.0          0.0  0.0                              2400
         HKY  3.74  +0.15 1.32 22 1.33 21-22  6 3 45.24  0.0          0.0  0.0                              2400
         LBT  2.76  -0.46 1.54 25 1.54 24-25  5 2 49.44  0.0          0.0  0.0  30.62   9 29.66  26         2400
         EWN  4.98  +1.14 2.25 23 3.67 22-23  5 3 58.64  0.0          0.0  0.0                              2400
         RDU  3.00  -0.04 1.51 25                 53.69  0.0          0.0  0.0                              2400
         RAL  2.96  -0.08         1.35 24-25  7 1 54.25  0.0          0.0  0.0  30.63   9 29.64  26         1900
         ROX  1.86  -1.50 0.90 25 0.90    25  7 0 43.99  0.0          0.0  0.0  30.59 9,2929.62  26  30.28  2200
         ILM  4.26  +0.48 2.26 25             6 1 63.80  0.0          0.0  0.0  30.56  29 29.66  26         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  3.76  -0.08 1.43 25             6 2 36.08  0.0          0.0  0.0  30.60   9 29.65  26         2400
         CAE  3.05  -0.33 1.61 22  1.72 21-22 5 1 43.19  0.0          0.0    T  30.63   9 29.66  25         2400
         CRE  5.57  +2.12 2.77 22                 48.93  0.0          0.0  0.0                              2400
         CHS  2.33  -0.91 1.47 22  1.49 22-23 6 1 49.92  0.0          0.0    T  30.63   9 29.68  25         2400
         FLO  3.79  +0.32 2.20 25                 48.47  0.0          0.0  0.0  30.63   9 29.69  26         2400
         GSP  4.34  +0.48 1.67 25  1.95 21-22 6 2 41.80  0.0          0.0  0.0                              2400
         OGB  3.29        1.66 22  1.71 22-23 6 1 39.02  0.0          0.0  0.0  30.63   9 29.65  25         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  2.16  -1.23 0.78 22  0.81 22-23  9 0 40.67    T 27  3 0    T     T 30.65   8 29.51  26        2400
         DAV  2.97                 0.80    23 14 0 57.33  7.2  8  9 3 11.2  17.8                            0700    

    Virginia:

    Annandale - Lowell notes: " The third warmest December in the past 26 years and the warmest since 1984. The seventh driest in the last 26 years and the driest since 2001. But the total precipitation for the year was 53.30 inches with only three years being wetter in the last 26 years. December was much above average in temperature and much below average in precipitation. The December mean monthly temperature of 43.5°F was a departure of + 5.8°F and the third warmest December in the past 26 years and the warmest since 1984. There were only ten days the minimum temperature equaled or fell below freezing. In the last 26 years, no year has had less, and only 1998 equaled this value. The average daily temperature range was 18.4°F which was the highest since 1985 and the third highest in the past 26 years. The precipitation total was 1.84 inches a departure of - 1.43 inches and the seventh driest in the last 26 years and the driest since 2001. But for the year, we had a surplus of + 8.91 inches of precipitation and a total of 53.30 inches for the year with only three years being wetter in the last 26 years. The snowfall total for December was only a trace from a snow flurry on December 7th. This was the first year in the last 26 years that only a trace of snow was recorded for both January and December. The snowfall total for 2006 was only 13.5 inches which was a departure of - 7.9 inches. The highest temperature recorded for the month was 73°F on the 1st. Only four Decembers in the last 26 years have had a monthly maximum temperature higher. Also the 67°F dew point on the 1st was the record highest dew point recorded for December. The lowest temperature recorded for the month was 16°F on the 9th which was + 2°F above the average lowest monthly minimum for December. The maximum wind gust for December was 39 mph from the west at 0955 on the 27th which is average. But the total wind run for the month was 1281.5 miles the lowest on record for December, as well as, both the daily average and daily maximum wind run for December. (Records since 2002) The month's maximum barometer reading of 30.61 inches on the 29th wasn't unusual but the month's average barometric pressure of 30.21 inches was the highest since 2000. Only 6 December DAILY Records Tied or Broken- (26 Years of records): 2 HIGH maximum temperature: 1, 10; 3 HIGH range temperature: 7, 10, 11; 1 HIGH snowfall: 7.

    2006 was the second warmest year and was the fourth wettest in the past 26 years Only 1998 was warmer by only 0.5° F. The link below is to the 44 summary data sheets that is now complete ! http://www.annandaleweather.com/upload/climatelinks.htm " [ + - ] 

    Arlington from NWS in Sterling - " DECEMBER 2006 IN WASHINGTON DC WAS A WARM BUT DRY MONTH. THE AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURE AT RONALD REAGAN AIRPORT OF 44.2 DEGF TIES IT WITH 1994 AS THE 10TH WARMEST DECEMBER ON RECORD. MORE TYPICAL DECEMBER-LIKE WEATHER WAS LIMITED TO A 1 WEEK STRETCH FROM THE 3RD TO 9TH...A PERIOD THAT FEATURED BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES. OUTSIDE OF THAT COLD SPELL...23 DAYS HAD DAILY AVERAGE TEMPERATURES ABOVE NORMAL WHILE ONLY ONLY 7 DAYS WERE BELOW NORMAL. THROUGH THE 31ST...DCA HAS HAD A STRETCH OF 21 STRAIGHT DAYS OF ABOVE NORMAL AVERAGE DAILY TEMPERATURES THAT BEGAN ON DEC 11TH. DECEMBER HAD 19 DAYS WITH MAX TEMPERATURES OF 50 DEGF OR HIGHER COMPARED TO THE NORMAL AVERAGE OF 6 DAYS OF 50 OR HIGHER. DECEMBER MONTHLY PRECIPITATION OF 1.56 INCHES WAS ONLY ABOUT HALF OF THE NORMAL MONTHLY VALUE....MAKING IT THE 20TH DRIEST DECEMBER ON RECORD...SINCE RECORDS BEGAN IN 1871...136 YEARS AGO. THERE WAS NO MEASURABLE SNOWFALL IN DECEMBER FOR THE MONTH. A TRACE OF SNOW WAS REPORTED ON THE EVENING OF DECEMBER 7TH FROM PASSING SNOW SHOWERS. SINCE SNOWFALL RECORDS BEGAN IN WASHINGTON DC IN 1888...119 YEARS AGO...ONLY 6 DECEMBERS HAVE REPORTED ZERO SNOWFALL WITH THE LAST BEING IN 2001. THERE HAVE BEEN 22 DECEMBERS RECORDING ONLY A TRACE OF SNOWFALL IN WASHINGTON. " [ + - ] 

    Bridgewater - " The precipitation for December was about half of an inch below normal. The temperature was about six degrees above normal. There was no snow during the month. The precipitation for the year has amounted to 44.72 inches which is around six inches above normal. The temperature was much above normal.. Snowfall amounted to 8.5 inches which was much below normal. There were 14 thunderstorms which was below normal. The first part of the year was rather dry while the last half was wet. There were no damaging storms of any kind here in Bridgewater.The biggest news story was the wet weather during the late summer and the fall season. Otherwise the year was rather calm. " - [ + - ] - remarks notes from Clayton

    Centreville - " Except for another lump of coal in my stocking, the news for this month is pretty mild. A record high of 75° on December 1st was the greatest single contributor to increasing our overall monthly average temperature by over one degree to 7.4°. In fact, 7.4° was the magic number across the board in December. Not to claim any unfair advantage over the other monthly temperature averages, nightly lows also registered 7.4ø above the documented average monthly low reading of 32.9ø. Two mornings had lows in the teens with 16° being the lowest on December 9th. That was preceded by 19° just a day earlier. Only eight nights during December had readings in the 20's with the warmest being 48° on the 14th. All the moisture that could have been snow found another state in which to chill. Precipitation was at a premium in the greater Centreville metro area with only 1.51", or 50% of our normal 3.02" falling. These calculations point out that there was a 1.51" deficit for December as well. If you think my 7.4 stuff was confusing, you should'a been around when 1.51 appeared a couple of times. Anyway, for the year we accumulated 47.93", coming out ahead by 5.32" over our 42.61" normal. The average annual low temperature deviation was +5.9° with December placing second warmest for the year after January with its +11.7ø. Happy New Year! " - [ + - ] - report from Paul

    Chesterfield - " Albert reports his backyard creek had a 5.52" high measurement while the lowest level was 0.50". " - [ + - ] - report from Albert

    Dulles from NWS in Sterling - " DECEMBER 2006 AT WASHINGTON DULLES WAS A WARM BUT DRY MONTH. IT WAS THE 7TH WARMEST DECEMBER MONTH AT IAD IN 45 YEARS OF RECORDS. THERE WERE 25 DAYS WITH DAILY AVERAGE TEMPERATURES ABOVE NORMAL WHILE ONLY ONLY 6 DAYS WERE BELOW NORMAL. THROUGH THE 31ST...IAD HAS HAD A STRETCH OF 22 STRAIGHT DAYS OF ABOVE NORMAL AVERAGE DAILY TEMPERATURES THAT BEGAN ON DEC 10TH. DECEMBER HAD 19 DAYS WITH MAX TEMPERATURES OF 50 DEGF OR HIGHER COMPARED TO THE NORMAL AVERAGE OF 4 DAYS OF 50 OR HIGHER. DECEMBER MONTHLY PRECIPITATION OF 1.74 INCHES WAS ABOUT HALF OF THE NORMAL MONTHLY VALUE. THERE WAS NO MEASURABLE SNOWFALL IN DECEMBER FOR THE MONTH. A TRACE OF SNOW WAS REPORTED ON THE EVENING OF DECEMBER 7TH FROM PASSING SNOW SHOWERS. " [ + - ] 

    Falls Church - " December 2006 was warmer than average. Average rainfall. A strong cold front on the 1st brought my peak wind gust for the month at 55 mph around 1pm. No snow fell this month. " - [ + - ] - notes from Windie

    Chantilly - Russ Topping reports from his new location in Chantilly: " I've moved from Herndon, VA (HRN) to Chantilly, VA (CHT) and reactivated my ACON reporting, from the new location. In December 2006 I had mainly mild and dry weather patterns. Perhaps we will get off the hook easy again this winter. Temperatures averaged 4.7 degrees above normal. Monthly precipitation was 1.27" below normal. Snowfall was 2.2" below normal. *Please note, my anemometer is currently partially obstructed. " - [ + - ]

    Herndon - Randy sends these additional notes: " WITH THE EXCEPTION OF A COUPLE OF COLD SHOTS DURING THE FIRST TEN DAYS OF THE MONTH, DECEMBER WAS PREDOMINANTLY ABOVE NORMAL ALL MONTH. THE HIGHS ENDED UP 6 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL AND THE LOWS WERE 3 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. RAIN WAS VERY SPOTTY DURING THE FIRST THREE WEEKS WHEN THE PATTERN BROKE AND WE FINALLY RECEIVED 1.5" DURING THE LAST TEN DAYS. THE MONTH FINISHED OVER AN INCH BELOW NORMAL. FOR THE YEAR I ENDED UP 1.5" ABOVE NORMAL FOR PRECIPITATION. THIS INCLUDED THREE MONTHS WITH RECORD LOW PRECIPITATION AND ONLY ONE MONTH (JUNE) WHICH SET A RECORD HIGH FOR RAIN (14.4"). WE STILL HAVE HAD NO SNOW THIS SEASON. " - [ + - ]

    Ladysmith - Danny adds these additional notes: " December brought more above normal temperatures, with two days of highs in the 70s and an additional six days with highs in the 60s (quite a contrast from 2005, which featured only one day with highs above 60). Average high temperatures were a full 10 degrees higher than they were in 2005. December ended a streak of three consecutive months with above normal precipitation with only 1.38" of total rainfall. Not a single flake of snow fell during the month. Wishing all a happy and prosperous new year! " - [ + - ]

    Newport News - Report from Gary: " YEAR-IN-REVIEW 2006 Temperature Data: AVERAGE HIGH: 71.3° AVERAGE LOW: 50.9° MEAN: 61.1° HIGHEST: 102° on 3rd of August LOWEST: 17° on 19th February Number of Days: 03 - MAX 100° OR ABOVE 00 - MAX 32 OR BELOW 49 - MAX 90° OR ABOVE 47 - MIN 32° OR BELOW 00 - MIN 0° OR BELOW NUMBER OF: 11 - Days with Dense Fog 44 - Days with Thunderstorms 07 - Days with some type of Snowfall Precipitation Data TOTAL: 56.03" GREATEST DAILY: 8.65" on Sep. 1st GREATEST IN 24-HR PERIOD: 8.85" on Aug. 31st & Sep 1st MAXIMUM: 12.41" in September MINIMUM: .41" in March Snowfall, Ice Pellets TOTAL: .8" GREATEST IN 24 HOURS: .5" on January 14th GREATEST DEPTH ON GROUND: .5" on January 14th Pressure Data HIGHEST SEA-LEVEL: 30.59" on January 22nd LOWEST SEA-LEVEL: 29.18" on January 14th Wind PEAK WIND GUST: 44 mph from the E on September 1st " -  

    Portsmouth - " Here in the Southeastern corner of Portsmouth, temperatures averaged above normal by 4.2° and that average produced the 6th warmest December since 1976 at this site. The top five warm Decembers since 1976 include: 1. 52.0° 1984, 2. 50.7° 1990, 3. 50.0° 1998, 4. 49.7° 2001, 5. 49.3° 1994. Just a couple of station records this month: 8th - TEMPERATURE - Minimum Maximum 36° [previous 40° 1989] and 25th - RAINFALL - TIED - 1.30" [previous 1981]. For the year 2006, the temperature average was 61.4° and that was 0.9° above normal. Rainfall for the year was 50.59", 105% of the normal annual rainfall (+2.21"). " - [ ] 

    Woodstock - A note from Lauck: " Warmest December in my 22 years of record keeping. The average temperature for the year was 56.4° and that was 1.4° in excess of the normal average temp. Rainfall for the year fell 3.01" below the normal yearly precipitation. " - [ + - ] 

    North Carolina:

    Greensboro - NWS Raleigh (RAH) reports: " The December 2006 North Carolina Weather Review is located here: http://www.erh.noaa.gov/rah/ncsummaries/MonthlySummary.Dec.2006.doc. See notes for Raleigh below. " - [ + - ]

    Raleigh - NWS Raleigh (RAH) reports: " December 2006 was the fifth warmest December on record in Raleigh-Durham. December 2006 will be remembered as one of the warmest on record across North Carolina. The monthly average temperatures turned out to generally range between 3 and 6 degrees above the 30 year mean. The December monthly average temperature for selected locations is depicted in figure 1. The month marked the fifth warmest December on record averaging 47.8 degrees (4.8 degrees above normal). Unlike in previous months, there was a long extended period of dry weather to go along with the warmth. The dry period lasted for the first three weeks of the month. Locations such as Fayetteville, Greensboro, and Raleigh recorded only two days with measurable rainfall during this 3 week span. The rainfall was very light as Fayetteville tallied only 0.07 of an inch, Greensboro 0.19 of an inch, and Raleigh-Durham totaled only 0.55 of an inch. Much wetter conditions returned by the last week of the month as two significant rain events hit the state. The rainfall during the last week of the month was sufficiently heavy enough to thrust the monthly totals to at or above normal levels at many reporting stations. The December 2006 North Carolina Weather Review is located here: http://www.erh.noaa.gov/rah/ncsummaries/MonthlySummary.Dec.2006.doc. " - [ + - ]

    Raleigh - Bob sends these notes: " Overall December weather was on the mild side. There were seventeen days which the daily high was at least 60 degrees or higher. However, the coldest temperature of 2006 was also recorded in December with a 13 degree reading on the 9th. 2.96" of precipitation was measured which is 0.08" below normal. No frozen precipitation was observed during December- " - [ + - ]

    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 2006-2007 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
    R2 sky cover percentage 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 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
    ANN    Annandale, VA 1 3/4 ENE - Lowell Koontz  8/31/79  wwkoontz@verizon.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    
    IAD   Dulles - Washington-Dulles International Airport  38-56-05N 077-26-51W 93M  CLT    Charlotte, NC NWS Charlotte/Douglas International Airpot 35-12-48N 080-56-55W 220M
    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
    HER    Herndon, VA R.M. Beall P- 10/76   T-  1/91 beall47@earthlink.net 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
       EWN    New Bern, NC  Craven County Regional Airport 36-04-03N 077-02-50W 3M
    LXI     Lexington, VA  Scott M. Lancey, -  06/96 weather@midatlanticwx.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