Weather Summary

The average high temp. for December is now 26° figuring in the last 47 years.  The average low is now 5°. Checking through my weather records I’ve found that 31 of these 47 Decembers have fell within these averages.  That leaves 16 Decembers quite far out of these averages either with the high average, low or both.  I’ve picked 9 of these which I would call extreme that I’ll report on as follows:

1977: Cold month – Average high temp. 18° – Fourteen  nights of zero or below temps. – Two days (6th & 9th) never got above zero – Christmas Day 6 above.  

1979: Warm month – Average high temp. 40° – Nine   days in the 40s and eight in the 50s & 60s – Only five    below zero nights – Christmas Day 26 degrees.

1983: Extreme cold month – Average high temp. only 8° – 29 nights of zero or below temps. with -40° below (not wind chill) on the 23rd both of which are  records – Eight days in a row that the temps. never  got above zero which is also a record – Christmas Day 4° above. 

1991: Warm month – Average high temp. 36° – Only  four nights of below zero readings – 13 high readings    in the 40s & 50s – Christmas Day a very mild 47°.

1996: Cold month – Average high temp. of 14° – All temp. readings at or below freezing – Month ended with 15 below zero readings during the night – Five straight days where the temp. never got above zero during this time – Christmas Day 11° above.

1997: Warm month – Average high temp. 37° – Twenty day time high temps. above freezing with the highest reading of 54° on the 14th – Christmas Day a   mild 49°.

2000: Cold month – Average high temp. 12° – Eight days where the temp. never got above zero with the lowest of -22 on the 31st – Christmas Day 11 above.

2013: Cold month – Average high temp. 18°, low -4 – Twenty-two nights below zero – Three days  it never got above zero – Lowest temp. during this time was -22 on the 9th – Christmas Day 31°.

2020: Warm month – Average high temp. 37°, low 13 – Four days in the 50s and eight in the 40s – Only four night time readings below zero – Christmas Day 39°.

2021: Average high temp. for this December is in the average range at 28° but I’m mentioning this month because of a reading of 65° on the 1st which is   the highest December temp. that I have recorded - Christmas Day 13 above zero.

(Next week I’ll report on extreme precip. for the month of December)