After a very chilly December 2022, December 2023 came through with above average temperatures, and for a pleasant change, above average precipitation!The average daily high for December was 47.0, 4.5 degrees above normal. Thea average overnight low was 32.4, 9.5 degrees above normal. This gave us a monthly mean temperaature of 39.7, 7.0 degrees above normal. This made December 2023 the fourth warmest December on record.
The warmest December was the very recent December 2021 with a monthly mean temperature of 42.6. The coldest December on record was the brutal December of 1983 when we had a monthly mean temperature of only 13.6 degrees! The warmest temperature in December was 64 degrees on the 7th. The coldest temperature for the month was the morning low of 22 on the 10th. There were three temperature records set during December, all record high low temperatures. The low of 45 on the 8th broke the old record of 34 set in 1952. The low of 52 on the 21st and 22nd broke the old records of 39 set in 2020 and 49 set in 2015, respectively.
After a year of mainly below normal precipitation it was a pleasant change to have a month with over 200% of average precipitation. Long term average precipitation for December is 1.17 inches. Milford Lake recorded 2.84 inches for December. Several precipitation events moved through the area over the month which allowed for the precipitation to be soaked up by a thirsty soil profile.
We ended the year well below normal however. Long term annual precipitation is 33.57 inches and we received 27.11 inches during 2023. Hopefully the wetter weather pattern will continue into 2024.Snowfall was recorded during December arriving just in time to give us an unexpected White Christmas. Long term average December snowfall is 3.7 inches and we managed 2.7 inches for the month. Thanks to the heavy late November snowfall we are still ahead of normal for the snow season. Normal through the end of December is 4.7 inches and we are currently at 8.9 inches for the season.
January is our coldest month of the year. Historically the coldest day of the year is January 4th (based on 75 years of Junction City area weather records). Even though the shortest day of the year is December 21st, it continues to get colder for a couple more weeks. Average daily highs for January begin the month at 38 and by the end of the month we have clawed our way up to 42. Overnight low on New Year’s morning is 18 and by the end of the month it has only risen to 20. The real warm up doesn’t occur until March! In additional to being our coldest month of the year, December is also our driest month of the year with only 0.73 inches of liquid precipitation. January is tied with February for our snowiest month of the year with an average of 4.7 inches.-30-
Chuck Otte [email protected]
County Extension Agent, Retired