drought

What can you say about a month that began with a swarm of tornadoes, finished with flooding rain, and in between, featured record heat, wildfires, and increasing drought concerns? Best to say that it was an odd one! Fitting this theme, the statewide average temperature of 55.4° was 3.9° above the 1991–2020 normal. This ranks as the third warmest April on record (since 1895) only behind 2017 and 2010 for top honors. April was the fifth month of the past ten ranking in the top 10, joining July (#7), August (#1), January (#1), and February (#5). The first four months of 2023 come in as the warmest start of the year on record with an average of 44.4°. This exceeds the previous record of 44.2° in 2012, with seven of the 10 warmest January–April periods (1895–present) occurring since 2002. The average April maximum temperature across NJ was 67.4° (+4.7°, 3rd warmest) and the average minimum was 43.4° (+3.1°, 5th warmest). Northern counties averaged 53.5° in April (+3.6°, 5th warmest), southern counties 56.6° (+4.0, 2nd warmest), and the coastal zone 55.8° (+4.1°, 2nd warmest).

April precipitation averaged 5.84” across New Jersey. This was 2.14” above normal, ranking as the 10th wettest on record. It was the wettest April since 2007 and second wettest since 1983. All but scattered areas in the northwest received above-normal precipitation, the greatest amounts falling near the Atlantic and Delaware Bay coasts. Northern counties averaged 5.55” (+1.65”, 26th wettest), southern counties 6.04” (+2.49”, 7th wettest), and the coastal zone 5.94” (+2.39”, 10th wettest). It is important to note that these totals and those for individual stations in the next section, do not include heavy rain that fell after standard early morning observation times at CoCoRaHS and National Weather Service Cooperative stations on April 30th. These rains were reported in morning observations on May 1st, thus will be included in May totals.

As has so often been the situation in 2022, December’s weather never settled into any persistent pattern. Unless, of course, a pattern of frequent variations constitutes persistence! In any case, it seems appropriate to co-label this combined monthly and annual report as intervals in search of identities!

Looking first at December, the statewide average temperature of 35.5° is 1.1° below the 1991–2020 normal. This ranks as the 44th mildest December dating back to 1895. The statewide average maximum temperature of 44.9° is 0.1° below normal and ranked 31st mildest. The average minimum was 26.1°, which is 2.1° below normal and ranks 54th mildest. North Jersey averaged 33.3° (-0.8°, 36th mildest), south Jersey 36.8° (-1.3°, 49th mildest), and the Jersey coast 37.7° (-1.4°, 50th mildest).

Statewide precipitation averaged 4.76”, which is 0.49” above normal and ranks 35th wettest. North Jersey averaged 4.93” (+0.68”, 32nd wettest), south Jersey 4.68” (+0.40”, 37th wettest), and the Jersey coast 4.49” (+0.13”, 43rd wettest). The wettest locations were in the northeast and along the northern coast, while the northwest and much of the south were on the drier side.

There are years when many say that New Jersey didn’t experience “classic” fall weather. This October is not one of those years, as the month included rain, wind, and coastal flooding from the persistent remnants of a hurricane, many locations received their first frost and freezing temperatures to end the growing season, and there were days with a cloud-free deep-blue sky. October certainly showed its true fall colors.

October temperatures averaged 54.1° across NJ. This is 1.3° below the 1991–2020 normal and was the coolest October since 2009. It was the 57th coolest (tied with 4 other years) of the 128 since 1895. The average high was 64.5° which is 1.3° below normal and is the 48th coolest (tied with 3 years). The average low of 43.6° is 1.3° below normal and ranks 65th coolest (tied with 4 years). Northern NJ averaged 52.1° (-1.2°, 59th coolest [tied with 2 years]), southern 55.1° (-1.4°, 56th coolest [tied with 3 years]), and coastal 56.6° (-1.0°, 70th coolest [tied with 1 year]).

Rainfall was abundant, averaging 6.45” statewide. This is 2.26” above normal and ranks 10th wettest on record. It was the wettest since the record October 2005. Ten different decades are found in the top 15 years. The north averaged 5.88” (+1.43”, 21st wettest), south 6.75” (+2.72”, 6th wettest), and coast 7.53” (+3.44”, 3rd wettest). Coastal Monmouth, Ocean, and Atlantic counties were wettest, coming in at two to three times normal totals. While coming in close to normal, the driest areas were in the north central, far southern, and southwest regions.

Much like this past July, August was a hotter and drier month than normal. Despite a June with rather close-to-normal numbers, the two most recent months brought the summer temperature and precipitation to top-10 levels for hot and dry conditions. More on summer ’22 later in this report, but first to discuss is a record hot and quite dry August.

The August average temperature of 77.4° was 3.8° above the 1991–2020 normal, ranking as the hottest on record. Eight of the ten warmest Augusts since 1895 have occurred since 2001. The average maximum of 88.5° was 4.7° above normal, the hottest on record, while the average minimum of 66.2° was 2.9° above normal, tied for 5th warmest. North Jersey averaged 75.7° (+3.8°, warmest on record), the south 78.4° (+3.8°, warmest on record), and the coast 77.9° (+3.2°, 3rd warmest).

Statewide, August precipitation averaged 2.61”, which is 1.96” below normal, ranking as the 22nd driest. The north came in at 2.31” (-2.25”, 18th driest), south 2.82” (-1.75”, 29th driest), and coast 2.54” (-2.06”, 25th driest). As the map shows, virtually the entire state had a monthly total below the statewide 4.57” normal. Exceptions were found in isolated west central and central coastal areas where several storms quickly deposited hefty totals. Less than half the normal monthly rainfall fell in a good portion of the north and in scattered areas of the south and north coast.

As reported multiple times during the first half of 2022, the day-to-day weather and overall climate of the Garden State have varied frequently, exhibiting lots of variability and never “locking” into a given pattern for an extended period of several weeks or longer. Such was the case this June, making it difficult to define any conditions that dominated. June was somewhat drier than average, but eight events brought over an inch of rain somewhere within the state. It was also dry enough at one point for a wildfire to scorch over 13,000 acres of the Pine Barrens. Low temperatures fell into the upper 30°s and low 40°s at multiple locations on the 20th, yet three days earlier, the majority of the state saw highs in the low to middle 90°s. “Non-descript” seems the best way to sum things up.

Statewide, rainfall averaged 3.44”. This is 0.86” below the 1991–2020 normal and ranks as the 61st driest of the 128 Junes since 1895. The north received 3.59” (-1.02”, 61st driest), the south 3.39” (-0.75”, 61st driest), and coast 2.90” (-0.95”, 54th driest). As the map shows, the far south was driest, continuing a pattern seen in recent months. The June 30th U.S. Drought Monitor map has the bulk of the southern area seen on the Figure 1 map receiving less than 4.00” for the month classified as “Abnormally Dry” (D0). This rating is also a function of both low streamflow and ground water levels. Further north, pockets of above-average rainfall surrounded a below-average central region that has yet to have prolonged enough water deficits to qualify for D0 status.