Texas Climate Report: October 2008
October 2008 turned out to be a transitional month with some variability in temperature and precipitation throughout the state. Several cold fronts pushed their way through Texas during the month, which brought some rain to northern Texas in particular, and left most other areas cooler and dry. Most of South, East and Central Texas recorded below average temperatures for the month, anywhere from half a degree to a couple of degrees cooler. However, West and North Texas saw some slightly above average temperatures, with Dallas/Fort Worth most notably 2.4°F above normal. Still, most temperatures were right around average over the month due in large part to the combination of cooler than normal minimum temperatures and warmer than normal maximum temperatures. Notice San Angelo’s mean October temperature departure was 0.0°F, although maximum and minimum temperatures ran 2.9°F warmer than average and cooler than average, respectively. Victoria’s average minimum temperature ran 6°F below normal, the most substantial temperature departure of the first order stations.
Precipitation was generally below average, with 8 first order stations receiving less than half their normal precipitation, though North Texas and Houston had plentiful rainfall. Because of a dry summer for the most part, several areas are experiencing deficits in their average precipitation for the year. Again, Galveston’s data was missing due to Hurricane Ike which has left the city devastated and mostly non-functional even through October. The Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea were very quiet in terms of tropical activity and no storms were close to threatening Texas.
Monthly Summary for Selected Cities
| |
TMAX (°F) |
TMIN (°F) |
TAVG (°F) |
PRCP |
*Deg. Days |
| Station |
Mean |
*Dep. |
Max. |
Mean |
*Dep. |
Min. |
Mean |
*Dep. |
Days ≥ 0.01" |
Mo. Total |
*Perc. Norm. |
Gr'st 24 hr. |
*HDD |
*CDD |
| Abilene |
78.2 |
+0.6 |
92 |
51.4 |
‑3.0 |
33 |
64.8 |
‑1.2 |
3 |
3.15 |
109% |
1.97 |
96 |
96 |
| Amarillo |
71.7 |
‑0.1 |
87 |
44.7 |
+0.1 |
27 |
58.2 |
|
8 |
3.87 |
258% |
1.28 |
219 |
19 |
| Austin |
84.0 |
+2.6 |
93 |
58.1 |
‑1.7 |
40 |
71.0 |
+0.4 |
3 |
2.01 |
51% |
1.07 |
29 |
223 |
| Brownsville |
84.6 |
+0.6 |
93 |
64.5 |
‑1.4 |
50 |
74.5 |
‑0.5 |
7 |
3.26 |
86% |
0.91 |
2 |
305 |
| College Station |
81.4 |
‑0.6 |
90 |
56.7 |
‑2.3 |
38 |
69.0 |
‑1.5 |
4 |
1.73 |
41% |
0.82 |
39 |
170 |
| Corpus Christi |
84.3 |
+0.7 |
91 |
61.4 |
‑2.6 |
41 |
72.9 |
‑0.9 |
5 |
1.88 |
48% |
0.85 |
10 |
260 |
| Dallas‑Fort Worth |
81.3 |
+3.4 |
93 |
57.9 |
+1.5 |
43 |
69.6 |
+2.4 |
4 |
2.29 |
56% |
1.68 |
38 |
190 |
| Del Rio |
83.0 |
+1.3 |
92 |
58.5 |
‑2.0 |
44 |
70.7 |
‑0.4 |
4 |
0.16 |
8% |
0.10 |
18 |
202 |
| El Paso |
80.2 |
+2.3 |
88 |
51.1 |
‑0.7 |
37 |
65.7 |
+0.8 |
5 |
0.15 |
19% |
0.06 |
56 |
85 |
| Galveston |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
0 |
0.00 |
0% |
0.00 |
N/A |
N/A |
| Houston |
81.3 |
‑0.7 |
90 |
57.8 |
‑1.0 |
40 |
69.5 |
‑0.9 |
5 |
8.67 |
193% |
3.79 |
35 |
184 |
| Lubbock |
75.1 |
+0.7 |
89 |
47.5 |
+0.5 |
31 |
61.3 |
+0.6 |
7 |
3.77 |
222% |
1.55 |
144 |
37 |
| Midland |
77.8 |
+0.4 |
89 |
50.3 |
‑1.0 |
32 |
64.0 |
‑0.4 |
3 |
1.61 |
91% |
1.26 |
101 |
78 |
| Port Arthur |
79.9 |
‑0.6 |
87 |
57.5 |
‑2.1 |
38 |
68.7 |
‑1.4 |
7 |
2.23 |
48% |
1.25 |
44 |
167 |
| San Angelo |
80.7 |
+2.9 |
94 |
50.1 |
‑2.9 |
30 |
65.4 |
|
3 |
1.81 |
70% |
1.11 |
87 |
109 |
| San Antonio |
84.6 |
+2.6 |
91 |
58.3 |
‑1.1 |
39 |
71.4 |
+0.7 |
2 |
0.26 |
7% |
0.16 |
32 |
240 |
| Victoria |
84.7 |
+1.7 |
92 |
55.6 |
‑6.0 |
36 |
70.2 |
‑2.1 |
3 |
1.36 |
32% |
1.08 |
36 |
206 |
| Waco |
80.8 |
+0.4 |
93 |
53.4 |
‑3.3 |
33 |
67.1 |
‑1.5 |
4 |
3.90 |
106% |
2.92 |
55 |
129 |
| Wichita Falls |
79.9 |
+2.8 |
94 |
52.1 |
‑0.3 |
34 |
66.0 |
+1.3 |
4 |
3.41 |
110% |
2.07 |
90 |
128 |
| Shreveport, LA |
77.5 |
‑0.8 |
85 |
52.5 |
‑2.5 |
34 |
65.0 |
‑1.7 |
7 |
1.41 |
32% |
1.22 |
89 |
95 |
*Dep.: Departure of the monthly average temperature from the 1971-2000 monthly normal, which is provided by the National Climatic Data Center.
*Perc. Norm.: Monthly precipitation total divided by 1971-2000 monthly normal, which is provided by the National Climatic Data Center.
*Deg. Days: Computed daily as the departure of the daily average temperature from 65°F and aggregated over the entire month.
*Heating degree day (HDD): Each unit corresponds to a -1°F departure of a daily average temperature from 65°F.
*Cooling degree day (HDD): Each unit corresponds to a +1°F departure of a daily average temperature from 65°F.
|
Monthly Extremes
| Least Precipitation Overall for the Month (inches) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| GALVESTON SCHOLES FLD |
GALVESTON |
0.00 |
| BENAVIDES 2 |
DUVAL |
0.00 |
| GRANDFALLS 3 SSE |
WARD |
0.00 |
| MARATHON |
BREWSTER |
0.00 |
| MARFA 2 |
PRESIDIO |
0.00 |
| MENTONE |
LOVING |
0.00 |
| RICHLAND SPRINGS |
SAN SABA |
0.00 |
| SAN ANTONIO/SEAWORLD |
BEXAR |
0.00 |
| TELEGRAPH |
KIMBLE |
0.00 |
| Greatest Precipitation Overall for the Month (inches) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| HOUSTON NORTH HOUSTON |
HARRIS |
9.22 |
| Greatest Precipitation in 24 Hours (inches) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| DIALVILLE 2 W |
CHEROKEE |
5.20 |
| Lowest Average Daily Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| DOG CANYON |
CULBERSON |
53.6 |
| Highest Average Daily Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| SOUTH PADRE ISLAND |
CAMERON |
78.6 |
| Lowest Average Daily Maximum Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| DOG CANYON |
CULBERSON |
66.3 |
| Highest Average Daily Maximum Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| PRESIDIO |
PRESIDIO |
88.8 |
| Highest Maximum Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| TILDEN 4 SSE |
MCMULLEN |
104 |
| Lowest Maximum Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| DUMAS |
MOORE |
42 |
| VEGA 2 NW |
OLDHAM |
42 |
| Lowest Average Daily Minimum Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| MULESHOE 19 S |
BAILEY |
40.1 |
| Highest Average Daily Minimum Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| SOUTH PADRE ISLAND |
CAMERON |
73.1 |
| Highest Minimum Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| SOUTH PADRE ISLAND |
CAMERON |
80 |
| Lowest Minimum Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
| MULESHOE 19 S |
BAILEY |
24 |
| CANYON DAM 2 |
COMAL |
24 |
| DIMMITT 2&nbsnbsp;N |
CASTRO |
24 |
New Monthly Records
| Least Precipitation Overall for the Month (inches) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
Previous Record |
Yrs. Data |
| BURNET MUNI AP |
BURNET |
0.44 |
1.23 (2007) |
10 |
| GALVESTON SCHOLES FLD |
GALVESTON |
0.00 |
0.00 (1952) |
136 |
| BENAVIDES 2 |
DUVAL |
0.00 |
0.00 (2001) |
38 |
| DEL RIO 2 NW |
VAL VERDE |
0.22 |
0.49 (2001) |
13 |
| GONZALES 10 SW |
GONZALES |
0.11 |
0.37 (1999) |
11 |
| GRANDFALLS 3 SSE |
WARD |
0.00 |
0.00 (2001) |
79 |
| LOCKHART 2 SW |
CALDWELL |
0.25 |
0.56 (2007) |
12 |
| MARATHON |
BREWSTER |
0.00 |
0.00 (1998) |
65 |
| MARFA 2 |
PRESIDIO |
0.00 |
0.00 (1991) |
45 |
| RICHLAND SPRINGS |
SAN SABA |
0.00 |
0.00 (2001) |
54 |
| ROCKPORT |
ARANSAS |
0.49 |
0.63 (1961) |
50 |
| SAN ANTONIO/SEAWORLD |
BEXAR |
0.00 |
0.00 (2007) |
19 |
| TELEGRAPH |
KIMBLE |
0.00 |
0.00 (1992) |
54 |
| Greatest Precipitation Overall for the Month (inches) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
Previous Record |
Yrs. Data |
| BRAVO |
HARTLEY |
6.42 |
5.18 (1941) |
65 |
| CHILDRESS 2 |
CHILDRESS |
5.43 |
4.42 (2006) |
11 |
| DUMAS |
MOORE |
6.98 |
6.66 (1942) |
64 |
| HARTLEY 4 ESE |
HARTLEY |
6.74 |
6.33 (1946) |
65 |
| SANFORD DAM |
HUTCHINSON |
4.94 |
4.85 (1998) |
14 |
| Greatest Precipitation in 24 Hours Ever in the Month (inches) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
Previous Record |
Yrs. Data |
| CHILDRESS 2 |
CHILDRESS |
2.37 |
2.35 (2006) |
11 |
| CRAWFORD |
MCLENNAN |
4.79 |
4.31 (2003) |
10 |
| MC LEAN |
GRAY |
3.70 |
3.65 (2002) |
51 |
| PENWELL |
ECTOR |
2.50 |
2.18 (1981) |
50 |
| Lowest Average Daily Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
Previous Record |
Yrs. Data |
| PLEASANTON |
ATASCOSA |
69.3 |
70.0 (2001) |
17 |
| REFUGIO 2 NW |
REFUGIO |
70.2 |
70.7 (1987) |
23 |
| Highest Average Daily Maximum Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
Previous Record |
Yrs. Data |
| JACKSONVILLE |
CHEROKEE |
84.9 |
84.6 (1956) |
43 |
| Highest Maximum Temperature Ever in the Month (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
Previous Record |
Yrs. Data |
| REFUGIO 3 SW |
REFUGIO |
94 |
94 (2007) |
10 |
| TILDEN 4 SSE |
MCMULLEN |
104 |
103 (1977) |
43 |
| Lowest Average Daily Minimum Temperature (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
Previous Record |
Yrs. Data |
| FT WORTH ALLIANCE AP |
TARRANT |
53.4 |
53.6 (2005) |
11 |
| CONCHO PARK IVIE RSVR |
CONCHO |
52.6 |
52.7 (2001) |
11 |
| DEL RIO 2 NW |
VAL VERDE |
55.2 |
56.3 (1999) |
13 |
| HOUSTON‑PORT |
HARRIS |
60.9 |
61.7 (1999) |
16 |
| LAJITAS |
BREWSTER |
52.2 |
53.2 (1984) |
28 |
| LAKE ALAN HENRY |
GARZA |
50.3 |
50.4 (1995) |
15 |
| PLEASANTON |
ATASCOSA |
53.5 |
55.4 (2001) |
17 |
| REFUGIO 2 NW |
REFUGIO |
56.5 |
56.9 (1999) |
23 |
| SOMERVILLE DAM |
BURLESON |
48.5 |
48.7 (2001) |
39 |
| TERLINGUA RCH |
BREWSTER |
49.7 |
50.3 (1993) |
10 |
| Highest Minimum Temperature Ever in the Month (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
Previous Record |
Yrs. Data |
| KENT 8 SE |
JEFF DAVIS |
67 |
65 (1993) |
13 |
| MONAHANS |
WARD |
70 |
70 (2002) |
45 |
| MORTON |
COCHRAN |
65 |
64 (1986) |
45 |
| MULESHOE NWR |
BAILEY |
63 |
63 (1986) |
28 |
| Lowest Minimum Temperature Ever in the Month (°F) |
| Station |
County |
Value |
Previous Record |
Yrs. Data |
| LONGVIEW E TX RGNL AP |
GREGG |
31 |
32 (2000) |
10 |
| ALICE INTL AP |
JIM WELLS |
41 |
42 (2005) |
13 |
| FT WORTH ALLIANCE AP |
TARRANT |
30 |
30 (2005) |
11 |
| BENAVIDES 2 |
DUVAL |
35 |
35 (1980) |
34 |
| CONCHO PARK IVIE RSVR |
CONCHO |
36 |
38 (2005) |
11 |
| DEL RIO 2 NW |
VAL VERDE |
31 |
36 (1997) |
13 |
| ENCINAL |
WEBB |
31 |
31 (1917) |
82 |
| FT MCKAVETT |
MENARD |
28 |
28 (2005) |
15 |
| LA JOYA |
HIDALGO |
42 |
42 (1999) |
12 |
| PLEASANTON |
ATASCOSA |
32 |
35 (2005) |
17 |
| REFUGIO 3 SW |
REFUGIO |
34 |
42 (2007) |
10 |
| SMITHVILLE |
BASTROP |
25 |
27 (1993) |
79 |
| SOMERVILLE DAM |
BURLESON |
28 |
28 (1993) |
39 |
Climatic Averages for November
| |
TMAX (°F) |
TMIN (°F) |
PRCP (inches) |
No. Days in Month |
Deg. Days |
| Station |
Avg. |
Record |
Avg. |
Record |
Avg. |
Gr'st Mo. |
Gr'st 24 hr. |
≥ 90°F |
≤ 32°F |
PRCP ≥ 0.01" |
HDD |
CDD |
| Abilene |
65.1 |
92 (1980) |
42.3 |
13 (1887) |
1.30 |
5.82 (1913) |
2.48 (2004) |
0.0 |
5.3 |
4.7 |
353 |
15 |
| Amarillo |
58.4 |
87 (1980) |
31.8 |
0 (1976) |
0.68 |
5.09 (1905) |
3.01 (1905) |
0.0 |
15.9 |
4.1 |
594 |
0 |
| Austin |
70.1 |
91 (2006) |
49.3 |
20 (1976) |
2.68 |
14.10 (2004) |
7.55 (2001) |
0.0 |
0.8 |
8.2 |
205 |
51 |
| Brownsville |
76.8 |
98 (1906) |
58.6 |
27 (1911) |
1.75 |
7.69 (1986) |
4.08 (1986) |
0.5 |
0.0 |
5.9 |
69 |
166 |
| College Station |
70.9 |
94 (1921) |
49.1 |
19 (1976) |
3.18 |
13.06 (1907) |
5.56 (1907) |
0.0 |
1.5 |
8.4 |
203 |
53 |
| Corpus Christi |
74.9 |
98 (1988) |
55.4 |
28 (1993) |
1.74 |
8.64 (1888) |
4.61 (1892) |
0.4 |
0.2 |
6.3 |
103 |
122 |
| Dallas‑Fort Worth |
65.1 |
89 (2005) |
45.1 |
19 (1950) |
2.57 |
7.94 (1918) |
4.72 (1918) |
0.0 |
2.6 |
6.4 |
312 |
15 |
| Del Rio |
70.9 |
96 (1988) |
49.2 |
17 (1906) |
0.96 |
4.71 (2004) |
2.87 (1914) |
0.2 |
1.1 |
5.0 |
183 |
41 |
| El Paso |
65.5 |
87 (1983) |
39.8 |
1 (1976) |
0.42 |
2.50 (1906) |
1.19 (1943) |
0.0 |
8.1 |
3.1 |
386 |
2 |
| Galveston |
71.3 |
85 (1988) |
59.4 |
26 (1911) |
3.64 |
16.18 (1940) |
9.01 (1940) |
0.0 |
0.1 |
8.7 |
112 |
122 |
| Houston |
72.0 |
89 (1989) |
49.8 |
19 (1976) |
4.19 |
14.10 (1943) |
10.83 (1943) |
0.0 |
1.3 |
8.6 |
189 |
65 |
| Lubbock |
61.6 |
90 (2006) |
34.5 |
‑1 (1957) |
0.71 |
6.65 (2004) |
1.67 (2004) |
0.0 |
10.3 |
3.7 |
491 |
0 |
| Midland |
65.8 |
90 (1996) |
38.8 |
10 (1938) |
0.65 |
5.42 (2004) |
2.17 (2004) |
0.0 |
6.9 |
3.1 |
380 |
4 |
| Port Arthur |
70.9 |
90 (1905) |
50.8 |
22 (1976) |
4.75 |
22.74 (1902) |
7.70 (1946) |
0.0 |
0.8 |
8.4 |
181 |
63 |
| San Angelo |
66.5 |
93 (1980) |
41.4 |
12 (1911) |
1.10 |
5.18 (2004) |
2.57 (2001) |
0.1 |
5.8 |
4.2 |
330 |
16 |
| San Antonio |
71.4 |
94 (1988) |
48.6 |
21 (1976) |
2.58 |
9.46 (2004) |
4.87 (1977) |
0.1 |
1.9 |
7.3 |
197 |
57 |
| Victoria |
73.0 |
93 (1988) |
52.3 |
24 (1976) |
2.64 |
16.14 (2004) |
9.20 (2004) |
0.1 |
0.6 |
7.5 |
145 |
83 |
| Waco |
67.8 |
92 (1988) |
45.8 |
17 (1976) |
2.61 |
10.36 (1902) |
4.26 (1952) |
0.1 |
2.9 |
7.5 |
271 |
34 |
| Wichita Falls |
63.7 |
89 (1988) |
40.1 |
14 (1950) |
1.68 |
7.39 (1902) |
3.15 (1902) |
0.0 |
6.6 |
5.5 |
395 |
10 |
| Shreveport, LA |
66.8 |
88 (1984) |
45.3 |
16 (1976) |
4.68 |
10.81 (1987) |
6.51 (1987) |
0.0 |
3.0 |
8.9 |
296 |
24 |
| Climatic averages are based on 1971-2000 monthly normals, which are provided by the National Climatic Data Center. |
