Weekly Climate Summary: 9/17/2023-9/23/2023

Climate in the News:

The Climate Prediction Center (CPC) recently released an updated seasonal outlook for this winter that brings hope for our region. Texas is currently expected to have a near normal winter in terms of temperatures, while precipitation chances are leaning to be above average. This expectation comes as a result of the >95% chance of El Niño continuing through January-March 2024. After the blistering hot temperatures and no rainfall over the summer, this change will be very welcome by Texans. Take a look below at the graphical outlooks released by the CPC:

Source: Climate Prediction Center

Source: Climate Prediction Center

Weather Synopsis:

High pressure sat over much of the state during the early part of the week resulting in sunny, warm weather. As the week progressed a few surface low pressure centers formed, also forming frontal boundaries that stretched across the state. None of these systems were very strong which did not allow these frontal boundaries to venture too far south. However, a notable dry line formed around midweek and impacted several areas in the Panhandle through the creation of severe thunderstorms. Below is a surface analysis from 10pm Wednesday of this dry line from a low pressure center in southwest Kansas extending through the Panhandle.

Source: Weather Prediction Center

Temperature:

After a week of seasonable weather, last week brought back warmer than normal temperatures. The warmest portions had temperatures near 90 degrees Fahrenheit with the highest average recorded at 88.9 degrees in La Salle County. The majority of the state had temperatures between 80 and 85 degrees while parts of the Panhandle fell below 75 degrees. The coolest weekly average was 70.0 degrees in Castro County. Overall, temperatures were warmer than normal with some areas reaching up to 5 degrees above the average.

Precipitation:

Last week lacked significant rainfall for most Texans despite the persisting need for it. The region along the Red River was the primary recipient of rainfall this past week, with some areas exceeding 0.5” in accumulations. The largest rainfall total recorded last week was 4.10” in Grayson County at a CoCoRaHS station.

Records/Extremes:

• September 19 -  Childress County - 2.5” hail fell outside the town of Childress.
• September 19 - Hardeman County - 2.75” hail fell in Quanah.
• September 21 - Denton County - 2.5” hail fell in Krum.
• September 22 - Hutchinson County - Winds as strong as 87 mph were recorded near Fritch. Reports of overturned RVs and damage to houses were made in conjunction with the wind report.