December 2023 Climate Summary

Significant Weather Events:

As we discussed over the last few months, fall moving into winter has been unusually quiet regarding storm activity. This was the case with December, as there were only 4 storm reports for the whole month. These events are as follows:

• December 10 - Jefferson County  - Hail fell in China, Texas up to 1.0” in diameter.
• December 10 - Harris County - Hail fell in Kingwood up to 1.0” in diameter.
• December 23 - Randall County - Amarillo experienced strong winds that removed roof shingles from many buildings.
• December 23 - Parmer County - Friona experienced 62 mph wind speeds.

Temperature:

Although temperatures varied throughout the month, they averaged out to above normal for December. The warmest portions had average temperatures near 65 degrees Fahrenheit with the highest average recorded at 66.6 degrees in Cameron County. The majority of the state had average temperatures between 45 and 60 degrees while parts of the Panhandle fell below 45 degrees. The coolest monthly average was 40.3 degrees in Hartley County. Overall, temperatures reached up to 5 degrees above normal.

Precipitation:

Almost all of Texas was fortunate to see measurable rainfall throughout the month with a few portions of Far West Texas and South Texas being the exceptions. Several areas, especially the eastern Panhandle as well as the DFW and Houston areas, saw high accumulations while portions of Far West Texas and South Texas only saw a tenth of an inch. The highest rainfall total recorded for the month was 10.08” in Galveston County. Overall, precipitation anomalies varied across the state, with some areas seeing well above normal, some areas seeing well below, and others seeing near-normal precipitation accumulations for this time of year.

Drought:

Slightly warmer than normal temperatures and varying rainfall resulted in improvements as well as areas of degradation. As of this week, 60% of the state is experiencing dryness versus 69% a month ago. The portion of the state in drought has dropped to 39% versus 43% at the start of December. The area of Texas in moderate drought is 22% (24% one month ago), 12% is in severe drought (same as last month), 5% is in extreme drought (4% last month), and 1% is in exceptional drought (2% one month ago).