Volume 17 Number 8 AUGUST 2004

August 2004 was much cooler than normal while precipitation varied from extremely dry in some stations to well above normal at others. The month began very hot as a high pressure system sat over the state. Temperatures rose to the triple digits across the state until the 5^th when a cold front began to move across the state. Between the 5^th and the 8^th, highs were only in the 80s for most of the state, and storms formed all across Texas. There were a handful of hail reports on the 6^th, including 2.50” in Lubbock County.

Another frontal system crossed the state beginning on the 11^th. Behind the front, severe storms appeared in the Panhandle and parts of West Texas. Two tornadoes touched down in Castro County on the 12^th, and there were 9 reports of hail at least 1.00” in diameter. The remainder of August’s second week was very cool and dry except for scattered showers that dropped large amounts of rain on El Paso (1.95” on the 14^th) and Wichita Falls (2.78” on the 15^th). A shortwave trough triggered heavy storms across large parts of Texas on the 18^th-19^th.

Beginning on the 20^th, another cold front trekked across the state bringing severe storms with it. There were several reports of hail on the 20^th, the largest being 2.75” in Runnels County, and two tornadoes touched down in Pecos County on the 21^st. Another front brought showers to many parts of Texas including 2.26” of rainfall in Dallas on the 28^th.

For the month, all first order stations except for Brownsville and Corpus Christi had below normal mean temperatures. Near records for the month of August were set in Wichita Falls (2^nd coldest), Waco (4^th coldest), Abilene (5^th coldest), Dallas/Fort Worth (7^th coldest), and Brownsville (5^th warmest). The majority of the state had below normal precipitation, but those that were above normal were well above, including San Angelo, Wichita Falls, and Dallas who received 200% of their average August precipitation. The Upper Coast region was extremely dry, however, as Port Arthur (29%), Galveston (18%), and Corpus Christi (5%) well below August normals.

AUGUST 2004

* Complete temperature data were unavailable. Temperatures are rounded to the nearest whole degree.

*HDD - Heating degree-day: Refer to the Monthly Average chart for a definition T = Trace (<0.005")

*CDD - Cooling degree-day: Refer to the Monthly Average chart for a definition M: Information not available.

CLIMATIC AVERAGES FOR SEPTEMBER

Records are at the current site, other records may have occurred at previous sites.

*CDD - Cooling degree-day: The difference between the mean individual daily temperature and 65°F, with one

CDD resulting for each degree above the standard 65°F during one day.

*HDD - Heating degree-day: The difference between the mean individual daily temperature and 65°F, with one

HDD resulting for each degree below the standard 65°F during one day.

All times given for sunrise, sunset, and moon phase times are calculated for the intersection of

Meridian 99°10' W and parallel 31°23' N, which is the approximate geographic center of the state.

Climate-related Agricultural Information

http://agnews.tamu.edu/dailynews/stories/CROP/

Past Weather Events in September

September 16, 1875: Hurricane. Struck Indianola, Calhoun County. Three-fourths of town swept away; 176 lives lost. Flooding from the bay caused nearly all destruction.

September 8-9, 1900: Hurricane. Galveston. The Great Galveston Storm was the worst natural disaster in U.S. history in terms of human life. Loss of life at Galveston has been estimated at 6,000 to 8,000, but the exact number has never been exactly determined. The island was completely inundated; not a single structure escaped damage. Most of the loss of life was due to drowning by storm tides that reached 15 feet or more. The anemometer blew away when the wind reached 100 miles per hour at 6:15 p.m. on the 8^th. Wind reached an estimated maximum velocity of 120 mph between 7:30 and 8:30 p.m. Property damage has been estimated at $30 to $40 million.

September 8-10, 1921: Rainstorm. Probably the greatest rainstorm in Texas history, it entered Mexico as a hurricane from the Gulf. Torrential rains fell as the storm moved northeasterly across Texas. Record floods occurred in Bexar, Travis, Williamson, Bell and Milam counties, killing 215 persons, with property losses over $19 million. Five to nine feet of water stood in downtown San Antonio. A total of 23.98 inches was measured at the U.S. Weather Bureau station at Taylor during a period of 35 hours, with a 24-hour maximum of 23.11 on September 9-10. The greatest rainfall recorded in United States history during 18 consecutive hours fell at Thrall, Williamson County, 36.40 inches fell on Sept. 9.

September 8-14, 1961: Hurricane Carla. Port O'Connor; maximum wind gust at Port Lavaca estimated at 175 mph. Highest tide was 18.5 feet at Port Lavaca. Most damage was to coastal counties between Corpus Christi and Port Arthur and inland Jackson, Harris and Wharton counties. In Texas, 34 persons died; seven in a tornado that swept across Galveston Island; 465 persons were injured. Property and crop damage conservatively estimated at $300 million. The evacuation of an estimated 250,000 persons kept loss of life low. Hurricane Carla was the largest hurricane of record.

September 9-13, 1971: Hurricane Fern. Coastal Bend. Ten to 26 inches of rain resulted in some of the worst flooding since Hurricane Beulah in 1967. Two persons killed; losses were $30,231,000.

September 5, 2000: Excessive heat resulted in at least eight all-time high temperature records around the state, one of which was Possum Kingdom Lake which reached 114°F. This day is being regarded as the hottest day ever in Texas.

Dr. John Nielsen-Gammon (State Climatologist)

Michael Hammer (Undergraduate Assistant)