Mon, May 02, 2022
April Winds Highest in Mesonet Era Opinions on Oklahoma’s weather are often more variable than the weather itself. Some Oklahomans will look back on April… Read More »
Wed, Apr 13, 2022
Summer/Fall 2022 Mesonet OK-First Classes Summer/Fall 2022 Mesonet OK-First classes for public safety officials are now open for enrollment! We will be offering a mix… Read More »
Fri, Apr 01, 2022
Variety Describes March Weather March’s weather ran the gamut of nearly all the hazards Oklahoma has to offer, befitting a seasonal transition month in… Read More »
Tue, Mar 01, 2022
Wintry Weather Rules February Three impactful winter storms struck Oklahoma during February, snarling traffic on state highways, bringing down power lines, and forcing… Read More »
Tue, Feb 01, 2022
Winter Arrives In January Winter arrived with conviction at the dawn of the new year in Oklahoma and delivered a startling counterpunch to the… Read More »
Tue, Jan 04, 2022
December Shatters Temperature Record In what could best be described as a climatological anomaly on steroids, Oklahoma soared to its warmest December on… Read More »
Wed, Dec 01, 2021
November Caps Off Warm, Dry Fall An extended pattern of warm, dry weather exacerbated drought conditions during November. Drought impacts, including fire danger and soil… Read More »
Thu, Nov 18, 2021
Spring 2022 Mesonet OK-First Classes Spring 2022 OK-First classes for public safety officials are now open for enrollment! We will be offering a mix of… Read More »
Mon, Nov 01, 2021
October Sets Tornado Record Oklahomans are growing accustomed to Mother Nature’s October weather shenanigans following a snowstorm of up to 13 inches in… Read More »
Tue, Oct 05, 2021
Fall 2021 OK-FIRE Classes Free training workshops will be offered this fall for both new and experienced users of OK-FIRE, the statewide weather-based decision… Read More »
Fri, Oct 01, 2021
Drought Makes September Push The 17th warmest and driest September in Oklahoma since records began in 1895 allowed drought to flourish during the month.… Read More »
Wed, Sep 01, 2021
Drought Returns During Arid August A run of hot, dry weather finished off climatological summer in true Oklahoma fashion following a delightfully mild first two… Read More »
Mon, Aug 02, 2021
Summer Heat Scarce During July Oklahoma’s July was mild for the most part, and a bit wet for much of the state. Extreme temperatures—at least… Read More »
Thu, Jul 01, 2021
June Sees Summer Swoon A slow start to summer gave way to sweltering heat through the middle of June before once again succumbing… Read More »
Tue, Jun 01, 2021
Heat Hiatus Continues During May May’s weather was rather tame by Oklahoma standards, with severe weather greatly diminished by an abundance of cool, cloudy… Read More »
Fri, May 07, 2021
Fall 2021 Mesonet OK-First Classes Fall 2021 OK-First classes for public safety officials are now open for enrollment! We will be offering a mix of… Read More »
Mon, May 03, 2021
Cold April Feels Severe Weather Impacts Cool weather helped keep severe weather at bay in Oklahoma throughout much of April. A late spring freeze—damaging in its… Read More »
Thu, Apr 01, 2021
March Weather More Lamb Than Lion The first month of spring greeted Oklahoma with warmer and more tranquil weather than the historic cold and snowy February… Read More »
Mon, Mar 01, 2021
Historically Frigid February Punctuates Winter Oklahoma experienced a historic cold air event during February, boosting the month into the company of other legendary frozen periods… Read More »
Tue, Feb 02, 2021
Warm and Wet January Greets New Year The winter storm that began the year captured January’s biggest weather headline. The event straddled the changeover from 2020 to… Read More »
Thu, Apr 01, 2021
The first month of spring greeted Oklahoma with warmer and more tranquil weather than the historic cold and snowy February that preceded it. While March offered up momentary glances of nearly every weather hazard in Oklahoma’s arsenal, the month was most often quiet. By coincidence—although state lore will say it’s the norm—the most active weather occurred during Oklahoma’s collectively shared spring break. On March 16-17, local National Weather Service offices issued a blizzard warning in the Panhandle, and severe thunderstorm and tornado watches in the main body of the state. That storm system started with severe weather across western Oklahoma the evening of the 16th, and transitioned to snow the morning of the 17th. Snowfall of 3-4 inches was being driven by 40 mph winds to create white-out conditions across far northwestern Oklahoma throughout the day on the 17th while the severe weather was pushed east. The additional 3-4 inches of snow across the northwest brought seasonal totals to more than 40 inches in that region, with Arnett leading at 42.3 inches. Oklahoma City’s seasonal total of 22.5 inches through March was just 2.7 inches behind its record tally of 25.2 inches from 1947-1948, and ranked sixth highest on record. Tulsa’s seasonal total was 15.8 inches, its 17th highest on record and well behind 2010-2011’s 26.1 inches.
The statewide average precipitation total was 3.07 inches according to preliminary data from the Oklahoma Mesonet, 0.03 inches above normal, to rank as the 36th wettest March since records began in 1895. The northwestern half of the state saw surpluses of 1-3 inches, while the southeast fell 1-2 inches below normal. The moisture abundance was profound across parts of Oklahoma, with the Panhandle, north central and west central sections each experiencing one of their top 10 wettest Marches on record. The more robust totals came in Osage County, where Foraker and Burbank tallied 8.06 inches and 7.59 inches, respectively. Twenty-five of the 120 Oklahoma Mesonet sites recorded at least 4 inches of rain for the month. Thirty stations saw less than 2 inches, with Fort Cobb seeing the least at 0.64 inches. The first three months of the year ended as the 51st wettest since 1895 with a statewide average of 6.2 inches, 0.23 inches below normal. The January-March moisture distribution was similar to March’s pattern, with surpluses to the northwest and deficits to the southeast.
March was warm by any standard, but especially so following the historic cold weather of the previous month. The statewide average temperature for the month finished at 53.6 degrees, 3.2 degrees above normal, to rank as the 27th warmest March on record. High temperatures rose into the 70s and 80s quite often, with Beaver taking the top spot at 88 degrees on the 29th. Freezes were still common through the month, especially across far northwestern Oklahoma. Kenton recorded March’s lowest reading at 8 degrees on the month’s first day. The first three months of 2021 ended at 41.9 degrees, 1.6 degrees below normal and ranked as the 55th coolest January-March on record.
Drought continued to diminish in Oklahoma during March, dropping to an areal coverage of 10.71 percent on the month’s final U. S. Drought Monitor map. Drought was nearly eliminated across southwestern Oklahoma, although a newer area of drought was attempting to intensify and spread across south central Oklahoma. The April temperature and precipitation outlooks from the Climate Prediction Center (CPC) indicated increased odds of above normal temperatures across the entire state, and below normal precipitation across the western half of Oklahoma. Given those outlooks, CPC’s April drought outlook considered drought development likely in southwestern and west central Oklahoma, with no changes considered likely over the rest of the state.
