2023 Annual Weather Highlights Severe Weather

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*** 2024 Ruidoso Burn Scar StoryMap ***

2023 Weather Highlights

The Year in Pictures

Memorable Events

Hydrology & Drought Status

Records & Extremes

Severe Weather

2023 New Mexico Severe Weather Overview

The majority of New Mexico's severe weather occurs across central and eastern New Mexico, especially in terms of hail and tornadoes. However, flash flooding and thunderstorm wind gusts occur areawide. The map below shows the spatial variation of severe weather reports for 2023. Click on an individual balloon for more details on the event.

Severe weather is defined as hail greater than or equal to 1 inch, thunderstorm wind gusts greater than or equal to 58 mph, a flash flood or a tornado. However, prior to January 5, 2010, the criteria for severe hail was 3/4 inch. For consistency, all of the statistics in the summary below, as well as the map above, includes all severe weather reports, including hail reports as small as 3/4 inch. This year, the National Weather Service in Albuquerque received 334 severe weather reports. The total number of severe weather reports across the state as a whole was 407. These totals do not include wind gusts greater than or equal to 58 mph that occurred from non-thunderstorm wind events. It should be noted, however, that winds less than 58 mph can blow over high profile vehicles, toss trampolines and cause tree damage to unhealthy trees.

Please check out the "Severe Weather Review" for a detailed summary of the top severe weather events that occurred in New Mexico in 2023, severe weather statistics and other interesting severe weather tidbits. We hope you enjoy looking down memory lane. Thank you to all those who submitted reports! Without you, this wouldn't be possible!


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