Active Weather for the West, Warming in the East

The potential for heavy snow at higher elevations in the western U.S. will continue for many spots through the weekend. In the meantime, the eastern half of the continental U.S. will transition to above normal temperatures ahead of a pair of cold fronts next week that will bring readings back to closer to normal as we approach Thanksgiving Day. Read More >

During the month of July, temperatures across much of the Northern Plains, including portions of South Dakota and west-central Minnesota were well below normal . Aberdeen, Watertown and Pierre all ended up being in the top 10 for the coldest Julys on record.

A few other interesting heat related tidbits from this “cool” July are listed below:

Aberdeen has failed to reach 90 F this July. This is only the third time this has occurred since 1893 (the other years were 1915, 1962, and 1996).

The highest temperature recorded in Watertown this July has been 83 F. This is the “coolest” monthly maximum temperature ever recorded in July. Records in Watertown date back to 1893.

Like the summer of 2008, Pierre has yet to record a 100 F temperature during the summer of 2009. In fact, the last time Pierre reached 100 F was on 4 September 2007. Since 1933, Pierre has never experienced back to back summers when the temperature failed to reach 100 F.

Top Ten Coldest Average July Temperatures in Aberdeen (1893-2009)