June 2020 Climate Review

...JUNE 2020 MONTHLY CLIMATE NARRATIVE FOR NORTHERN AND EASTERN MAINE...

SIMILAR TO MAY, JUNE PROVED TO BE ANOTHER MONTH OF EXTREMES STARTING
QUITE COOL AND TRANSITIONING TO QUITE HOT BY THE SECOND HALF OF THE
MONTH RESULTING IN THE MONTH FINISHING WITH ABOVE TO MUCH ABOVE
AVERAGE TEMPS FOR THE REGION AS A WHOLE. RAINFALL WAS QUITE SPARSE
ESPECIALLY ACROSS THE NORTH.

TEMPERATURES FOR THE MONTH RANGED FROM 1 TO 2 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL
DOWNEAST UPWARDS TO 4 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL ACROSS THE FAR NORTH.
PRIOR TO THE 15TH, THE MONTH WAS RUNNING 1.5 TO 3.0 DEGREES BELOW
AVERAGE, WITH A MAJOR REGIME CHANGE AT MID MONTH SIMILAR TO WHAT
HAPPENED IN MAY, CULMINATING WITH NEAR ALL TIME RECORD JUNE HEAT
FROM THE 18TH THROUGH 20TH AND CONTINUED ABOVE NORMAL TEMPS FOR THE
REMAINDER OF THE MONTH. THE AVERAGE OF 64.4 DEGREES AT CARIBOU FOR
THE MONTH EXCEEDED THE PRIOR RECORD WARM JUNES OF 64.0 DEGREES
RECORDED BOTH IN 2006 AND 1976. AT HOULTON AND MILLINOCKET, THE 62.8
AND 65.2 DEGREE AVERAGES RESPECTIVELY WERE BOTH THE 8TH WARMEST JUNE
OF RECORD, SHORT OF THE 65.2 AND 68.3 DEGREE MARKS SET IN 1973 AND
1930 RESPECTIVELY. THE 65.2 DEGREE AVERAGE FOR BANGOR BARELY BROKE
THE TOP 20, WELL BEHIND THE WARMEST JUNE OF RECORED THERE OF 70.7
DEGREES SET IN 1930 SIMILAR TO MILLINOCKET.

AT CARIBOU, AFTER TYING THE SECOND LOWEST JUNE LOW TEMPERATURE OF
RECORD AT 31 DEGREES ON THE 2ND, TEMPERATURE SOARED TO A RECORDS OF
95 AND 96 ON THE 18TH AND 19TH, WITH THE HIGH OF 96 TYING THE ALL
TIME HIGH LAST SET ON MAY 22ND 1977. THERE WERE ALSO A TOTAL OF 14
DAYS WITH A HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 80 DEGREES (F) OR WARMER. THIS WAS
THE MOST ON RECORD FOR JUNE, WITH THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF 13, SET IN
1976. THERE WAS ALSO A STRETCH OF 13 CONSECUTIVE DAYS WITH A HIGH OF
80F OR WARMER FROM JUNE 16-28, WHICH WAS THE MOST ON RECORD FOR ANY
MONTH. THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF 10 DAYS WAS SET IN AUGUST 2015. THERE
WERE 4 DAYS WITH A HIGH OF 90F OR WARMER, WHICH WAS JUST ONE SHY OF
THE JUNE RECORD OF 5, SET IN 1949.

IN HOULTON, AFTER A NEW RECORD LOW FOR THE MONTH OF 26 DEGREES ON
THE 2ND, HIGH TEMPERATURES REACHED 93, 95, AND 94 ON THE 18TH-20TH.
ALSO, THERE WERE A TOTAL OF 14 DAYS WITH A HIGH OF 80F OR WARMER.
THIS RANKED AS THE 3RD MOST 80 DEGREE DAYS DURING THE MONTH OF JUNE
BEHIND 1973 AND 1976 WHEN THERE WERE 18 SUCH DAYS. THE TOTAL OF
THREE 90 DEGREE DAYS RANKED AS THE 2ND MOST ON RECORD WITH THE ALL-
TIME RECORD FOR 90+ DAYS IN JUNE REMAINING AT 6, IN 1949.

BY COMPARISON, BOTH MILLINOCKET AND BANGOR DID NOT EVEN RANK IN THE
TOP 10 FOR THE NUMBER OF 80 DEGREE DAYS IN JUNE. IN MILLINOCKET, IT
RANKED IN 14TH PLACE AND IN BANGOR 17TH PLACE FOR THE MOST 80 DEGREE
DAYS. THIS GOES TO SHOW HOW THE REAL EXTREME POSITIVE TEMPERATURE
DEPARTURES WERE CENTERED ACROSS FAR NORTHERN MAINE.

LASTLY, WITH REGARD TO TEMPERATURES, EVEN THOUGH NONE OF THE CLIMATE
SITES (CARIBOU, BANGOR, HOULTON, AND MILLINOCKET) REACHED 100
DEGREES DURING THE LATE JUNE HEAT WAVE, A FEW OF THE NON-CLIMATE
SITES DID REACH AROUND 100 DEGREES ON THE 20TH WITH 101 DEGREES
REACHED AT ETNA AND MATTAWMKEAG AND 100 DEGREES AT SHIN POND. THE
LAST TIME ANY SITE IN NORTHERN AND EASTERN MAINE REACHED 100 DEGREES
WAS BACK IN JUNE 1988 WHEN ORONO REACHED 100 ON THE 15TH AND GRAND
LAKE STREAM REACHED 101 ON THE 17TH. THE LAST TIME ANY OF THE
CLIMATE SITES TOPPED 100 DEGREES WAS ON AUGUST 2ND/3RD 1975 WHEN
BANGOR REACHED 102 DEGREES AND MILLINOCKET REACHED 100 DEGREES.

PRECIPITATION ONLY AVERAGED 25 TO 60 PERCENT OF AVERAGE, WITH DRIEST
CONDITIONS ACROSS THE NORTH. THE MEAGER 0.88 INCH TOTAL AT CARIBOU
TIED THE DRIEST JUNE OF RECORD LAST RECORDED IN 1983 AND WHEN
COMBINED WITH TOTAL EVAPORATION OF 5.49 INCHES FOR THE MONTH AND A
DRY PREVIOUS MONTH, RESULTED IN DROUGHT LIKE CONDITIONS BY MONTHS
END, WITH MANY LOCATIONS REPORTING PARCHED BROWN LAWNS AND EVEN A
FEW RARE POST GREEN-UP WILDFIRES IN ADDITION TO SOME VERY LOW RIVER
FLOW LEVELS. OTHER RANKINGS INCLUDE 2ND DRIEST AT HOULTON WITH THE
1.18 INCH TOTAL JUST SLIGHTLY ABOVE THE DRIEST JUNE OF RECORD OF
1.16 INCHES THERE IN 1983. AT MILLINOCKET, IT WAS THE 15TH DRIEST
JUNE AND AT BANGOR THE 18TH DRIEST.

THE OUTLOOK FOR THE MONTH OF JULY IS CALLING FOR CONTINUED GREATER
PROBABILITIES OF ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES AND BELOW NORMAL
RAINFALL. NORMAL LOWS IN JULY RANGE FROM 52 TO 60 DEGREES AND NORMAL
HIGHS 74 TO 81 DEGREES. NORMAL RAINFALL RANGES FROM AROUND 3.00
INCHES DOWNEAST TO AROUND 4.00 INCHES ACROSS THE NORTH.