Oct. 2018: Weather/Climate Review For South Central NE/North Central KS

Recap of October 2018 Weather for the 30-county NWS Hastings Coverage Area:

October 2018 Precipitation

- Precipitation (rainfall+snow liquid): Although the majority of precipitation fell during the first half of the month, October as a whole was solidly-wetter-than-normal AREA-WIDE! Unfortunately, for ag interests, the combination of wet ground and cooler-than-normal temperatures resulted in some noticeable harvest delays. Getting back to monthly totals, there was an evident northwest-to-southeast disparity. In general, locations generally northwest of a line from Cambridge-Ravenna-Greeley were only slightly above normal, while areas especially southeast of a line from Phillipsburg KS-Red Cloud-Geneva (including all of north central KS) averaged at least 200-300% of normal. In fact, Beloit KS (6.02") had its WETTEST October on record (out of 102 years of available data)! Per dozens of NWS/CoCoRaHS observers, a few of the highest-known October totals (all in north central KS) featured: 6.69" at Osborne, 6.58" at Covert in rural Osborne County, 6.52" south-southwest of Beloit, and 6.50" at Jewell. In the Nebraska coverage area, Guide Rock had one of the highest totals with 5.29". On the drier (but still above normal) side of the rain gauge, a few of the lowest Oct. amounts included: 2.33" at Greeley, 2.40" in Miller, 2.43" at Ravenna, and 2.44" south of Elwood. 

As for short-term/24-hour-or-less precip totals: a few of the highest amounts from CoCoRaHS/NeRAIN observers featured: 2.45" near Beloit KS (reported on the 10th), 2.38" north of Osceola (reported on the 10th) and 2.20" at Natoma KS (reported on the 8th). 

- Snowfall: One of the highlights of the unusually-cold first half of the month was an unusually-early measurable snow on Sunday the 14th. While nearly the entire area received anywhere from a light dusting up around 1.5", notably higher totals of generally 3-7" targeted a southwest-to-northeast oriented stripe within parts of mainly the following counties: Webster/Clay/Nuckolls/Fillmore/Thayer/southern York. Per official NWS coop observers, a few of the highest totals from this event featured: 7" in Geneva, 6.8" near Shickley, 5" near Clay center and 4.6" in Hebron. Specifically in Hastings (1.1"), this was the 4th-earliest snowfall of 1"-or-more on record, and it was the 5th-earliest on record in Grand Island (1.5"). 

- Flooding: All known flooding issues occurred within parts of north central KS mainly between the 9th-10th, thanks to multiple rounds of rain that fell mainly between the 7th-9th, totaling as much as 2-5" especially in Mitchell/Osborne/Rooks counties. 
- Flash Flood Warnings: NWS Hastings issued NO Flash Flood Warnings during Oct. 2018. 
- Areal Flood Warnings/Advisories: One Flood Advisory was in effect from the 9th-10th for much of Mitchell/Rooks/Osborne counties. Flooding was fairly minor overall, affecting mainly low-lying areas and small/creeks streams. There were also a few "ground truth" reports of water over rural roads in southern Rooks and Mitchell counties. 
- River Flood Warnings (gauge points): The only official/automated river gauge to flood during Oct. was along the Solomon River at Beloit KS, which slightly breached its minor flood stage of 20 ft. between the evening of the 9th and the evening of the 10th, cresting around 22.2 ft. 

- Temperatures: Following a brief stint of warmer-than-normal conditions in September, October went right back to the colder side of things, with most official stations averaging 2-4º BELOW normal. However, if not for the second half of the month, the cold would have been much more pronounced. In fact, the first half of October (1st-15th) was among the Top-5 coldest on record across much of the area, and specifically at Grand Island and Hastings airports, it was the 3rd-coldest/2nd-coldest, respectively! These cold-start rankings become even more impressive considering that one of these days (the 3rd) was anomalously hot, soaring into the upper 80s-mid 90s across the area. In stark contrast to the heat on the 3rd, specifically at Grand Island and Hastings, 7 of the first 15 days failed to exceed 50º!  As for monthly extremes per official NWS observers/stations, all of the hottest readings occurred on the aforementioned 3rd, led by 95º at several locations: Edison, Franklin, Beloit KS, Smith Center KS, Webster Dam KS. On the much colder side of things, the coldest lows of the month (and the first truly widespread/"very hard" freeze of the fall) occurred on the morning of the 15th, featuring: 17º near Oxford, 18º at Ord airport and Cambridge, and 19º at Ravenna.

- Severe Thunderstorms/Tornadoes/Severe Non-Thunderstorm Winds (for all finalized/official severe storm reports refer to NCEI Storm Events Database):
- # of confirmed tornadoes during October 2018: Zero (1 fewer than Oct. 2017)
- Largest known hail stone reported to NWS Hastings: 0.7" diameter (dime size)...in Osborne KS on the evening of the 5th
- Strongest known measured thunderstorm wind gust: None were reported
- Strongest known measured NON-thunderstorm wind gusts: 62 MPH at Ord airport and 58 MPH at Grand Island airport. More details: On the afternoon of the 3rd, a strong cold front sliced southward across the area, promoting widespread wind gusts of 45-55 MPH across especially the eastern half of south central Nebraska, along with a few "severe criteria" gusts of 58+ MPH. 
- Notable wind damage reported to NWS Hastings (ground-truth reports): None reported
- # of Severe Thunderstorm Warnings issued by NWS Hastings: 1 (this was 36 fewer than Oct. 2017) 
- # of Tornado Warnings issued by NWS Hastings: 0 (this was 2 fewer than Oct. 2017) 
- The most active severe thunderstorm days (generally with the most storms and/or most reports): No days considered "active" (only 1 warning issued)

2018 Nebraska Cooperative Observer Precipitation Tables (around 45 sites)
2018 Kansas Cooperative Observer Precipitation Tables (around 17 sites)

2017 Nebraska Cooperative Observer Precipitation Tables (around 45 sites)
2017 Kansas Cooperative Observer Precipitation Tables (around 17 sites)

Archived Precipitation Tables And Monthly Climate Stories