January 2014 Monthly Climate Summary

...JANUARY 2014 MONTHLY CLIMATE SUMMARY...

No question about it, most would agree that January was a cold month across the Mid-South. Three of the four official sites had average temperatures in January that were more than five degrees below normal. The only exception to this is Jonesboro, with an average temperature of 33.0 degrees, which was only 4.5 degrees below normal. Jackson was the coolest official site this month with an average temperature of 32.6 degrees, which was 5.6 degrees below normal. Tupelo had the greatest departure from normal with an average temperature of 35.3 degrees, 6.4 degrees below normal. Memphis had an average temperature of 36.1 degrees, which was 5.1 degrees below normal, and consequently made Memphis the warmest official site for the month. Tupelo recorded the highest temperature in January with 66.0 degrees, while Jackson recorded the lowest temperature with 0.0 degrees. January was so much cooler than normal that it made the list of top ten coolest Januarys on record for three sites, the exception being Memphis which had its 20^th coolest January on record this year. These lists can be found a bit later in this summary.

In addition to experiencing below normal temperatures in January, all four official sites also experienced below normal precipitation totals. Tupelo had the greatest departure from normal with only 1.77 inches of precipitation during January, 2.71 inches below the normal of 4.48 inches. As a result, this was the 7^th driest January on record for Tupelo. Jonesboro was the second driest with only 2.12 inches of total precipitation, 1.31 inches below the January normal of 3.43 inches. Jackson received 3.01 inches of precipitation in January, 1.06 inches below the normal of 4.07 inches. Finally, Memphis was the wettest official site with 3.16 inches of total precipitation, down only 0.82 inches for the month of January. The graphics at the end of this summary display the monthly observed precipitation and the departure from normal.

TEMPERATURE DATA:

                               Memphis    Jackson   Jonesboro   Tupelo

Average Temperature (MONTH)  :   36.1       32.6      33.0      35.3

Normal Avg. Temp (MONTH)     :   41.2       38.2      37.5      41.7

Departure from Normal (MONTH):   -5.1       -5.6      -4.5      -6.4

Average Temperature (YEAR)   :   36.1       32.6      36.1      35.3

Normal Avg. Temp (YEAR)      :   41.2       38.2      37.5      41.7

Departure from Normal (YEAR) :   -5.1       -5.6      -1.4      -6.4

Maximum Temperature          :   64.0       64.0      62.0      66.0

Minimum Temperature          :    8.0        0.0        4.0       6.0

PRECIPITATION DATA:

                                Memphis   Jackson   Jonesboro   Tupelo

Total Precipitation (MONTH)  :    3.16      3.01      2.12      1.77

Normal Precipitation (MONTH) :    3.98      4.07      3.43      4.48

Departure from Normal (MONTH):   -0.82    -1.06      -1.31     -2.71

Total Precipitation (YEAR)   :    3.16      3.01      2.12      1.77

Normal Precipitation (YEAR)  :    3.98      4.07      3.43      4.48

Departure from Normal (YEAR) :   -0.82    -1.06      -1.31     -2.71

Top 10 Coolest Januarys on Record:

As previously mentioned, all official sites except Memphis had an average temperature that made January 2014 one of the top ten coolest Januarys on record. Memphis’ average temperature for January 2014 tied January 1962 for the 20^th coolest January on record. An explanation for why three official sites’ average temperature for January made for one of the top ten coolest Januarys but Memphis did not is that Memphis has a period of record that is much longer than that of the other three official sites, going back into the 1800s.

Memphis                             Jackson

1     26.7°F      1940              1     26.0°F      1977

2     27.6°F      1918              2     28.2°F      1978

3     30.1°F      1886              3     28.6°F      1979

4     30.7°F      1977              4     29.2°F      1985

5     30.9°F      1979              5     32.2°F      1963

6     32.2°F      1948              6     32.6°F      2014

7     32.4°F      1985              7     32.7°F      1966

8     32.6°F      1978              8     32.8°F      2003

9     32.9°F      1905              9     33.2°F      1970

10    33.0°F      1884              10    33.4°F      1984

Jonesboro                           Tupelo

1     23.9°F      1977              1     28.1°F      1940

2     24.6°F      1918              2     30.1°F      1977

3     25.5°F      1940              3     32.1°F      1985

4     26.9°F      1978              4     32.8°F      1978

5     29.3°F      1985              5     33.8°F      1979

6     31.7°F      1948              6     34.7°F      1948

7     32.0°F      1912              7     34.8°F      1963

8     32.6°F      1905              8     35.3°F      2014

9     33.0°F      2014              9     36.2°F      1984

10    33.1°F      1963              10    36.4°F      1966

Climate Outlook:

The Climate Prediction Center (CPC) issues both one month and three month outlooks in which it predicts above normal, normal, below normal, or equal chance of one of the three for both precipitation and temperature. For February the CPC is predicting above normal precipitation totals for the Mid-South, while splitting the area between slightly below normal temperatures and equal chance of above normal, normal, or below normal temperatures. The normal average temperatures for the month of February for Memphis, Jackson, Jonesboro, and Tupelo are 45.5 degrees, 42.3 degrees, 41.5 degrees, and 45.9 degrees, respectively. The normal precipitation totals for February are 4.39 inches, 4.17 inches, 3.72 inches, and 4.96 inches for Memphis, Jackson, Jonesboro, and Tupelo, respectively.

MAYE