...TEMPERATURES AND PRECIPITATION WERE SLIGHTLY ABOVE NORMAL
FOR WEST CENTRAL TEXAS IN DECEMBER...

AT ABILENE REGIONAL AIRPORT...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR 
DECEMBER WAS 46.2 DEGREES. THIS WAS 0.8 DEGREES ABOVE THE 
NORMAL AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 45.4 DEGREES. TOTAL 
PRECIPITATION FOR ABILENE IN DECEMBER WAS 1.33 INCHES. THIS 
WAS 0.06 INCHES ABOVE THE MONTHLY NORMAL OF 1.27 INCHES.   

AT SAN ANGELO REGIONAL AIRPORT...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR 
DECEMBER WAS 46.7 DEGREES. THIS WAS 0.3 DEGREES ABOVE THE 
NORMAL AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 46.4 DEGREES. TOTAL 
PRECIPITATION FOR SAN ANGELO IN DECEMBER WAS 1.37 INCHES. 
THIS WAS 0.43 INCHES ABOVE THE MONTHLY NORMAL OF 0.94 INCHES.  

DECEMBER 2002 WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS...


AN UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM BROUGHT RAIN TO WEST 
CENTRAL TEXAS EARLY IN THE MONTH...WITH A FEW THUNDERSTORMS
IN THE NORTHWEST HILL COUNTRY. MOST OF THE RAIN OCCURRED
ON THE 2ND AND 3RD. RAINFALL TOTALS GENERALLY RANGED FROM
0.30 TO 0.80 INCHES...BUT OVER AN INCH WAS RECEIVED IN 
HASKELL COUNTY. THE PRECIPITATION ENDED IN SOME LIGHT 
SNOW OVER THE BIG COUNTRY...BUT WITH NO ACCUMULATION.    

AN UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM BROUGHT NUMEROUS SHOWERS 
TO WEST CENTRAL TEXAS ON THE 8TH AND 9TH. RAINFALL AMOUNTS
OF ONE HALF TO ONE INCH WERE COMMON IN THE BIG COUNTRY AND
NORTHWEST HILL COUNTRY...WITH LESSER AMOUNTS ELSEWHERE. 
SOME LOCATIONS IN THE BIG COUNTRY RECEIVED OVER AN INCH.

A DRY...FAIRLY TRANQUIL WEATHER PATTERN FOLLOWED THROUGH
THE MIDDLE OF DECEMBER. AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE BROUGHT
SCATTERED LIGHT RAINSHOWERS TO THE BIG COUNTRY ON THE
EVENING OF THE 18TH. 

LATE IN THE MONTH...A STRONG UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM 
MOVED OUT OF THE SOUTHWESTERN STATES AND ACROSS TEXAS ON
THE 23RD INTO THE 24TH. THIS SYSTEM BROUGHT SHOWERS AND 
THUNDERSTORMS TO MUCH OF THE REGION. THE SHOWERS AND 
STORMS WERE MOST NUMEROUS TO THE SOUTHEAST OF A LINE 
FROM BAIRD TO SAN ANGELO TO SONORA...WHERE WIDELY 
SCATTERED RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 1.00 TO 1.50 INCHES 
OCCURRED. SOME OF THE STORMS OVER THE HEARTLAND AND 
NORTHWEST HILL COUNTRY CONTAINED HAIL...AND THE FALL 
OF HAIL WAS ENOUGH TO COVER THE GROUND AND CAUSE SLICK 
ROADWAYS AT SOME LOCATIONS. THE LARGEST HAIL REPORTED
WAS DIME SIZE AT MASON. AS COLDER AIR FILTERED INTO
THE REGION FROM THE NORTH...A LITTLE LIGHT SNOW FELL
OVER PARTS OF THE BIG COUNTRY DURING THE OVERNIGHT 
HOURS OF THE 23RD AND 24TH. A LIGHT DUSTING OF SNOW WAS 
REPORTED IN THROCKMORTON AND SHACKELFORD COUNTIES.      

ON THE 30TH...A VIGOROUS UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE 
AND COLD FRONT HELPED TO TRIGGER SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS 
OVER EASTERN SECTIONS OF THE REGION...MAINLY EAST OF A 
LINE FROM THROCKMORTON TO JUNCTION. RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF
ONE HALF TO ONE INCH OCCURRED AT A FEW LOCATIONS. A 
COUPLE OF STORMS BECAME SEVERE...PRODUCING NICKEL SIZE 
HAIL AT ALGERITA (IN SAN SABA COUNTY) AND WALNUT SIZE 
HAIL 7 MILES SOUTH OF HEXT (IN MENARD COUNTY). GUSTY 
WEST WINDS FOLLOWED THE COLD FRONTAL PASSAGE...AND A 
PEAK GUST OF 41 MPH WAS RECORDED AT THE SAN ANGELO 
REGIONAL AIRPORT.