PROSSER, Wash. – December began and ended with cold temperatures across much of the state. However, nearly all of the days in between were unusually mild. As a result, the final month of 2014 was notably warmer than normal, which is consistent with most of 2014.
“Prosser’s mean monthly high of 42.7 degrees was the second warmest on record, and trailed only 1999,” said Washington State University AgWeatherNet meteorologist Nic Loyd. “The tenth was a particularly balmy day, as the temperature at Mt. Vernon reached 66 degrees, which is a station record for December.”
Temperatures were briefly below normal early in the month, as Moxee fell to just 7 degrees on the second. Cold conditions returned at month’s end, as Pullman dropped to 4 degrees on December 30.
December was also a reasonably active time period, as Long Beach recorded rainfall on all but three days from December 4 to 29. However, the wetter periods just before and after mid month corresponded to the warmest days in December, which meant most of the precipitation fell in the form of rain.
“Unfortunately, mountain snowpack showed little improvement during December, as there continued to be a mismatch between cold weather and precipitation,” said AgWeatherNet Director Gerrit Hoogenboom. “It’s not too late for the mountains to recover, but the long range outlook does not look promising for heavy snowfall at high elevations.”
Contact:
Nic Loyd, WSU AgWeatherNet meteorologist, 509-786-9357, nicholas.loyd@wsu.edu