April 2009
North Carolina Climate, the monthly newsletter of the State Climate Office of NC, covers a monthly climate summary for March with impacts to agriculture and water resources, and a weather photo contest for youth.
PDF version available for printing.
Warm and Dry in the Mountains; Cool and Wet to the East Most of North Carolina was cool and wet during March 2009. Most of central and eastern NC experienced temperatures much below normal, with temperature departures from long-term averages between 1 and 1.5 degrees F. In contrast, western NC was generally warmer than normal, especially at higher elevations.
Rainfall across central and eastern NC was plentiful in March 2009, a nice contrast to the dry conditions experienced in January and February. The northern Piedmont and Coastal Plains experienced the wettest conditions, with some locations receiving greater than 150% of normal. While western NC was slightly drier than normal, rainfall amounts were generally greater than in January and February.
|
Impacts to Agriculture and Water Resources Cool conditions in central and eastern NC have slowed emergence for some fruit crops, but otherwise has minimal impact. Planting for most crops will start in mid-April, after the historical last freeze in central and eastern NC. Rainfall in central and eastern NC has generally been beneficial, ensuring adequate moisture in the soils across most locations for spring crop planting. Moreover, the rain was heaviest in the upper parts of our river basins, providing good recharge for reservoirs, streams, and groundwater resources. The rainfall and its impacts are reflecting in the US Drought Monitor, which showed improvements across the state in March. Recharge from rainfall, along with careful management of water resources, will likely ensure adequate water supplies for the summer even if dry weather is experienced. |
Change in US Drought Monitoring Status during March 2009
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Weather Photo Contest! Have a neat picture of cool weather phenomena? Want to show it off and enter it into a contest? Well, you're in luck! Youth, ages 7-16, may send in their pictures for a chance to win a spot on the SCO website and a prize!
The rules are simple. Contestants from any state can take part in the competition by entering up to five photos, however all photos must have been taken in North Carolina, by the participant. No digital manipulation is allowed. A description of each photo is also required. Each description must include why the contestant believes his or her picture should win, where he or she was when the picture was taken, what he or she was doing at the time, and what made him or her decide to take a picture of the weather event. The contest ends June 30, 2009. Winners will be announced by mid-July. Winners from the 2009 contest can be seen to your right. Go online to submit your photos! http://www.nc-climate.ncsu.edu/contest
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Statewide Summary for March 2009
As part of the monthly newsletter, the SCO provides a basic summary of monthly conditions for all locations that have an automated reporting station. A daily version of this product is available online at:
http://www.nc-climate.ncsu.edu/cronos/review
|
Station
|
Avg Daily
Max Temp |
Avg Daily
Min Temp |
Total
Rainfall |
Avg Daily
Wind Speed |
Max Daily
Wind Speed |
Vector Avg
Wind Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Aurora, NC (AURO)
|
60° F
(-3.2° F) 4 mi |
42.5° F
(+1.7° F) 4 mi |
2.8 in
|
4.9 mph
|
25.1 mph
|
0.1 mph
West Southwest (257°) |
|
Boone, NC (BOON)
|
53.2° F
(+3.2° F) 1 mi |
32.7° F
(+3.4° F) 1 mi |
2.8 in
|
5.2 mph
|
39.6 mph
|
2.6 mph
West (273°) |
|
Buckland, NC (BUCK)
|
58.9° F
(-1.2° F) 15 mi |
37.4° F
(+1.6° F) 15 mi |
5.2 in
|
3 mph
|
21 mph
|
0.4 mph
Northwest (316°) |
|
Burnsville, NC (BURN)
|
56.3° F
(-0.8° F) 8 mi |
34.4° F
(+3.9° F) 8 mi |
2.9 in
|
4.6 mph
|
37.8 mph
|
1.1 mph
North Northeast (24°) |
|
Castle Hayne, NC (CAST)
|
62.8° F
(-3.7° F) 0 mi |
41.7° F
(-0.4° F) 0 mi |
3.4 in
|
4.9 mph
|
24.9 mph
|
0.7 mph
North Northeast (15°) |
|
Clayton, NC (CLAY)
|
59.5° F
(-3.2° F) 3 mi |
41.3° F
(+3.5° F) 3 mi |
4.4 in
|
5.5 mph
|
29.6 mph
|
0.6 mph
West Southwest (255°) |
|
Clayton, NC (CLA2)
|
61.5° F
(-1.2° F) 3 mi |
38.7° F
(+0.9° F) 3 mi |
7 in
|
3.2 mph
|
17.9 mph
|
0.2 mph
West Southwest (247°) |
|
Clinton, NC (CLIN)
|
61.5° F
(-2.5° F) 0 mi |
41.4° F
(-0.1° F) 0 mi |
3.7 in
|
5.9 mph
|
26.6 mph
|
0.8 mph
Northeast (35°) |
|
Fletcher, NC (FLET)
|
60.2° F
(+2.3° F) 0 mi |
35.9° F
(+3.6° F) 0 mi |
3.4 in
|
3.8 mph
|
25 mph
|
0.6 mph
North (356°) |
|
Franklin, NC (WINE)
|
50° F
(-10.3° F) 11 mi |
33.5° F
(+1° F) 11 mi |
5.4 in
|
8 mph
|
27.4 mph
|
5 mph
West Southwest (252°) |
|
Frying Pan Mountain, NC (FRYI)
|
50.6° F
(-6.9° F) 10 mi |
32.6° F
(+1.2° F) 10 mi |
0 in
|
11.9 mph
|
39 mph
|
6.2 mph
Southwest (224°) |
|
Goldsboro, NC (GOLD)
|
60.5° F
(-5.1° F) 5 mi |
40.4° F
(-1.2° F) 5 mi |
4.4 in
|
7.2 mph
|
32.2 mph
|
0.4 mph
North Northwest (344°) |
|
Greensboro, NC (NCAT)
|
58.7° F
(-1.6° F) 12 mi |
39.4° F
(+1.6° F) 12 mi |
4.8 in
|
4.7 mph
|
27.2 mph
|
0.4 mph
North (350°) |
|
Hamlet, NC (HAML)
|
62.3° F
(-3.7° F) 4 mi |
40.6° F
(+3.5° F) 4 mi |
4.1 in
|
5 mph
|
33.1 mph
|
0.4 mph
Southeast (146°) |
|
Hendersonville, NC (BEAR)
|
50° F
(-10° F) 7 mi |
35.5° F
(+1.1° F) 7 mi |
3 in
|
10 mph
|
48.8 mph
|
4.4 mph
North Northeast (22°) |
|
High Point, NC (HIGH)
|
59° F
(-4.1° F) 2 mi |
37.9° F
(-1.1° F) 2 mi |
4.6 in
|
3.1 mph
|
20.6 mph
|
0.3 mph
North (349°) |
|
Jackson Springs, NC (JACK)
|
60° F
(-2.7° F) 0 mi |
40.8° F
(+0.5° F) 0 mi |
4 in
|
7.3 mph
|
31.6 mph
|
0.7 mph
East Northeast (61°) |
|
Kinston, NC (KINS)
|
61.4° F
(-6.4° F) 5 mi |
41.4° F
(+0.8° F) 5 mi |
3.4 in
|
6.5 mph
|
29.8 mph
|
0.5 mph
West Southwest (244°) |
|
Laurel Springs, NC (LAUR)
|
52° F
(-0.4° F) 1 mi |
31.8° F
(+3.9° F) 1 mi |
2.5 in
|
4.8 mph
|
32.2 mph
|
1 mph
West (279°) |
|
Lewiston, NC (LEWS)
|
59.3° F
(-3.4° F) 0 mi |
39.4° F
(+1.3° F) 0 mi |
6.1 in
|
6.9 mph
|
29.3 mph
|
0.5 mph
West Northwest (301°) |
|
Lilesville, NC (LILE)
|
62.1° F
(-2° F) 9 mi |
42.3° F
(+1.1° F) 9 mi |
3.3 in
|
4.5 mph
|
33.6 mph
|
0.3 mph
South Southwest (196°) |
|
Mount Mitchell, NC (MITC)
|
44.9° F
(+2.3° F) 1 mi |
29.9° F
(+5.3° F) 1 mi |
6 in
|
12.3 mph
|
78.1 mph
|
9.9 mph
West (268°) |
|
Oxford, NC (OXFO)
|
57.9° F
(-3.1° F) 0 mi |
38.8° F
(+2.9° F) 0 mi |
5 in
|
5 mph
|
30.9 mph
|
5 mph
North (3°) |
|
Plymouth, NC (PLYM)
|
59.1° F
(-6.3° F) 2 mi |
38.5° F
(-2.1° F) 2 mi |
3.9 in
|
9.3 mph
|
34.5 mph
|
1.3 mph
North (353°) |
|
Raleigh, NC (LAKE)
|
60.2° F
(-3.6° F) 0 mi |
40.3° F
(-0.5° F) 0 mi |
5.5 in
|
5.7 mph
|
33.9 mph
|
0.7 mph
West Northwest (284°) |
|
Raleigh, NC (REED)
|
59.7° F
(-1.5° F) 3 mi |
41.4° F
(+1.6° F) 3 mi |
4.9 in
|
5 mph
|
26.4 mph
|
0.3 mph
Northwest (314°) |
|
Reidsville, NC (REID)
|
57.1° F
(-2.6° F) 0 mi |
39.4° F
(+2.4° F) 0 mi |
0 in
|
5.5 mph
|
24.5 mph
|
0.8 mph
Northwest (316°) |
|
Rocky Mount, NC (ROCK)
|
57.6° F
(-5.3° F) 0 mi |
38.6° F
(-0.5° F) 0 mi |
4.3 in
|
6.7 mph
|
30.9 mph
|
1.1 mph
North (2°) |
|
Salisbury, NC (SALI)
|
59.6° F
(-1.2° F) 0 mi |
37.9° F
(+1.2° F) 0 mi |
0 in
|
4.5 mph
|
26.5 mph
|
0.4 mph
Northeast (38°) |
|
Siler City, NC (SILR)
|
60.2° F
(-1.8° F) 5 mi |
37.4° F
(-1.5° F) 5 mi |
3.3 in
|
5.1 mph
|
28 mph
|
0.6 mph
West Southwest (238°) |
|
Taylorsville, NC (TAYL)
|
58.8° F
|
37.6° F
|
4.8 in
|
2.6 mph
|
74.9 mph
|
0.4 mph
East (93°) |
|
Wallace, NC (WILD)
|
63.1° F
(-5.6° F) 8 mi |
40.9° F
(-1.7° F) 8 mi |
3.2 in
|
6 mph
|
52.6 mph
|
0.7 mph
Northeast (40°) |
|
Waynesville, NC (WAYN)
|
58.6° F
(+0.2° F) 0 mi |
34.7° F
(+4° F) 0 mi |
2.4 in
|
4.1 mph
|
25.9 mph
|
0.3 mph
North Northwest (345°) |
|
Whiteville, NC (WHIT)
|
63.3° F
(-4.7° F) 0 mi |
41.6° F
(+0.8° F) 0 mi |
4.1 in
|
4.9 mph
|
23.5 mph
|
0.3 mph
East Northeast (78°) |
|
Williamston, NC (WILL)
|
60.4° F
(-2.6° F) 4 mi |
40.2° F
(-0.8° F) 4 mi |
4.7 in
|
4.7 mph
|
22.2 mph
|
0.3 mph
West Northwest (282°) |
| Legend: |
| Parameter |
| Parameter's value approximated from hourly data. ( +/- Departure from normal ) Distance to reference station |
