Ticker for September 6, 2001

                
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September 6, 2001  September 6, 2001  September 6, 2001  September 6, 2001


Summer 2001: Hot and Dry

To say an Oklahoma summer was hot and dry is no surprise, but
preliminary data indicates this year's summer was hotter and drier
than normal.  These results are primarily due to a very hot and dry
June-July period, and were exacerbated (the Ticker library has a new
thesaurus) by a slightly-warmer-than-normal August 2001.

The statewide average temperature of 82.0 F was the tenth-greatest
on record (since 1895), and the seasonal rainfall of 5.54" ranks
eighth-driest.  More complete data are given in the following tables.

Conditions in the northern and western parts of Oklahoma were a bit
more extreme when compared to historical values.  This was especially
true in the panhandle, which observed its 5th-warmest and 3rd-driest
summer on record.  This is significant because the panhandle region
depends more heavily on the summer months for precipitation than the
rest of the state.

Remember that climatological summer occurs from June-August, which
might rub our friends in astronomics the wrong way.


SUMMER 2001 TEMPERATURE DATA

Climate      Mean Summer Temperature  Rank*
Division     2001    Norm  Departure  of 107

Panhandle    80.7 F  77.9 F  +2.8 F     5th
N. Central   82.6 F  80.5 F  +2.1 F    10th
Northeast    81.3 F  79.2 F  +2.1 F    11th

W. Central   82.6 F  80.1 F  +2.5 F     7th
Central      82.0 F  80.3 F  +1.7 F    11th
E. Central   81.4 F  79.8 F  +1.6 F   t15th

Southwest    83.5 F  81.8 F  +1.7 F    11th
S. Central   82.5 F  81.1 F  +1.4 F   t14th
Southeast    81.0 F  79.5 F  +1.5 F   t25th

Statewide    82.0 F  80.0 F  +2.0 F    10th

* - 1st = Warmest, 107th = Coolest


SUMMER 2001 PRECIPITATION DATA

Climate      Total Summer Precipitation Rank**
Division     2001   Norm   Depart  Pct  of 107

Panhandle    4.09"  7.89"  -3.80"  52%     3rd
N. Central   4.49"  9.50"  -5.01"  47%     4th
Northeast    6.10" 10.59"  -4.49"  58%     8th

W. Central   3.32"  8.47"  -5.15"  39%     6th
Central      6.17"  9.20"  -3.03"  67%    14th
E. Central   7.81"  9.74"  -1.93"  80%    24th

Southwest    3.91"  8.15"  -4.24"  48%     8th
S. Central   5.02"  9.04"  -4.02"  81%    11th
Southeast    8.99" 10.77"  -1.78"  56%    32nd

Statewide    5.54"  9.39"  -3.85"  59%     8th

** - 1st = Least Rainfall, 107th = Most Rainfall