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Feature Stories (Vol. 110 No. 3--1/16/2008)

Area weather in 2007 was "just average"

By Caroline Downs

As far as the weather was concerned, 2007 was just an average year in the Kenmare area--for a change. The year’s rainfall hit the average mark and few days, much less weeks or months, were marked by extreme temperatures.

In fact, the year could go down in the record books for its moderate conditions.

2007 ended with 16.78 inches of precipitation recorded at the Des Lacs National Wildlife Refuge weather station. The area has seen an average of 16.23 inches per year since record keeping started in 1894.

During the past 30 years, twelve years have received below average moisture and three years within a half inch of average. Since 1977, ten years have recorded 20 inches or more of precipitation, with the 28.12 inches in 2004 the highest total since 1894.

The Kenmare area’s lowest measured annual precipitation was 6.36 inches in 1934.

When the rain came in 2007 proved important to the crops in this area. In Kenmare, 0.19 inches of precipitation were recorded in January and 1.11 inches in February. March saw 1.74 inches, an above average total, followed by April’s 0.68 inches, below the average of 1.19 inches.

May 2007, however, was the second wettest May since 1894, with 5.98 inches falling on 14 different days. The heaviest rainfall was noted May 30th, with 2.43 inches. Totals above five inches for the month have occurred only five other times, with May 1999 the soggiest at 7.89 inches.

A respectable 3.47 inches followed in June, with area residents seeing 15 days of rain during the month.

Precipitation amounts recorded for Kenmare during the following six months all lagged behind the area averages, with July at 1.25 inches (2.31 avg.), August 0.51 (1.85 avg.), September 0.67 (1.61 avg.), October 0.85 (0.95 avg.), November 0.02 (0.58 avg.) and December 0.31 (0.52 avg.).

November 2007’s total at 0.02 inches of precipitation was one of the driest Novembers on record, although no moisture was recorded that month in 1912, 1939 and 1999, and only a trace in 1974.

Rainfall in the Kenmare area for the growing season, April through September, totalled 12.56 inches.

Growing season precipitation for the Carpio and Berthold regions were available from volunteer weather observers with the North Dakota Atmospheric Resource Board.

Kent and Lori McKay, south of Carpio, recorded a total of 12.25 inches between April and September. They noted 0.48 inches of rain in April, along with six inches of snow, 6.25 inches of rain in May, 3.13 inches in June, 1.44 inches in July, 0.41 in August, and 0.54 inches in September. A hailstorm formed above the McKay farm on June 26th and lasted about five minutes before it traveled north and east, causing more extensive damage to crops.

Terry Aarseth measured over half an inch more rain east of Carpio, with a total of 12.98 inches for the season. He recorded 1.13 inches in April, 5.86 in May, 3.25 in June, 1.48 in July, 0.63 in August and 0.63 in September.

Billy and Janice Greenlee reported 13.0 inches for the season from their farm west of Berthold. They noted 0.37 inches in April, 6.86 inches in May, 3.26 in June, 1.06 in July, 0.83 in August and 0.62 in September.

April snowstorm
The final snowstorm of the 2006-07 winter came April 10th, with three inches recorded. The high temperature reading that day was 32 degrees, climbing to 45 degrees the next day. Beginning April 14th, daily highs were in the 60s and 70s.

Seven and a half months passed before this area saw snow again. The first snowstorm of the 2007-08 winter arrived November 27th, when two inches fell. The day’s high temperature was 8 degrees, following an overnight low of minus 11.

The lowest temperature of the year came the evening of February 12, at minus 25 degrees. However, for five days beginning February 18th, the daily highs stood above freezing, ranging from 32 to 41 degrees.

Only three days in January and five days in February recorded subzero high readings, and all those in the single digits below zero.

High temps
The warmest day of the year arrived July 24th, with 103 degrees Fahrenheit recorded at the Des Lacs NWR weather station. Thermometers also stretched above the 100-degree mark on the 29th and 31st, but August opened with a high of 79 degrees. That month continued to register moderate temperatures with only two days in the 90s and an average of 79.3 degrees Fahrenheit.

The mercury dropped to 26 degrees on September 13th, but overnight lows did not reaching freezing temperatures again until October 9th, at 31 degrees. In fact, low temperatures reached freezing or colder only 11 times in October until the last week of the month. Two October nights had lows at or above 50 degrees.

Kenmare’s moderate weather of 2007 could continue through the early months of 2008. The National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center projects equal chances of normal, above or below average temperatures and precipitation for the area during the next 90 days.