YEARLY CLIMATE SUMMARY.
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY NE
1249 PM CST SAT JAN 2 2010

...2009 YEARLY CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR LINCOLN...

2009 WAS A COLD YEAR WITH A DRY START AND A WET FINISH.  THE YEAR
2009 WAS THE 14TH COLDEST YEAR ON RECORD AND THE 30TH DRIEST YEAR ON
RECORD. THERE WAS ALSO LESS SEVERE WEATHER THAN USUAL AROUND
LINCOLN.  THE WINTER AND SPRING MONTHS WERE VERY DRY...WITH NEAR
NORMAL TEMPERATURES.  SUMMER IN LINCOLN WAS VERY COLD...ESPECIALLY
IN JULY...AND WETTER....ESPECIALLY IN JUNE.  AFTER MAY...ONLY
NOVEMBER WAS WARMER THAN NORMAL...WITH DRY MONTHS IN SEPTEMBER AND
NOVEMBER...AND WET MONTHS IN OCTOBER AND DECEMBER.  JULY 2009 WAS
TIED FOR 6TH COLDEST ON RECORD...AND OCTOBER WAS THE 2ND COLDEST.
DECEMBER 2009 WAS THE SNOWIEST DECEMBER ON RECORD.

SHORTLY AFTER THE YEAR BEGAN...A COLD SNAP IN MID-JANUARY BROUGHT
TEMPERATURES WELL BELOW ZERO.  TEMPERATURES WERE UP AND DOWN THROUGH
THE MONTH...WITH JANUARY ENDING UP 1.5 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL WITH AN
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 23.9 DEGREES.  THE MONTH WAS DRY...WITH JUST
0.38 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION OVER SEVERAL DAYS WITH LIGHT SNOWFALL.

TEMPERATURE REMAINED ABOVE NORMAL IN FEBRUARY AS TEMPERATURES ROSE
INTO THE 60S FOR 3 DAYS BETWEEN THE 6TH AND THE 10TH.  TEMPERATURES
ALSO NEVER FELL BELOW ZERO DURING THE MONTH.  OVERALL...THE AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE IN FEBRUARY WAS 31.1 DEGREES...WHICH IS 2.8 DEGREES
ABOVE NORMAL.  PRECIPITATION WAS A LITTLE CLOSER TO NORMAL AT 0.64
INCHES...WHICH IS JUST 0.02 INCHES BELOW NORMAL.  OVER HALF OF THE
MONTH`S PRECIPITATION FELL ON FRIDAY THE 13TH...WITH 4.0 INCHES OF
SNOW IN LINCOLN.  SNOW ALSO FELL AT THE END OF THE MONTH...WITH 4.0
INCHES ON THE 27TH AND 28TH.

MARCH BEGAN AND ENDED AS A COLD MONTH...WITH WARMER TEMPERATURES
MID-MONTH AVERAGING TO NEAR NORMAL.  THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE WAS
40.0 DEGREES...JUST 0.6 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL.  MARCH WAS ANOTHER DRY
MONTH...WITH 0.18 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION AND JUST A TRACE OF SNOW.
ALMOST ALL OF THE MONTH`S RAIN FELL IN THE EVENING ON THE 7TH...AS
THUNDERSTORMS MOVED ACROSS THE AREA...CHANGING TO A TRACE OF SNOW
BEHIND THE STORMS.  SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS MOVED ACROSS EASTERN
LINCOLN ON MARCH 23RD...WITH TORNADOES TOUCHING SOUTHEAST OF
LINCOLN.  GUSTY NON-THUNDERSTORM WINDS OCCURRED AHEAD OF THE
THUNDERSTORMS ON THE 23RD...WITH WINDS PEAKING AT 60 MPH FROM THE
SOUTH BEFORE STORMS MOVED THROUGH.  THUNDER WAS ALSO REPORTED ON THE
6TH...TOTALING 2 DAYS WITH THUNDER IN MARCH.

APRIL WAS COLD AND DRY...WITH COLD TEMPERATURES PARTICULARLY IN THE
FIRST HALF OF THE MONTH.  THE AVERAGE TEMPEARTURE WAS 50.1
DEGREES...WHICH WAS 1.1 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.  1.52 INCHES OF
PRECIPITATION FELL IN APRIL.  THUNDERSTORMS WERE REPORTED IN LINCOLN
ON ONLY 2 DAYS IN APRIL..THE 4TH AND ON THE 26TH...WITH HAIL ALSO
OCCURRING SOUTHEAST OF LINCOLN IN LANCASTER COUNTY ON THE 26TH.

TEMPERATURES IN MAY RETURNED TO ABOVE NORMAL READINGS...WITH AN
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 63.9 DEGREES THAT WAS 1.9 DEGREES ABOVE
NORMAL.  DRY WEATHER CONTINUED AS JUST 1.17 INCHES OF RAIN FELL.
THUNDER WAS REPORTED ON 4 DAYS IN MAY...WITH HAIL REPORTED AT EPPLEY
AIRFIELD ON THE 13TH AS STORMS MOVED THROUGH.  JANAURY THROUGH MAY
IN LINCOLN WAS THE 3RD DRIEST OF THAT PERIOD ON RECORD.

JUNE TEMPERATURES ENDED UP NEAR NORMAL AT 72.2 DEGREES...WHICH IS
0.4 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.  HOWEVER...THE MONTH WAS DIVIDED INTO A
COLD START AND A WARM FINISH.  BY THE 23RD...HEAT INDEX READINGS
REACHED 105 TO 110 AS THE TEMPERATURE SOARED TO 99 DEGREES.
TEMPERATURES OF 90 DEGREES OR MORE WERE RECORDED ON 7 OF 9 DAYS
BETWEEN THE 17TH AND 25TH. RAIN RELIEF ARRIVED IN JUNE...WITH 6.18
INCHES OF RAIN...1.72 INCHES OF WHICH FELL ON THE 6TH.
THUNDERSTORMS WERE REPORTED ON 9 DAYS IN JUNE...WITH SMALL HAIL
REPORTED AT LINCOLN AIRPORT ON THE 7TH AND ON THE 22ND AS STRONG TO
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS MOVED ACROSS EASTERN NEBRASKA.  IN
FACT...STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS OCCURRED IN THE VICINITY OF
LINCOLN ON SEVERAL DAYS IN JUNE.

COLD WEATHER SETTLED INTO THE HEARTLAND BY MID-SUMMER...AS JULY WAS
TIED AS THE 6TH COLDEST ON RECORD...WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF
JUST 72.6 DEGREES.  90+ TEMPERATURES OCCURRED ON ONLY TWO DAYS...THE
14TH AND 24TH...WHICH LEAVES JULY TIED FOR THE FEWEST 90+ DEGREE
DAYS ON RECORD.  SEVERAL RECORD COLD TEMPERATURES WERE SET IN
JULY...WITH RECORD COLD LOWS ON THE 17TH...18TH AND 19TH.  JULY WAS
ALSO DRIER THAN NORMAL...WITH 1.70 INCHES OF RAIN.  THUNDERSTORMS
OCCURRED ON 7 DAYS IN JULY...THOUGH STORMS WERE LESS INTENSE.  COOL
JULY TEMPERATURES HISTORICALLY ARE ALMOST ALWAYS ACCOMPANIED BY
WETTER THAN NORMAL WEATHER...THUS THE COMBINATION OF COOL AND DRY
WEATHER IN JULY WAS EXCEPTIONAL.

COLD TEMPERATURES CONTINUED INTO AUGUST...WITH AN AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE OF 72.4 THAT WAS 3.0 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.  A FEW WARM
DAYS DID OCCUR IN AUGUST...WITH THE YEARLY HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 102
DEGREES REACHED ON THE 8TH AND WITH 9 DAYS EXCEEDING 90 DEGREES.
UNLIKE JULY...THE COOL TEMPERATURES IN AUGUST WERE ACCOMPANIED BY
MORE TYPICAL WET WEATHER...AS 3.20 INCHES OF RAIN FELL THROUGH THE
MONTH.  MUCH OF THE RAIN FELL ON JUST A FEW DAYS...WITH 1.06 INCHES
ON THE 26TH AS A THUNDERSTORM COMPLEX MOVED ACROSS EASTERN
NEBRASKA...AND 0.95 INCHES FELL ON THE 15TH WITH THUNDERSTORMS.
THUNDER WAS REPORTED ON 4 OTHER DAYS IN AUGUST.

TOGETHER...JULY AND AUGUST WERE THE 7TH COLDEST ON RECORD IN
OMAHA...AND THE SUMMER PERIOD OF JUNE THROUGH AUGUST WAS THE 15TH
COLDEST ON RECORD.

SEPTEMBER TEMPERATURE REMAINED BELOW NORMAL...WITH A MONTHLY AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE OF 64.4 DEGREES THAT WAS 1.6 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.  THE
MONTH BEGAN AND ENDED WITH COLDER READINGS...WITH A PERIOD OF NEAR
TO ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES MID-MONTH.  DRY CONDITIONS RETURNED IN
SEPTEMBER...WITH 1.25 INCHES OF RAIN. THUNDERSTORMS BROUGHT RAIN ON
THREE DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.

TEMPERATURES PLUMMETED AGAIN IN OCTOBER.  OCTOBER WAS THE 2ND
COLDEST ON RECORD IN LINCOLN...WITH AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 46.2
DEGREES THAT WAS 7.3 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL.  ANOTHER SERIES OF DAILY
RECORD COLD TEMPERATURES WAS SET...WITH RECORD COLD HIGHS ON THE
10TH AND 11TH.  LIKE AUGUST...THE MONTH WAS NOT ONLY COLD BUT ALSO
WET...WITH 4.24 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION...THE 12TH WETTEST ON
RECORD.  SNOW OCCURRED IN OCTOBER FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE
2002...WITH 1.2 INCHES TOTAL...AND THIS OCTOBER WAS THE 6TH SNOWIEST
ON RECORD.  THUNDER WAS REPORTED ON THE 21ST.

THE PERIOD FROM JUNE THROUGH SEPTEMBER WAS THE 13TH COLDEST ON
RECORD...AND THE PERIOD FROM JUNE THROUGH OCTOBER WAS THE COLDEST ON
RECORD IN LINCOLN.

NOVEMBER BOUNCED BACK WITH WELL ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES...WITH AN
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 44.0 DEGREES.  THE TEMPERATURE IS NOTABLE AS
IT WAS JUST 2 DEGREES COLDER ON AVERAGE IN NOVEMBER THAN IN
OCTOBER...WHEN OCTOBER USUALLY AVERAGES 15 DEGREES WARMER THAN
NOVEMBER.  NOVEMBER WAS ALSO A DRY MONTH...WITH MEASURABLE
PRECIPITATION ON JUST ONE DAY.  THAT 0.06 INCHES FELL ON THE 16TH.

DECEMBER ENDED THE YEAR WITH YET ANOTHER COLD AND WET MONTH.  THE
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE IN DECEMBER WAS 19.7 DEGREES...WITH A
PARTICULARLY COLD STRETCH EARLY IN THE MONTH.  THE COLDEST
TEMPERATURE OF THE YEAR...AT -13 DEGREES...OCCURRED ON THE 10TH.
THE STORY IN DECEMBER...HOWEVER...WAS THE COPIOUS SNOWFALL.  SNOW
TOTALED A RECORD 24.3 INCHES IN DECEMBER...WITH 2.42 INCHES OF
PRECIPITATION.  THE FIRST SNOWFALL BROUGHT 4.1 INCHES OF SNOW ON THE
6TH AND 7TH.  IT WAS FOLLOWED QUICKLY BY THE FIRST OF TWO MAJOR
WINTER STORMS ON THE 8TH AND 9TH.  THAT STORM BROUGHT 7.1 INCHES OF
SNOW...FOLLOWED BY WINDS GUSTING WELL ABOVE 40 MPH FOR SEVERAL
HOURS...WHICH CREATED BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW AND INTERMITTENT
WHITEOUT CONDITIONS.  ANOTHER 0.2 INCHES FELL ON THE 14TH IN THE
MIDST OF OTHERWISE QUIET WEATHER.  THE SECOND OF THE MAJOR WINTER
STORMS BEGAN AS RAIN AND FREEZING RAIN ON THE 23RD...LEAVING A GLAZE
OF ICE.  THEN...SNOW BEGAN ON CHRISTMAS EVE AND LINGERED THROUGH THE
26TH...WITH 12.8 INCHES TOTAL.  THE SNOW WAS ACCOMPANIED BY WINDS
GUSTING OVER 35 MPH FOR MUCH OF THE 25TH...CREATING PROLONGED
BLIZZARD CONDITIONS IN THE AREA.  LIGHT SNOW ALSO FELL AGAIN ON THE
30TH...WITH 0.2 INCHES REPORTED.

THE PERIOD FROM JUNE TO DECEMBER WAS THE 3RD COLDEST ON RECORD IN
LINCOLN.

All data in this table are from the National 
Weather Service and HPRCC data archives.