D.C.’s Warm Start to November

 

Last month was D.C.’s coolest October since 2003.  It was also the coolest October at nearby Dulles Airport since 2006.  October 2022 got off to a chilly start with 9 of the first 11 days that were cooler than average and that set the tone for the entire month.  It was also a dry October in the Nation’s Capital with only 2.78” compared to D.C.’s October average of 3.66”.

Washingtonians had an unusually warm high temperature of 76° yesterday (compared to D.C.’s high of 53° on November 1, 2021).  Yesterday’s high of 76° is more characteristic late September than early November.  D.C. residents see falling temperatures throughout the month with average daily/high low temperatures ranging from 64°/46° on November 1 to 53°/38° on November 30, according to NOAA.  D.C.’s warmest November temperature on record of 86° occurred on November 1, 1974.  By comparison, D.C.’s coldest November temperature of 11° was on November 30, 1929. 

Four of the last five November’s have been cooler than average in the Nation’s Capital, so the warm weather on tap this week could help buck that trend this year.  No rain is expected before Sunday, November 6 at the earliest.  November’s outlook from NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center is for warmer and drier than average conditions in the D.C. Metro Area.

D.C. residents have seen a fair amount of dry November weather over the last 20 years, including last November’s paltry 0.98” of rain.  Conversely, November 2018 was D.C.’s wettest on record with 7.57”.  NOAA’s November rainfall average in Washington, D.C. is 2.91”.

Longtime Washingtonians may recall the record-setting Veteran’s Day 1987 snowfall when 11.5” accumulated.  That remains D.C.’s largest November snowfall on record.  There has only been one instance of accumulating November snowfall over the last two decades.  A daily snowfall record of 1.4” at National Airport occurred on November 15, 2018.  Since so little November snowfall has occurred in recent years, NOAA’s average November snowfall total for Washington, D.C. decreased from 0.5” to 0.1” last year when the climate averages were updated.