November’s Streaky Weather in the Nation’s Capital

 

November 2022 is well-positioned to finish as a warmer than average month in the Nation’s Capital in contrast to last November that finished 2° colder than average.  Although this month will finish within 3° of average, that doesn’t tell the story of how streaky this month’s weather has been for Washingtonians.

Not only were the first 12 days of November each warmer than average in the Nation’s Capital, but seven of those days were at least 10° above average.  D.C. residents enjoyed nine days of high temperatures in the 70s this month for the highest such total since 2001.  That’s well above D.C.’s average of between three and four such November days over the last 30 years.  Four of those nine days were at least 75° for the highest such total since November 1994.  The icing on the cake was D.C.’s record high of 81° on November 7.  That was D.C.’s first November day in the 80s since 2016.

The weather then changed dramatically with cooler than average temperatures in Washington, D.C. on 10 consecutive days through November 23.  Low temperatures were at or below freezing on five consecutive days through November 22.  D.C.’s low of 26° on November 21 was the coldest November day in the Nation’s Capital since November 13, 2019 (also 26°).  As cold as the last two weeks have been, November 2022 is still 2.5° above average in the Nation’s Capital as of November 25, underscoring how warm the first 12 days of the month were.

A total of 2.09” of rain has fallen in the Nation’s Capital so far this month, with more beneficial rainfall in the forecast tomorrow.  D.C. averages 2.91” of November rainfall, according to NOAA.  However, rainfall has been fairly streaky so far this month with measurable rainfall on only five days.  The wettest day at National Airport occurred on November 15 with 1.22”, which accounted for nearly 60% D.C.’s monthly rainfall to date.

Regardless of the final overall weather statistics for November 2022, it has already been a memorable month with some of the warmest weather in decades combined with the coldest weather in several years.  It’s worth remembering how rare 80° November warmth is with only six such occurrences (including this year) dating back to 1993.  That averages to one such day roughly every five years.