DC’s bizarre April weather

 

A spring day in suburban Washington, D.C. (Photo Credit: Susan Granzow)

April 2026 will finish as one of DC’s Top 10 warmest despite the recent cooler than average weather. Half of DC’s Top 10 warmest April’s occurred in just the last decade. It will also be a drier than average month that’s exacerbated the drought conditions across the DMV (DC, Maryland and Virginia).

Following a warm start to April with 80-degree highs on three of the first four days, Washingtonians then experienced three consecutive days of below average temperatures from April 7 – 9. That included two days with lows in the 30s. There have been only five cooler than average days in the nation’s capital since April 9, including on April 21. That’s when DC had a low of 36°, while a record low of 27° occurred at Dulles Airport. The subfreezing temperatures across much of the DMV last week caused a lot of damage to the grape vines at some of the area wineries. 

Although temperatures will remain at or below average the rest of the month, there have already been 11 days high temperatures reached the 80s. That includes two days of 90-degree heat in Washington, D.C. Both are impressive weather benchmarks since the nation’s capital hadn’t experienced any 90-degree April heat since 2017. Washingtonians have averaged between only three and four days of 80-degree April warmth over the last 30 years, according to NOAA data.

While the nation’s capital will see additional rainfall later this week, it won’t be enough for April 2026 to finish with average rainfall. The nation’s capital averages 3.2l” of April rainfall.

Warmest April’s in Washington, D.C. (Source: NOAA)

1. 63.8° (2017)
2. 62.7° (2026) à as of April 26
3. 62.4° (2019)
4. 62.1° (2023, 1981)
6. 62.0° (1994)
7. 61.7° (2025)
8. 61.6° (1985)
9. 61.2° (1960)
10. 60.9° (2010)
11. 60.6° (1941)
12. 60.5° (2024)

Average – 58.2°

Weather Quiz

 

April in suburban Washington, D.C.

True or False.

The nation’s capital has averaged more April days with highs in the 90s over the last 30 years than with lows in the 20s.

Can hurricanes be upgraded or downgraded?

 

Hurricane Michael, October 2018 (Source: NOAA)

NOAA scientists study hurricanes for months and sometimes years after the final advisory has been written on them. Tropical storms and hurricanes can provide lessons on forecasting and emergency preparedness. Occasionally, a hurricane’s intensity is updated after the fact to reflect the research done by NOAA. 

2020: The 2020 season was one for the record books with 30 tropical storms in the Atlantic. Hurricane Iota was originally classified as only the second November Category 5 storm on record with peak sustained winds of 160 mph. However, meteorologists took a closer look at the accumulated data that winter and determined it was an upper echelon Category 4 storm at peak intensity, with its highest sustained winds of 155 mph (just below Category 5 status). That made 2020 the first season since 2015 that no Category 5 Atlantic hurricanes occurred.

2019: In the spring of 2019, NOAA determined Hurricane Michael was indeed a Category 5 hurricane at its time of landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast in October 2018. Originally, it was thought to be an upper end Category 4 hurricane, just below Category 5 status with sustained winds of 155 mph. However, according to NOAA’s post-analysis Michael had sustained winds of 160 mph. While there is little tangible difference between these wind speeds in terms of damage, reclassifying Michael as Category 5 changed a host of historical records.

The upgraded Michael became only the fourth Category 5 hurricane to ever make landfall in the United States and the first since Andrew in 1992. The two other Category 5 hurricanes to make landfall are Camille (1969) and the unnamed Florida Keys 1935 hurricane. Overall, Category 5 hurricanes are exceedingly rare since they require ideal environmental conditions to develop.

2002: On the 10^th anniversary of Hurricane Andrew, NOAA determined it was actually a Category 5 hurricane when it made landfall in south Florida. Originally, it was ranked as a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 145 mph during its Florida landfall on August 24, 1992. Years of post-analysis study led scientists to reclassify Hurricane Andrew as a Category 5 with sustained winds of 165 mph.

Andrew had the infamous distinction for more than a decade of being the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history. Although more recent hurricanes like Katrina, Harvey and Irma have each caused more damage than Andrew, it still ranks among the Top 10 costliest U.S. hurricanes.

Little did people realize it at the time, but Andrew occurred three short years before a more active cycle began in the tropical Atlantic. From the 1970s through the early 1990s, the tropical Atlantic was relatively quiet with below average tropical activity. However, there has been a series of active Atlantic seasons since 1995. That’s why listening to the latest forecasts from NOAA’s National Hurricane Center and your favorite local meteorologists is of critical importance.