A frightful or delightful Halloween?

 

Halloween in Potomac, Maryland

This October will finish as both a warmer and drier than average month in the nation’s capital for the seventh time in the last decade. Halloween will also be a dry day with near average high temperatures. That’s in contrast to 2024 when DC’s experienced its warmest Halloween since 1950, with a high temperature of 83°. DC’s average high/low temperatures on October 31 are 64°/46°.

The nation’s capital will finish the month with six days of 80-degree October warmth. That’s above the average of between three and four such days. A record high of 90° occurred in the nation’s capital on October 14. That was also the first 90-degree October heat since 2019. It also set a new record high for latest in the calendar year that 90-degree heat occurred. Eleven of the first 16 days of October were warmer than average in Washington, D.C.

Despite the warm start to October, eight days since October 17 were cooler than average. Although lows downtown fell to 42° twice this month, Dulles Airport has been in the 30s six times in the last two weeks. Meanwhile, it hasn’t been at or below freezing at National Airport during the month of October since 1992.

Measurable rainfall occurred in the nation’s capital on eight of the first 17 days of the month, but none has occurred since October 17. Since today will also be dry, the nation’s capital finish with below average October rainfall for the eighth time in the last decade. The 2.08” of rain this month is well below DC’s October average of 3.66”.

The dry conditions on Halloween should please trick-or-treaters. Temperatures for trick-or-treat this evening will be in the 50s. The last time Washingtonians had measurable rainfall on Halloween was in 2022.

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

1. 67.1° - 2007
2. 66.3° - 2021
3. 65.2° - 1984
4. 64.9° - 2017
5. 64.7° - 1971
6. 64.5° - 1947
7. 64.4° - 1941
8. 64.1° - 2019
9. 63.4° - 1949
10. 63.3° - 1973
11. 63.2° - 1975, 1919
12. 63.1° - 2023, 2016
13. 63.0° - 2024, 1879
14. 62.9° - 2014, 1881
15. 62.8° - 1990

Warmest October’s at Dulles Airport in Sterling, Virginia (NOAA)

1. 63.6° - 2021, 2007
2. 61.8° - 1984
3. 61.4° - 1971
4. 61.1° - 2017
5. 60.5° - 2019
6. 60.2° - 2023
7. 60.0° - 2026
8. 59.4° - 2016
9. 59.3° - 1963
10. 58.8° - 2005