**MEDIA RELEASE**

Contact: Steve Drillette NOAA / NWS

> Chris Kimble **FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**
>
> \(806\) 335-1421 9/10/08

**2008 Summer in Review**

Summer 2008 started out hot and dry for the Panhandles. Record heat
plagued the region during the first week of June. On June 2 Amarillo
reached 106 degrees, surpassing the record high for the date and also
becoming the earliest date for any temperature above 105 degrees. This
was the hottest temperature in ten years at Amarillo. Other areas in the
Panhandle had even hotter temperatures, with Guymon reaching 109
degrees. The heat continued through the middle of the month before a new
weather pattern finally brought rounds of thunderstorms and cooler
temperatures to the area. Amarillo recorded rainfall 8 days in a row in
the middle of June which helped to cool temperatures down.

July continued the generally cool trend from late June. Extreme
temperatures were rare and afternoon thunderstorms were common most
days. The remnants of Hurricane Dolly brought rain to parts of the
Panhandle at the end of July, including more than 3 inches of rain
within a few hours at Amarillo.

Warm weather returned for the early part of August, but then a large
upper level low pressure system approached the area during the middle of
the month. This system stalled over the area and brought several days of
heavy rain and cool temperatures to the Panhandles. Amarillo recorded
rainfall 8 days in a row including a week of temperatures below 80
degrees. In fact, Amarillo saw two days in a row with high temperatures
in the 60s.

LOOKING AHEAD (SEP-OCT-NOV)

The fall months are a time of transition from the stagnant weather
patterns of summer to the more rapid changes that often occur in winter.
Severe storms are not uncommon, but the convective season normally comes
to an end in October. Cold fronts begin pushing through the region early
in the fall, with the first freezing temperatures normally occurring in
October. Snow can fall as early as September, but is more common later
in the season. Last year, the first freeze in Amarillo occurred on
November 1, though other areas saw freezing temperatures as early as
mid-October. The first snow of the season occurred on November 23 when
one to three inches of snow fell across the area.

  ---------- --------- --------- ------------- --------------- ---------- ------- ------ ------
  AMARILLO                                                                               
  NORMALS                                                                                

             Average   Average   Average       Average         Average    DAYS ≥  DAYS ≥ DAYS ≤
             High      Low       Temperature   Precipitation   Snowfall   100°    90°    32°

  SEP        81.8      56.3      69.1          1.88            T          0.3     7.0    0.2

  OCT        71.8      44.6      58.2          1.50            0.4        0.0     0.8    2.3

  NOV        58.4      31.8      45.1          0.68            2.4        0.0     0.0    15.9
  ---------- --------- --------- ------------- --------------- ---------- ------- ------ ------

**Fig. 5. Amarillo Normal Temperatures and Precipitation**

Average first freeze (32°): 20 October (earliest 21 September 1983 --
31°).\
Average first measurable snow: 19 November (earliest September 29, 1984
-- 0.3 inch).