The record-union., 1892-06-04
MEAN" TEMPERATURE,
And Other Weather Conditions in the
Month of May.
Lieutenant Finley Speaks of the Hot
Wave and Other Features of
the Weather.

In his monthly review for May, Lieu
tenant Finley, Chief Of the Weather
Bureau Service of the coast, says the
weather of the Pacific slope has been
characterized by abnormal conditions of
precipitation, and, to certain extent, of
temperature. The rainfall has been gen.
orally excessive, and low temperatures
with frosts have occurred unusually late
In the month. While the storm areas
from the Pacific have not been altogether
unusual in number, yet they have in
some instances moved very rapidly with
heavy precipitation, and in other cases
moved very slowly with long continued
precipitation. The storm remaining from
the last of April was supplemented so
frequently by additional distur Dances
from the ocean that cloudy and rainy
weather continued quite generally
throughout the Pacific slope, except in
Southern California and Arizona, from
the lst 10 the 18th, In the two latter dis
tricts the rain during this period was
practically confined to the first five days
OF the month, and was especially heavy
on the 3D..
The heaviest storm in Northern Cali
fornia and Nevada entered from the
ocean on the 18th and continued to the
10th. The center Of the disturbance ad-
vanced southwark in an unusual manner,
owing to a high barometer prevailing
over British Columbia, but which soon
gave way to the eastward. The heavy
rains in Southern California on the Sd re-
suited from a rather sudden fall in the
barometer, caused by the projection west
ward of huge barometric trough of low
pressure, extending from the great lakes
southwestward TO Arizona, and also to
the fact that at this time another disturb
ance was extending southwark from Ore
gon and Washington.
The heaviest continuous rains in Ore
gon and Washington occurred during the
storm conditions prevailing from the 9th
to the 18th, but on the 9th and 2Sth a
storm passed over British Columbia,
which produced the heaviest preciplta-
ton Of the month in Northern Washing
ton.
The warm wave and hot northers from
the 18th to 2lst, caused by an unusually
high barometer over the middle and
northern plateau regions, were not as in
furious to vegetation as they might have
been, owing to the heavy rains on the
18th and 10th, few days preceding. This
warm spell, however, caused rapid melt
ing of the snow in the mountains and con-
sequent high water in the streams Of
Northern California, which has resulted
in some damage by the overflow of the
Sacramento River.
The rainfall has been decidedly above
normal in all districts and at all stations,
except small deficiencies at Yuma and
Walla Walla, The excess ranges from
0.03 inch at Fort Candy to 1.75 at Los An
geles to 2.05 at Red Bluff. The heaviest
rains in twenty-four hours occurred as
follows: Los Angeles, 1.76 inches, 3d.:
Fresno, 1.46, Sd and 4th; San Diego, 0.94,
Sd; Sacramento, LIZ, 18th and 10th; Ia
toosh Island, $50, 9th and 2Sth.
The mean temperature shows but very
slight changes from normal values at all
stations. 1t has been slightly warmer
along the coast, but cooler in the interior.
The extremes attending the warm waves
and cool waves have been smoothed
out by the more nearly normal condi-
tions for the remaining portions Of the
month. Frosts occurred in Nevada as
late as the 30th, and up to the 18th in
Northern California, and the 18th in Ore
gon and Washington. The highest tenn
peratures were: Volcano Springs, 1l9o, on
the 20th; Fresno, 1040, on the 2lst. The
lowest were: Winnemucca, 20, on the
Sd; Cascade, 10, on the 11th.
Statement of rainfall and temperature
at Weather Bureau stations, May, 1892: