MONTHLY WEATHER OBSERVATIONS
LAVALE MD
DECEMBER 2006
OBSERVERS DAVID DREWERY AND CHARLES ORLICK (DATA COMPILED BY NATE MULLINS)

Special Observations:  F=fog, T=thunder, H=hail,
S=sleet, G=glaze, DW=damaging winds
Observation time for this station is midnight.

	Temperature, °F	Precipitation, In.		
			Liquid	Solid	7am
	24-hour		Rain	Snow/	Snow
Date	Max	Min	Equiv	Ice	Depth	Special Obs.

1	72	38	 .27			F,DW
2	45	31	 .01
3	50	28	 .01
4	38	23
5	36	22
6	45	22
7	40	20	 .02	 0.5	 T
8	33	20	   T	   T	 1
9	47	24			 T
10	62	26
11	65	30
12	62	28
13	62	34	 .08
14	64	32	 .01			F
15	60	33
16	45	32
17	67	30
18	62	44	   T
19	44	31
20	54	26
21	47	36	   T
22	46	42	1.15			F
23	53	45	 .02
24	46	37
25	45	36	 .71			F,T
26	43	37	 .07			F
27	40	35	 .01
28	45	32
29	47	32
30	46	29
31	46	34	 .20

AVG/SUM	50.2	31.3	2.56	 0.5	 T  	  	 	
EXT	72	20	1.15	 0.5	 1
Date	1	8*	22	   7	 8
*=Also occurred on earlier dates

Miscellaneous Stats:

Mean Monthly Temperature:  40.7 F
Year precipitation to date:  34.39" (final total for 2006)
Season snowfall to date:  0.5"
Number of days with:
	Fog:  5 
	Ice Pellets:  1   	
	Glaze:  0 	
	Thunder:  0 	
	Hail:  0 	
	Damaging Winds:  1	

DAILY NOTES:

1: Very mild with calm winds, fog and occasional light AM showers.  Cold front moved
   though by 1pm with a brief heavy downpour and strong winds gusting 30-40 mph and
   higher in some areas causing scattered damage.  Temperatures dropped from a balmy
   high of 72 F shortly after noon to 38 F by midnight.
2: Some early light drizzle then became mostly sunny with diminishing winds.
3: Partly cloudy with some light drizzle mainly early, calm wind.
4: Strong west winds gusting to 30 mph overnight and through the morning.  Partly
   cloudy skies.
5: Cloudy early then partly cloudy with light SW winds.
6: Sunny with increasing clouds by 4pm.
7: Partly cloudy and colder with occasional gusty NW winds.  Light snow showers began
   around 3pm accumulating 0.5" by midnight.
8: Flurries ended overnight.  Partly cloudy, blustery and cold.
9: Sunny and milder with calmer winds.
10: Cool morning but a big rebound to a high of 62 F with sunshine.
11: Sunny and mild high 65 F.
12: Sunny and mild with increasing clouds after noon.
13: A period of light rain overnight .08" fell.  Became partly cloudy, mild again.
14: Early fog then clearing and continued unseasonably mild high 64 F.
15: Partly cloudy and mild this morning.  Became windy this afteroon with gusts to
    30 mph and falling temperatures.
16: Partly cloudy and cooler with diminishing winds.
17: Cloudy and very mild high 67 F.
18: Cloudy, breezy and mild this morning with an early high of 62 F and a period of
    light drizzle around 10am then temperatures dropped after midday.
19: Cloudy early becoming clear by 10am with moderate north breezes.
20: Sunny and milder.
21: Cloudy with a few brief light showers during the early morning, trace.
22: Cloudy with steady moderate rain developing, continued all day and ended by 10pm
    1.15" fell.  Fog developed by noon.
23: Partly cloudy and breezy.
24: Mostly cloudy with light west winds.
25: Cloudy with periods of rain developing by 11am.  Heavier rain with thunder around
    7:30pm.  First time thunder has been observed on Christmas day.  0.71" rain fell.
26: AM fog, clearing by 9am but remaining cloudy with occasional drizzle.
27: Cloudy and breezy early becoming sunny after 10am.
28: Partly cloudy early becoming cloudy by noon.
29: Partly cloudy with light winds.
30: Sunny with occasional light west breezes.
31: Cloudy and calm with period of rain beginning around 4pm, .20" fell by midnight.

SUMMARY:

This was the warmest December in 15 years of records, beginning with a record high of
72 on the 1st.  Temperatures were consistently above normal with only a few brief cold
spells and no extreme cold.  The month's low of 20 was the warmest December min on
record.  Precipitation was right on my 15-year mean of 2.56 inches, but this mean is
skewed as we've had a streak of dry Decembers (8 of the last 10 Decembers below 2.6
inches).  Most of the month's precipitation fell around the Christmas holiday.  Only
0.5" snow fell, which ties for the 2nd lowest December total.  A quick look back
through the records since 1948 and this becomes the second warmest December ever, with
only 1984 warmer (41.2 F).  However, a record mean max temperature was set this month
with a very mild average high of 50.2 F.

Additional notes/records

1: Record high 72 F
14: Record high 64 F
18: Record high min temp 44 F
22: Record daily precipitation 1.15" fell.
23: Record high min temp 45 F

December 2006 was the 2nd warmest December ever with a mean temperature of 40.7 F.
The warmest was 1984 (41.2 F).  However, December 2006 set a new record for an average
maximum temperature of 50.2 F.

2006 was the WARMEST YEAR ON RECORD with a mean temperature of 54.5 F.  The mean max
was 64.6 F (4th) while the mean min was the warmest ever 44.9 F.