LIMA, OH (WLIO) - While the summer temperatures aren't finished yet, Thursday marked the end of meteorological summer. Our Nathan Kitchens takes a look back at our summer weather.
The meteorological summer season, which runs from June to August has officially wrapped up. The climate data reveals it was a cooler and drier summer for west-central Ohio.
Weather data from the Allen County Airport shows temperatures averaged more than 2° below normal in June, while July averaged slightly above normal. However, August wrapped up the summer with temperatures averaging more than 1° below normal. On August 31st, the morning low of 45° was just 4° shy of a record. Rainfall has been harder to come by this summer with each month coming in drier than normal.
For the state as a whole, what stands out for summer 2023 is the number of tornadoes. The state has already experienced more than double the normal amount of tornadoes for the year, with more than 50 touchdowns since January 1st.
Two distinct "outbreaks" of tornadoes stand out. On June 15th, a dozen tornadoes touched down from Toledo to Sandusky. On August 24th, northern Ohio was once again the target of another tornado outbreak. A dozen tornadoes touched down with this event, hitting the Cleveland area the hardest.
Our area was not completely spared. A rogue storm on August 12th dropped an EF-1 tornado just south of Kenton, staying on the ground for six minutes. This twister flattened a garage and damaged several homes.
What else stands out this summer? Wildfire smoke. Canada has experienced a record-breaking number of fires, and that has consequently led to smoke-filled skies and poor air quality working into Ohio on multiple occasions since late May. Fires continue to scorch portions of Canada, particularly British Columbia and Alberta.
What weather can we expect moving into September? This is a transitional month as fall officially arrives on the calendar. The normal high drops from 80 on the 1st to 71 on the 30th. The average overnight low drops from 58 to 49 through the month. Daylight continues to decrease substantially, losing one hour and 17 minutes.
If you are not ready to let go of summer, there is good news in the September forecast. The NOAA climate prediction center is expecting above-normal temperatures to dominate. This does not mean there won't be below-average days, but a majority of the time looks to skew above the normals. Rainfall is expected to follow a similar trend we have experienced all summer, with drier conditions favored.
