From record warmth to severe storms, parts of November certainly didn’t feel very November-like for the Plains.
Toward the middle of the month, several spots from the northern to central plain broke record highs as temperatures soared into the eighties and nineties several days in a row. Grand Island, Neb. marked their latest date ever of a high of 85°F or greater when the temperature hit 85°F there on Nov. 14. Maybe even more impressive were monthly records broken in Lawton, Okla. and Wichita Falls, Texas where both spots had temperatures soar to 92°F for highs on Nov. 15. The previous week Lubbock, Texas also noted record warmth with a record high for Nov. 11 of 86°F.
This warmth did follow a stretch of cool air though. Just the day before that record breaking heat in Lubbock, Waco, Texas hit a record cold low for Nov. 10 of 29°F.
Meanwhile, Texas and Oklahoma dealt with a few days of severe storms toward the end of the month. We even had a severe storm push through eastern Nebraska earlier in the month.
As we look ahead toward December, temperatures are forecast to be above average for all of Texas and into southern Oklahoma. On the other hand, much of Nebraska into northeast Kansas are expected to feel temperatures average below normal for the month.
For December, western and south central Texas will see below normal precipitation.
Through February, all of southern Texas into west central Texas will likely pick up less than normal precipitation.
During that same three month stretch, southern into western Texas will see temperatures average above normal with below normal temperatures continuing for northern Nebraska.
In the wider view, La Niña conditions remain and are forecast to continue through at least December. By late winter or early spring, a transition to ENSO-Neutral is expected.
I’m always keeping an eye to the sky (and the weather patterns), so watch for January’s update.
Editor’s note: Regina Bird grew up on a farm near Belleville, Kansas. The views from the farm helped spur her interest in weather. Following high school, she went on to get a bachelor’s degree in meteorology from the University of Kansas. She worked as a television meteorologist for nine years in Nebraska. Follow her on Twitter: @ReginaBirdWX.
