WFO San Angelo Climatology

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN ANGELO TX
934 PM CDT WED MAY 10 2006

...9TH WARMEST APRIL FOR ABILENE AND 11TH WARMEST APRIL FOR
SAN ANGELO...

TEMPERATURES AVERAGED WELL ABOVE NORMAL IN APRIL. PRECIPITATION
VARIED FROM WELL ABOVE TO WELL BELOW NORMAL. THIS WAS LARGELY A
RESULT OF WHERE BANDS OF HEAVY RAIN OCCURRED WITH SHOWER AND
THUNDERSTORM EPISODES DURING THE MONTH. THE GREATEST RAINFALL
TOTALS FOR THE MONTH OF 2 TO 3.5 INCHES OCCURRED ACROSS
SCATTERED PARTS OF WEST CENTRAL TEXAS. LESS THAN ONE HALF INCH
OF RAINFALL WAS RECEIVED IN PARTS OF THE NORTHERN EDWARDS
PLATEAU.

AT ABILENE REGIONAL AIRPORT...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR APRIL
WAS 70.1 DEGREES. THIS WAS 5.5 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE OF 64.6 DEGREES. THIS  MARKS THE 9TH WARMEST APRIL
ON RECORD FOR ABILENE. TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR APRIL WAS 3.17
INCHES. THIS WAS 1.5 INCHES ABOVE THE MONTHLY NORMAL OF 1.67
INCHES.

AT SAN ANGELO REGIONAL AIRPORT...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR
APRIL WAS 70.8 DEGREES. THIS WAS 5.8 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 65.0 DEGREES. THIS MARKS THE 11H WARMEST
APRIL ON RECORD FOR SAN ANGELO. TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR APRIL
WAS 1.34 INCHES. THIS WAS 0.26 INCHES BELOW THE MONTHLY NORMAL
OF 1.60 INCHES.


APRIL 2006 WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS...

AS AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE MOVED EAST AND INTERACTED WITH
MOIST AND UNSTABLE AIR OVER THE REGION ON THE NIGHT OF THE 1ST...
A CLUSTER OF STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS MOVED ACROSS THE CENTRAL
AND SOUTH-CENTRAL PART OF WEST CENTRAL TEXAS. SEVERAL STORMS
PRODUCED HAIL RANGING FROM PENNY TO QUARTER SIZE. A FEW
LOCATIONS RECEIVED A HALF TO ONE INCH OF RAINFALL.

VERY DRY AIR MOVED INTO WEST CENTRAL TEXAS FOLLOWING A
DRYLINE PASSAGE ON THE 2ND. RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES DROPPED
TO LESS THAN 20 PERCENT ACROSS MUCH OF THE REGION ON THE
AFTERNOON OF THE 2ND.

AS A POTENT STORM SYSTEM MOVED EAST INTO THE CENTRAL PLAINS
ON THE 6TH...A DRYLINE ADVANCED EASTWARD ACROSS WEST CENTRAL
TEXAS. STRONG GUSTY WEST WINDS FOLLOWED THIS DRYLINE PASSAGE
AND BROUGHT VERY DRY AIR INTO THE REGION. A WIND GUST NEAR
50 MPH WAS REACHED IN SWEETWATER...AND A PEAK GUST OF 44 MPH
WAS RECORDED AT ABILENE. WITH THE DRY AIR INVASION...RELATIVE
HUMIDITY VALUES FELL INTO THE 5 TO 15 PERCENT RANGE ACROSS
MUCH OF WEST CENTRAL TEXAS. AREAS OF BLOWING DUST DEVELOPED
AND SPREAD ACROSS THE BIG COUNTRY ON THE AFTERNOON OF THE
6TH...REDUCING VISIBILITY TO 2-3 MILES AT TIMES. THE GUSTY
WEST WINDS OCCURRED ONCE AGAIN ON THE 7TH WITH A VERY DRY
AIRMASS...AS THE STORM REMAINED OVER THE CENTRAL PLAINS. A
PEAK WIND GUST OF 45 MPH WAS RECORDED IN ABILENE. RELATIVE
HUMIDITY VALUES DROPPED INTO THE 5 TO 15 PERCENT RANGE ACROSS
MUCH OF THE REGION.

A PERIOD OF UNSEASONABLY HOT AND VERY DRY CONDITIONS OCCURRED
ACROSS THE REGION IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MONTH (15TH-18TH). A
DRYLINE MOVED EAST ACROSS WEST CENTRAL TEXAS ON THESE DAYS
WHILE PARTIALLY RETREATING TO THE WEST AT NIGHT. HIGH
TEMPERATURES ON THESE DAYS GENERALLY RANGED FROM 95 TO 100
DEGREES...BUT HIGHS EXCEEDED 100 AT A FEW LOCATIONS. RECORD
HIGH TEMPERATURES WERE SET AT ABILENE ON THE 15TH AND 17TH...
AND AT SAN ANGELO ON THE 15TH AND 16TH. A VERY DRY AIRMASS
WAS SITUATED IN THE AREA BEHIND THE DRYLINE...AND AFTERNOON
RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES DROPPED INTO THE 5 TO 15 PERCENT
RANGE ON THESE DAYS. ON THE LATE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING
OF THE 18TH...A FEW SEVERE STORMS OCCURRED NEAR A DRYLINE
ALONG EAST AND SOUTHEAST EDGE OF WEST CENTRAL TEXAS. LARGE
HAIL FROM PENNY TO QUARTER SIZE WAS REPORTED.

A QUICK RETURN OF MOISTURE TO THE REGION OUT AHEAD OF AN
UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE ALLOWED NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS TO OCCUR ACROSS THE BIG COUNTRY FROM THE
LATE EVENING OF THE 19TH TO THE MORNING OF THE 20TH. MORE
WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OCCURRED ACROSS WEST
CENTRAL TEXAS ON THE 20TH AS THE UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE
ENTERED THE REGION FROM THE WEST. WITH THE EXCEPTION OF
CROCKETT COUNTY...RAINFALL AMOUNTS OVER ONE HALF INCH
OCCURRED THROUGHOUT WEST CENTRAL TEXAS. SCATTERED LOCATIONS
RECEIVED ONE TO THREE INCHES. THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL...
RANGING FROM 2 TO 4 INCHES...FELL IN A 30-MILE WIDE BAND
ROUGHLY ALONG AND NORTH OF INTERSTATE 20 IN THE BIG COUNTRY.
SEVERAL SEVERE STORMS ALSO OCCURRED ON THE 19TH AND 20TH.
NEARLY A DOZEN REPORTS OF LARGE HAIL WERE RECEIVED. THE
HAIL RANGED FROM PENNY TO GOLFBALL SIZE. THE GOLFBALL SIZE
HAIL FELL NEAR ABILENE AND AT TRENT.

A BAND OF STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS OCCURRED OVER THE CONCHO
VALLEY AND HEARTLAND ON THE LATE AFTERNOON AND EARLY
EVENING OF THE 26TH. LARGE HAIL OF QUARTER TO GOLFBALL
SIZE HAIL WAS REPORTED IN SAN ANGELO. SEVERAL OTHER SEVERE
STORMS PRODUCED LARGE HAIL ACROSS THE CONCHO VALLEY AND
HEARTLAND. RAINFALL AMOUNTS FROM THE STORMS WAS GENERALLY
LESS THAN ONE HALF INCH.

A MORE WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER EVENT OCCURRED ON THE
28TH. WITH UNSTABLE AIR OVER THE REGION...NUMEROUS SEVERE
STORMS OCCURRED AS A STRONG UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM
MOVED ACROSS SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO. ALTHOUGH SEVERAL STORMS
PRODUCED STRONG WINDS...MOST OF THE SEVERE WEATHER REPORTS
WERE FOR LARGE HAIL. GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL FELL IN COKE...
TOM GREEN...MENARD AND KIMBLE COUNTIES. WITH ONE OF THE
STORMS WHICH MOVED INTO THE SAN ANGELO AREA DURING THE
LATE EVENING HOURS...HAIL TO GOLFBALL SIZE AND WINDS OF
50 TO 70 MPH WERE REPORTED. A PEAK WIND GUST OF 52 MPH
WAS RECORDED AT THE SAN ANGELO REGIONAL AIRPORT. VERY
HEAVY RAIN ALSO ACCOMPANIED THE STORMS. THE HEAVIEST
RAINFALL OF 1 TO 3 INCHES OCCURRED ACROSS MUCH OF THE
AREA SOUTHEAST OF A LINE FROM RICHLAND SPRINGS TO OZONA.
SCATTERED LOCATIONS ACROSS THE BIG COUNTRY AND NORTHWESTERN
CONCHO VALLEY RECEIVED 1 TO 2 INCHES OF RAINFALL.

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