BLUE HILL METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATORY MILTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02186 ELEVATION 635 FEET, 10 MILES SSW OF BOSTON, MA DAILY DISCUSSION AND CLIMATE SUMMARY WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 15, 2007 ALL TIMES ARE IN EASTERN STANDARD TIME S-SSW WINDS ON THE INCREASE AFTER SIX DAYS IN THE DOLDRUMS SUNSHINE THROUGH MOSTLY HIGH THIN CLOUDINESS TODAY TEMPERATURES WARMING INTO THE 80'S BUT DEWPOINTS 55 TO 60 A peak gust to 36 MPH SSW has been recorded at 12:30 p.m. EDT. Increasing winds from the south and south-southwest have been gusting over 30 MPH at times. Today's average wind speed will easily exceed 10 MPH which has not happened for six consecutive days. While nowhere near a record long time to be in the dolbrums it is among some of the longest stretches of light winds which often occur during August. I think that the most recent long stretch was 9 days several years ago. Sunshine is again prevailing today after a nearly pefectly sunny day on Tuesday with 97% of the possible bright sunshine. August continues on track as a very sunny month with 69% of the possible bright sunshine as compared to a long-term average of about 56%. Temperatures have reached the lower 80's by early this afternoon easily surpassing yesterday's maximum of 78 degrees but humidity is not that much of a factor with dewpoints near or even slightly below the 60-degree mark and falling to the mid-50's early this afternoon. Lack of rainfall continues to be the main weather headline this month as the month's departure increases well beyond one inch less than normal. Just to our east in northern Plymouth county, our Hingham cooperative station reports only 39% of normal rainfall since June 4th. An observer at Scituate has recorded even less rain- fall with an estimated 25% of normal. The area has missed almost all of the important shower and thunderstorm activity that has moved through other parts of eastern Massachusetts this summer. Today's observations: 7 A.M. Weather: Scattered altocumulus, high thin broken cirrus, thin fog below inversion Temperature: 63F, Dew point: 61F, Wind: S at 10 kts Sea-level pressure: 29.91 inches Hg, falling Visibility: 15 miles 6-hour min temp: 59 deg. F 24-hour precip: None BHO SA 1155 150 SCT 180 SCT 250 –BKN 15 131/63/61/1910/992/FEW DSNT STRA STRA/PARTIAL UNDRCST DSSPTD PST HR VSBY WNW 50 ABV INVSN THN F BLO INVSN/ 8/641 58002 10063 20059 10 A.M. Weather: High thin scattered cirrus, few cumulus forming ESE-S, few altocumulus castellanus W-N and light haze Temperature: 77F, Dew point: 57F, Wind: SSW at 20G28 kts Wind: peak wind from SSW at 28 kts at 54 past the hour Sea-level pressure: 29.88 inches Hg, falling Visibility: 45 miles, light haze BHO SA 1455 250 –SCT 45 119/77/57/2020G28/988/ CU FRMG ESE-S FEW ACC W-N LGT HZ PK WND 2028/54/ 8/181 58012 1 P.M. Weather: High thin scattered clouds, few cumulus E-S Temperature: 83F, Dew point: 55F, Wind: SSW at 14G29 kts Wind: peak wind 29 kts SSW, Variability S-WSW Sea-level pressure: 29.85 inches Hg, falling Visibility: 40 miles 6-hour max temp: 83 deg. F BHO SA 1755 180 –SCT 220 –SCT 250 –SCT 40 110/83/55/2114G29/985/ FEW SML CU DSNT E-SSE FEW LWR ACSL DSNT SE-S LGT HZ PK WND 2129/49/ WND 18V24/ 8/141 58009 10083 20063 WEATHER SUMMARY FOR TUESDAY, AUGUST 14 TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F) MAX.....78 NORMAL.....80 MIN.....58 NORMAL.....61 MEAN....68 NORMAL.....70 DEPARTURE FROM 30-YEAR NORMAL........ -2 TOTAL DEPARTURE FOR THE MONTH........+23 (+1.4 DEGREES/DAY) PEAK GUST AND AVERAGE WIND SPEED (MPH) PEAK WIND GUST FOR YESTERDAY..............23 NW AT 4:35 A.M. AEROVANE...............20 SE AT 11:40 P.M. * ASOS...................N/A # DAVIS..................21 SE AT 8:59 P.M. FASTEST MILE FOR YESTERDAY................15 SE AT 11:48 P.M. * MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE ASOS AVERAGE.............N/A # MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS AVERAGE............17 SE AT 9:00 P.M. AVERAGE WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION..........9.3 NW ASOS...................N/A # DAVIS..................9.7 WNW [300 deg.] * last of several occurrences... # ASOS WINDS SWITCHED OFF BY NWS 6/6, IT IS NOT KNOWN WHEN THAT DATA WILL RESUME PRECIPITATION (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST) TOTAL PRECIPITATION 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M....0.00 DEPARTURE.....-0.13 ASOS..............0.00 TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH..........0.47 DEPARTURE.....-1.32 # ASOS..............0.43 TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE YEAR..........30.83 DEPARTURE.....-0.37 # ASOS FOR YEAR..........30.10 # corrected data PRELIMINARY CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR AUGUST 2007......CALENDAR DAY DATA DATA REPORTED: DATE: MAX/MIN/MEAN/DEP/PRECIP/SUN(MIN.)/SUN(%)/ PEAK GUST/AERO GUST AERO: Aerovane recording wind system when significant TSTM: Thunderstorm day ....: Data not yet available 8/1 84/67/76/+4/0/851/98 20 NNE 8/2 92/68/80/+8/0/823/95 21 S 8/3 92/70/81/+9/0/760/88 28 SSW 8/4 89/71/80/+8/0/827/96 29 WSW 8/5 80/62/71/-1/0/842/98 23 SSE 8/6 77/61/69/-3/0.05/129/15 36 SSE Aero 34 MPH SSE TSTM 8/7 82/67/75/+4/0.12/410/48 15 SSE 8/8 88/70/79/+8/0.10/349/41 36 S 8/9 75/60/68/-3/0/722/85 32 NW 8/10 63/53/58/-13/0.19/017/02 16 SSW 8/11 83/52/68/-3/0/743/88 21 WNW 8/12 86/64/75/+4/0/665/79 21 SSW 8/13 83/64/74/+3/0.01/260/31 30 NW TSTM 8/14 78/58/68/-2/0/.../.. 23 NW 8/15 morning low temp. 59 deg; normal low now 61 deg. NEW DAILY RECORDS FOR AUGUST 2007: None to date DAILY EXTREMES Temperature and precipitation records back to 1885, and wind records back to 1940 (e = estimated): RECORDS FOR AUGUST 15 HIGH 95F IN 1928 LOW 47F IN 1964 PRECIP 1.55 INCHES IN 2004 PEAK GUST 44e MPH S IN 1941 RECORDS FOR AUGUST 16 HIGH 95F IN 1944 LOW 50F IN 1927 PRECIP 1.47 INCHES IN 1926 PEAK GUST 45e MPH N IN 1951 TODAY'S REPORT PREPARED By: Robert Skilling and Eli Melaas