August will go in the record books as a wet and mild month throughout Denton County. Unlike July, we had no 100 degree days.
Our hottest day was August 6th, when we reached 98 degrees. Our coolest morning lows were on the 3rd and 9th when touched 68 degrees before sunrise. Our day-night average monthly temperature was 82.4 degrees, nearly 2 degrees cooler than normal.
Rainfall again was plentiful during the month. Denton Enterprise Airport picked up .12″ on the 1st and 2nd. Ten days later, we started a streak of rainy weather, including 1.07″ on the 12th, .21″ on the 13th, .28″ on the 14th, .02″ on 15th and .89″ on the 17th. Toward the end of the month, an unusual August cold front launched a series of storms south of the Red River with over 2.42″ of rain recorded on the 24th and 25th.
Through August 27th, Denton’s official August rainfall total was 5.13 inches, which was over 3 inches above normal for one of our driest months of the year. So far this year, Denton has received over 27 inches of rain (similar to what Houston received in one day, thanks to Harvey).
Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Rockport, TX Friday night, August 25, as a Category 4 storm with 132 mph winds. Harvey was the first hurricane to reach Texas since Ike in 2008 and the worst since Carla in 1961. As it remained close to the Gulf, Tropical Storm Harvey was able to maintain an unlimited moisture supply and tropical storm-strength winds of 40 mph, drawing massive, torrential rain bands up over Galveston and Houston, whose rain gauges had exceeded 51 inches. Harvey finally exited Texas on August 30th and outlasted some broadcast careers and even a few marriages.
Looking ahead, Pacific Ocean temperatures are near normal and expected to remain so through the end of the year, so there are no abnormal trends in our long-range forecast through September and October.
Brad Barton is Chief Meteorologist of WBAP 820/KLIF 570/99.5 “The Wolf” and the Texas Rangers Baseball Club.
