Florida Winter Begins With Very Warm December

December 2021 Was Among The Top 5 Warmest At Nearly All East Central Florida Climate Sites. High pressure and weak frontal boundaries dominated the weather pattern during December.  The month was generally dry, with a majority of the climate sites reporting precipitation totals below normal. 

December 2021 was also a very warm month, with six of the seven official climate sites recording it as one of the Top 5 warmest on record.

Follow Phillip

@majikphil

Temperatures

Despite high pressure over the local area beginning the month, the first several days of December 2021 were near to slightly below normal across the area, in the mid to upper 70°s. However, this changed after the first week, as a weak cold front stalled across northern Florida, then lifted northward as a warm front the night of the 7th. After this, low to mid-80°s prevailed across the area, as a couple of weak fronts on the 9th and the 12th-13th stalled across the area before washing out. 

With no relief from cool fronts, temperatures rose to well above normal, with average temperatures 10° above normal. This continued through the 19th, when average temperatures peaked at up to 16° to 17° above normal across northern portions of the area.

Many record highs and record warm minimums were set during this period. However, notably, on the 19th, six of the seven official climate sites recorded new record warm temperatures, whether it was a record high or record warm minimum. Sanford, which failed to fall below 72° that day, also tied the record warm minimum on record for December at the site, which was last set on December 3rd, 1991.

By the 31st of December, every climate site recorded at least one record high for the month, as highs soared into the mid-80°s. With weak frontal boundaries providing little relief for much of the month and high pressure prevailing overall, December 2021 ended up as a Top 5 warmest December on record for six of the seven east central Florida climate sites.

Daily Record Temperatures for the Month
Daytona Beach - December 11th: Set record high of 84°. Previous record was 83° set in 1961. - December 19th: Set record warm minimum of 71°. Previous record was 67° set in 1931. 

Leesburg - Inland Florida was really hot - December 11th: Tied record high of 85°  last set in 1995. - December 12th: Tied record high of 84° last set in 2015. - December 13th: Set record high of 85°. Previous record was 84° set in 2016. - December 19th: Set record warm minimum of 70°. Previous record was 67° set in 2016. - December 29th: Tied record high of 84° last set in 2015. - December 31st: Set record high of 85°. Previous record was 83° set in 2015. 

Sanford - December 11th: Tied record high of 85° last set in 1986. - December 19th: Set record warm minimum of 72°. Previous record was 68° set in 2016. This also tied the warmest minimum temperature on record for December at this site, previously set on December 3rd, 1991. - December 20th: Set record warm minimum of 65°. Previous record was 63° set in 1956. 

Orlando - December 19th: Set record warm minimum of 71°. Previous record was 69° set in 2016. - December 20th: Tied record warm minimum of 65° last set in 1898. 

Melbourne - December 19th: Set record high of 86°. Previous record was 84 set in 1990. Also, set record warm minimum of 69°. Previous record was 68° set in 1961. 

Vero Beach - December 8th: Set record high of 87°. Previous record was 85° set in 1978. - December 12th: Set record high of 88°. Previous record was 86° set in 1986. - December 14th: Tied record warm minimum of 71° last set in 2013. - December 16th: Set record high of 85°. Previous record was 84° set in 2015. Also, set record warm minimum of 74°. Previous record was 71° set in 2001. - December 19th: Tied record high of 85° last set in 1990. - December 20th: Tied record high of 85° last set in 2018. Also, tied record warm minimum of 70° last set in 2006. - December 30th: Tied record high of 84° last set in 2015. - December 31st: Set record high of 85°s. Previous record was 84° set in 2015. 

Fort Pierce - December 31st: Tied record high of 85° last set in 1912. 

AVERAGE TEMPERATURES DECEMBER 2021
Average temperatures for December 2021 at the primary climate sites across east central Florida are as follows (rankings provided if in the top 10): -

Daytona Beach had a monthly average temperature of 67.7° Fahrenheit, which was 5.9° above normal. This ranks as the 4th warmest December on record for this site, with records going back to 1923.

Leesburg had a monthly average temperature of 69.7° Fahrenheit, which was 7.5° above normal. This ranks as the 2nd warmest December on record for this site, with records going back to 1958.  

Sanford had a monthly average temperature of 69.8° Fahrenheit, which was 6.7° above normal. This ranks as the 2nd warmest December on record for this site, with records going back to 1948.  

Orlando had a monthly average temperature of 69.9° Fahrenheit, which was 6.6° above normal. This ranks as the 4th warmest December on record for this site, with records going back to 1892. - Melbourne had a monthly average temperature of 69.0° Fahrenheit, which was 2.8° above normal. This ties December 2007 as the 5th warmest December on record for this site, with records going back to 1937.  

Vero Beach had a monthly average temperature of 70.2° Fahrenheit, which was 4.5° above normal. This ranks as the 4th warmest December on record for this site, with records going back to 1942. - 

Fort Pierce had a monthly average temperature of 68.3° Fahrenheit, which was 
2.8° above normal.

Rainfall
December 2021 was largely a dry month, with only a handful of days contributing to the rainfall totals. 

Daily Record Rainfall for the Month: 

Daytona Beach - December 21st: Record rainfall of 2.67 inches. Previous record was 1.29 inches set in 1972. 

Leesburg - December 21st: Record rainfall of 0.94 inches. Previous record was 0.77 inches set in 1960. 

Sanford - December 21st: Record rainfall of 1.12 inches. Previous record was 0.73 inches set in 1971. Orlando: - No daily record rainfalls set or tied. 

Melbourne - December 20th: Record rainfall of 1.60 inches. Previous record was 1.52 inches set in 1973. Vero Beach: - No daily rainfall records set or tied. 

Fort Pierce - No daily record rainfalls set or tied. 

December 2021 Rainfall
For the primary climate sites across east central Florida are as follows (ranking provided if in the top 10): 

Daytona Beach received 3.65 inches of rain for the month, which was 1.31 inches above normal. 

Leesburg received 1.86 inches of rain for the month, which was 0.31 inches below normal. 

Sanford received 2.34 inches of rain for the month, which was 0.10 inches above normal. 

Orlando received 2.08 inches of rain for the month, which was 0.40 inches below normal. 

Melbourne received 3.39 inches of rain for the month, which was 1.03 inches above normal. 

Vero Beach received 0.36 inches of rain for the month, which was 2.18 inches below normal. This ranks as the 5th driest December on record for this site, with records dating back to 1942. 

Fort Pierce received 1.28 inches of rain for the month, which was 1.05 inches below normal. 

Below is a list of observed precipitation totals and rainfall statistics for select sites across east central Florida for December 2021:

Station December 2021 Normal Departure Percent of Rainfall Rainfall From Normal Normal Daytona Beach 3.65" 2.34" +1.31" 156% (DAB) Orlando 2.08" 2.48" -0.40" 84% (MCO) Melbourne 3.39" 2.36" +1.03" 144% (MLB) Vero Beach 0.36" 2.54" -2.18" 14% (VRB) Clermont* 0.88" 1.81" -0.93" 49% (CLRF1) Leesburg 1.86" 2.17" -0.31" 86% (LEE) DeLand* 2.03" 2.32" -0.29" 88% (DELF1) Sanford 2.34" 2.24" +0.10" 104% (SFB) Titusville* 3.84" 2.51" +1.33" 153% (TITF1) Fort Pierce 1.28" 2.33" -1.05" 55% (FPR) Stuart* 1.21" 4.16" -2.95" 29% *Rainfall totals for the month end around 7 AM on the 31st. For more local climate information, please visit the National Weather Service (NOAA) web page at http://weather.gov/mlb and click on the "Climate" icon toward the bottom of the page.

The Heat is On!

Southern Hemisphere Scorcher

Continues in 2022

Summer south of the equator is proving to be a scorcher. In mid-January 2022, sweltering heat gripped central South America and temperatures soared to more than 40°C (104°F). At the time, it was the hottest place on the planet. That title soon shifted to Western Australia, where temperatures climbed to more than 50°C (122°F) and a town north of Perth tied for the hottest temperature ever measured in the Southern Hemisphere (preliminary data).

The searing heat is apparent on these maps, derived from the Goddard Earth Observing System (GEOS) model. The maps depict air temperatures at 2 meters (about 6.5 feet) above the ground. The darkest reds indicate where temperatures were highest on January 11 in Argentina (above) and on January 13 in Australia (below).

According to Argentina’s National Meteorological Service (SMN), ground stations in Buenos Aires recorded a temperature of 41.1°C (106°F) on January 11. That’s the city’s second-hottest day on record. Elsewhere in Argentina, temperatures in Córdoba and Punta Indio climbed above 41°C. The extreme heat extended west toward the Andes Mountains, as well as north into Paraguay and Uruguay.

The heat took a toll on Argentina’s power grid, leaving more than 700,000 customers without power. The high temperatures were also expected to scorch crops, such as soy and corn, that have already suffered from extended drought.

Meanwhile on the other side of the planet, a heatwave was spreading across Western Australia. On January 13, ground stations in Onslow showed the temperature peaking at 50.7°C (123.3°F). If confirmed by Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology, the temperature will equal the hottest day on record for the southern hemisphere. The previous record was measured in Oodnadatta, South Australia, in 1960. Near Onslow, the towns of Mardie and Roebourne also saw temperatures climb above 50°C.

According to The Washington Post, the events in Argentina and Western Australia both resulted from heat domes that set up over each area. The phenomenon occurs when high pressure in the mid- to upper-atmosphere acts as a cap, trapping warm air as it rises and pushing it back down to warm the surface even more.

NASA Earth Observatory images by Lauren Dauphin, using GEOS-5 data from the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office at NASA GSFC. Story by Kathryn Hansen.