Summer ends near average, but heat may linger into fall
Meteorological fall officially began on September 1st, but the summer heat may stick around.
This past summer, from June 1st to August 31st, experienced near-average temperatures and rainfall in Columbia. The average high was slightly cooler than normal at 85.7 degrees, 1.2 degrees below average.
Those cooler temperatures may be linked to above-average rainfall, with Columbia recording 13.33 inches of rain during the season, exceeding the average of 12.5. inches.
However, as Jayson Gosselin at the National Weather Service in St. Louis says, we saw a tale of two seasons as rain tapered off in August.
"It was kind of, especially in terms of rainfall, a tale of two seasons where most of that rain was in June and maybe the first week or two of July, and then August, especially the last half of July and August was very dry. August was the 2nd driest on record." Jayson says.
June alone accounted for 7.91 inches of rain, making it the 12th wettest June on record. In contrast, August was notably dry, with only 0.11 inches of rain, ranking as the second driest August in Columbia's history.
This lack of rain has left nearly 50% of the state in drought, with over 90% of Missouri experiencing drier-than-normal conditions.
Jayson says most drought impacts are being felt in pastures and ranges, with ponds and streams getting low. Grasses are also going dormant, meaning farmers will have to use more hay to feed their livestock.
This dry spell at least arrived after much of the growing season for Missouri's crops. "The crops, though, like corn, the state numbers look great. And soybeans are also pretty good. There are some spots where the soybean crop is hurting, but statewide, it's going pretty well." Jayson says.
Fall might not bring much relief as forecasts indicate warmer and drier conditions in the coming months. The seasonal outlook from now through November has nearly the entire country experiencing warmer-than-normal temperatures. Dry conditions are also expected for much of the South-Central United States through early winter.
