2014 Was Warmer, Wetter and Sunnier Than Average

The year 2014 ended with a 24-hour corrected mean temperature of 49.0F, which was 1.4F warmer than the 120-year average but only 0.1F above the 30-year normal. This was the coolest year since 2009. The maximum temperature for the year was 91F on July 3rd and September 2nd, and the coldest temperature was -4F on January 4th. There were only three 90-degree days in 2014, three fewer than average, and two of these occurred in September.

Annual precipitation totaled 54.97 inches, which was more than six inches wetter than the 120-year average and about 1.5 inches wetter than the 1981-2010 average. There were 21 days with thunderstorms during the year, which is one fewer than average. September was the driest on record with only 0.41 inches being measured.  There were several extreme rainfall events during the year. Hurricane Arthur passed offshore of New England on July 4th-5th bringing a total of 2.74 inches of rainfall, which included a daily record of 2.48 inches on July 4th.  An extended Nor’easter that brought a storm total of 6.18 inches of precipitation from October 22nd to the 24th also set daily records of 2.38 inches and 3.66 inches on October 22nd and 23rd.  Another Nor’easter on December 9th-11th brought a storm total of 3.72 inches, which included a new daily rainfall record of 3.23 inches on December 9th.  This was the third wettest calendar day on record for December since 1885.

Snowfall for the calendar year totaled 80.9 inches, or about 20 inches more than the long-term average of 61 inches. Most of this snowfall, 66.1 inches, fell in the snowy months of January and February 2014. The largest single snowfall was 15.6 inches, which fell on January 2nd-3rd, and this was followed by the coldest temperatures of that winter.

The annual mean wind speed of 12.3 mph was the third lowest on record behind 11.8 mph observed in 2012 and 12.2 mph in 2013. This continues the several decade long trend of decreasing mean wind speeds on Blue Hill. The peak wind gust for the year was 62 mph from the S during a Spring rain storm on April 15th that ended in a light snowfall on the following day.

Bright sunshine for the year was 54 percent of possible, which was two percent more than the long-term average sunshine, and this was one percent less than the sunshine recorded last year.