Wednesday, January 1, 2025

BLUE HILL METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATORY
MILTON, MASSACHUSETTS
ELEVATION 635 FEET, 10 MILES SSW OF BOSTON, MA

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 1, 2025
ALL TIMES ARE IN EASTERN STANDARD TIME (EST)
SUNRISE: 0713E
SUNSET:  1623E

WARM AND WET TO BEGIN THE NEW YEAR….

A storm system moved through this morning, delivering us with 0.54″
of rainfall to start 2025. Though the steady rain has come to an end,
occasional drizzle continues into the early afternoon, accompanied by fog.

Temperatures remain well above normal. The low of 41F occurred at midnight,
and thereafter temperatures rose until 6am, reaching a high of 47F. Since
then, we have remained in the mid to upper 40s.

Winds were steady overnight with the heavier precipitation, but have since
slowed significantly. The average speed so far is 11mph, though the past few
hours have been in the 6-8mph range. Our peak gust took place just after 1am
this morning, with a value of 35mph.

Visibility has been poor all day due to low clouds and fog. At best,
we could see 1/2 mile to the SE-SW at 7am, but views have since
worsened to 1/8 mile.

The maximum temperature for today is 47F degrees, which is 11 degrees
above the normal high of 36F. The minimum temperature since midnight
is 41F degrees, which is 20 degrees above the normal low of 21F.

As with many other recent years, 2024 ended up warmer than average. Below are
the years with the warmest annual 24-hour mean temperature, as compiled by
our chief scientist, Mike Iacono.

BHO Warmest Annual Approximated 24-Hour Mean Temperature, deg F (1885-2024):

1) 51.7 in 2012
2) 51.5 in 2023
3) 51.3 in 2020
51.3 in 2024
5) 51.2 in 2016
6) 51.1 in 2022
7) 51.0 in 2010
8) 50.9 in 1999
50.9 in 2021

————————————————————–

PRELIMINARY STATS FOR DECEMBER 2024

TEMPERATURE, Deg. F
Avg. Max. 40.4 [+0.2] Avg. Min. 25.5 [+0.6] Mean      33.0 [+0.5] 24-hour corrected mean: 32.9
Max. for month: 62F on the 11th
Min. for month:  4F on the 23rd

HEATING DEGREE DAYS
Total heating units:    989 [-017] Total for the season:  1932 [-278] Total for last season: 1895

COOLING DEGREE DAYS
Total cooling units:      0 [ 000] Total for the season:   768 [+091] Total for last season:  715

PRECIPITATION, Inches
Total: 7.58 [+2.19] Greatest in 24 hrs: 3.43 on the 11th-12th

SNOWFALL, Inches
Total: 12.6 [ 0.0] Greatest in 24 hrs: 9.4 on the 20th

WIND, mph
Avg. uncorrected wind speed: 11.4 mph
Avg. corrected wind speed:   11.9 mph
Prevailing wind direction:   West [13%] Peak gust and direction:  65 SSW on the 11th

SUNSHINE:
Campbell-Stokes card minutes: 9264 of a possible 16470, or 56%
Astronomical total minutes: 9558 of a possible 16999 or 56%

————————————————————–

Today’s Observations:

7 A.M.
Weather: Light rain and fog, sky obscured, vertical visibility 200ft
Temperature: 46F; Dew Point: 46F; Relative Humidity: 99%
Wind: E @ 7G13 kts
Sea-level pressure: 998.1 mb; 29.47 in. Hg: falling unsteadily
Visibility: 1/4 mile, 1/2 mile SE-SW
6-hr Max temp: 47F
6-hr Min temp: 41F
24-hr Precip:  0.38 inches
24-hr Snowfall: 0.0 inches
Snow Depth: 0 inches
BHO SA 1155 X W2 1/4R-F 981/46/46/1007G13/947/ VSBY 1/2 SE-SW/ 8//// 57028
70038 10047 20041

10 A.M.
Weather: Light drizzle and fog, sky obscured, vertical visibility 200ft
Temperature: 46F; Dew Point: 46F; Relative Humidity: 100%
Wind: N @ 3 kts, wind light
Sea-level pressure: 996.8 mb; 29.44 in. Hg: falling, then more slowly
Visibility: 1/8 mile
3-hr Precip:  0.14 inches
3-hr Snowfall: 0.0 inches
BHO SA 1455 X W2 1/8L-F 968/46/46/3503/944/ WND LGT/ 8//// 56013 6014/

1 P.M.
Weather: Very light drizzle and fog, sky obscured, vertical visibility 200ft
Temperature: 45F; Dew Point: 45F; Relative Humidity: 100%
Wind: W @ 7 kts
Sea-level pressure: 996.0mb; 29.41 in. Hg: falling, then rising
Visibility: 1/8 mile
6-hr Max temp: 46F
6-hr Min temp: 44F
6-hr Precip:  0.16 inches
6-hr Snowfall: 0.0 inches
Snow Depth: 0 inches
BHO SA 1755 X W2 1/8L-F 960/45/45/2807/941/ PCPN VRY LGT/ 8//// 55008 6016/
10046 20044

————————————————————–

SUMMARY FOR TUESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2024

TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)
MAX…….53  NORMAL…..36
MIN…….37  NORMAL…..21
MEAN……45  NORMAL…..29

DEPARTURE FROM 30-YEAR (1991-2020) NORMAL…………+16
TOTAL DEPARTURE FOR THE MONTH……………………+16 [+0.3 DEGREES/DAY]

HEATING DEGREE DAYS (SEASON: JUL 2024 THRU JUN 2025)
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR YESTERDAY……………20  DEPARTURE…….-16
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE MONTH…………..989  DEPARTURE…….-17
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE SEASON…………1932  DEPARTURE……-278
TOTAL HEATING UNITS LAST SEASON TO DATE…….1895  DEPARTURE…….+37

PEAK WIND GUST (MPH):
Note: Instruments designated #1 = Main Tower, #2 = South Tower,
F420C, Contacting, Merlin, and Richards are all on Main Tower.
E=Estimated

F420C (Official)………..29 E    @   11:38 P.M.
VECTOR #1 (1-Sec)……….29 E    @   11:38 P.M.
VECTOR #2 (1-Sec)……….27 E    @   11:39 P.M.
DAVIS #1……………….28 ESE  @   11:39 P.M.
DAVIS #2 ………………27 ESE  @   11:46 P.M.
RMY #1 (Instantaneous)…..28 E    @   11:38 P.M.
RMY #2 (Instantaneous)…..27 E    @   11:46 P.M.
MERLIN………………….M
RICHARDS (C5C) (Inst)…..OTS

FASTEST MILE:
CONTACTING ANEMOMETER/OFFICIAL………………22 ESE  @   11:28 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE VECTOR #1 AVERAGE…………..21      @   11:37 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE VECTOR #2 AVERAGE…………..19      @   11:40 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS #1 AVERAGE……………21 E    @   11:37 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS #2 AVERAGE……………20 ESE  @   11:40 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RMY #1 AVERAGE……………..20 ESE  @   11:37 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RMY #2 AVERAGE……………..19 E    @   11:40 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RICHARDS (C5C) AVERAGE……..OTS

AVERAGE WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION:
CONTACTING/OFFICIAL……..10.7 WSW [256 total miles] VECTOR #1………………11.0
VECTOR #2………………11.5
DAVIS #1……………….11.0 SSW
DAVIS #2……………….11.8 SW
RMY #1…………………10.7 SW
RMY #2…………………11.5 SSW
RICHARDS (C5C)…………..OTS

PRECIPITATION (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST):
TOTAL PRECIPITATION 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M……..0.38 DEPARTURE…..+0.22
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH…………..7.58 DEPARTURE…..+2.19
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE YEAR (2024)…….55.05 DEPARTURE…..+1.19

SNOWFALL (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST):
TOTAL SNOWFALL 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M…………..0.0 DEPARTURE……-0.5
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE MONTH……………….12.6 DEPARTURE…….0.0
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE SEASON (2024-2025)……12.6 DEPARTURE……-2.5

————————————————————–

PRELIMINARY CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR DECEMBER CALENDAR DAY DATA
DATE: MAX/MIN/MEAN/DEP/PRECIP/SNOW/SUN(MIN)/SUN(%)/PEAK GUST/VEC1/RMY GUST
PEAK GUST: F420C (Official)
VEC1: Vector #1 1-second gust
RMY:  R.M. Young #1 wind gust recording system (Instantaneous)
TSTM: Thunderstorm day (thunder heard some time during day)
….: Data not yet available, records not finalized
M:    Missing data

12/1   37/23/30/-7/0.00/0.0/452/81        21 WSW VEC1 21 WSW RMY 21
12/2   38/22/30/-7/0.00/0.0/551/99        18 W   VEC1 18 W   RMY 18
12/3   36/20/28/-8/0.00/0.0/411/74        21 NW  VEC1 21 WNW RMY 21
12/4   39/22/31/-5/0.13/T/394/71          30 S   VEC1 31 S   RMY 33
12/5   37/31/34/-2/0.40/3.0/072/13        43 WNW VEC1 43 WNW RMY 47
12/6   31/23/27/-8/0.00/0.0/514/93        39 NW  VEC1 39 W   RMY 42
12/7   37/22/30/-5/T/T/408/74             25 S   VEC1 25 S   RMY 26
12/8   47/28/38/+3/0.02/T/198/36          37 SSW VEC1 37 SSW RMY 40
12/9   47/34/41/+7/0.41/0.0/187/34        28 ENE VEC1 28 E   RMY 29
12/10  42/31/37/+3/0.15/0.0/000/00        31 NE  VEC1 32 NE  RMY 34
12/11  62/36/49/+15/3.38/0.0/000/00       65 SSW VEC1 67 SSW RMY 70 TSTM
12/12  53/25/39/+5/0.05/0.0/460/84        51 WNW VEC1 49 WNW RMY 51
12/13  31/19/25/-8/0.00/0.0/514/94        30 WNW VEC1 30 W   RMY 30
12/14  33/17/25/-8/0.00/0.0/546/100       20 NW  VEC1 19 NNW RMY 20
12/15  34/17/26/-7/0.00/0.0/377/69        17 N   VEC1 17 N   RMY 16
12/16  45/29/37/+5/T/0.0/005/01           35 SSE VEC1 35 SSE RMY 35
12/17  59/41/50/+18/0.25/0.0/360/66       48 SSW VEC1 50 SSW RMY 50
12/18  50/36/43/+11/0.57/0.0/507/93       21 S   VEC1 21 S   RMY 21
12/19  44/30/37/+5/0.13/0.0/425/78        31 NW  VEC1 31 NW  RMY 32
12/20  32/24/28/-3/1.17/9.4/000/00        28 NNE VEC1 29 N   RMY 29
12/21  26/12/19/-12/0.00/0.0/262/48       38 NW  VEC1 38 NW  RMY 41
12/22  17/6/12/-19/0.00/0.0/544/100       33 NW  VEC1 33 NW  RMY 35
12/23  26/4/15/-16/0.00/0.0/420/77        21 S   VEC1 21 SSW RMY 20
12/24  31/19/25/-5/0.02/0.2/082/15        29 WSW VEC1 29 WSW RMY 30
12/25  31/20/26/-4/0.00/0.0/540/99        18 NNW VEC1 19 NNW RMY 21
12/26  38/23/31/+1/0.00/0.0/240/44        15 N   VEC1 15 N   RMY 15
12/27  42/21/32/+2/0.00/0.0/480/88        20 SSW VEC1 20 SSW RMY 21
12/28  45/31/38/+9/0.18/0.0/000/00        21 SW  VEC1 21 SSW RMY 21
12/29  53/44/49/+20/0.05/0.0/000/00       32 S   VEC1 33 S   RMY 31
12/30  56/42/49/+20/0.67/0.0/126/23       40 S   VEC1 43 S   RMY 45
12/31  53/37/45/+16/0.00/0.0/…/..       29 E   VEC1 29 E   RMY 28

1/1 The low since midnight is 41F, the daily normal low is 21F.

————————————————————–

DECEMBER DAILY RECORDS TO DATE

12/11 NEW PRECIPITATION RECORD OF 3.38″; OLD RECORD 2.36″ IN 1992

————————————————————–

DAILY EXTREMES
Temperature and precipitation records back to 1885, and
wind records back to 1940 (e = estimated)

RECORDS FOR JANUARY 1
HIGH 58F IN 1966
LOW -6F IN 1918
PRECIP 1.45 INS. IN 1982
SNOWFALL 7.2 INS. IN 1938
PEAK GUST 90e MPH S IN 1945

RECORDS FOR JANUARY 2
HIGH 62F IN 1890
LOW -7F IN 1899,1918
PRECIP 2.10 INS. IN 1987
SNOWFALL 10.9 INS. IN 2014
PEAK GUST 85e MPH S IN 1942

TODAY’S REPORT PREPARED BY: Joshua Polen/Matt Douglas