Wednesday, May 8, 2024

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

WEDNESDAY, MAY 8, 2024
ALL TIMES ARE IN EASTERN STANDARD TIME (EST)
SUNRISE: 0430E
SUNSET:  1852E

A CLOUDY AND DAMP DAY WITH MORNING SHOWERS….

A touch of sunshine was observed very early this morning, but
clouds quickly advanced as a band of showers and thunderstorms
moved through the region. Showers began falling here right
around 7:30am and continued until just after 10:30. 0.46″ of
rain was recorded during this time period. Skies have remained
on the cloudy side since the rain stopped and we’ve been in
and out of fog.

Temperatures are considerably cooler than yesterday thanks to
the clouds and rain. Readings have only reached the low 60s by
early this afternoon (compared to the upper 70s yesterday).
Humidity levels are much higher today as one would expect with
wet conditions. The dew point has reached 60F degrees as of the
1pm observation.

The wind was light through about mid morning, generally out of
the south. But as the rain was coming to an end, wind speeds
increased and it became gusty for a time. Winds have since
eased once again as we moved into the afternoon. The average
speed for the day so far is around 9mph. The peak gust, which
occurred just after 10am, is 30mph.

Visibility started the day around 20 miles, but has of course
been reduced due to foggy conditions associated with the
earlier rainfall. The view was as low as 1/4 of a mile during
the showers, but has recovered to around 12 miles early this
afternoon.

The maximum temperature so far today is 61F degrees, which is
4 degrees below the normal high of 65F. The minimum temperature
since midnight is 54F degrees, which is 8 degrees above the
normal low of 46F.

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Today’s Observations:

7 A.M.
Weather: Broken altocumulus, broken cirrostratus, overcast cirrus,
few breaks in overcast distant NNE-ESE
Temperature: 59F; Dew Point: 51F; Relative Humidity: 76%
Wind: S @ 6 kts, wind light
Sea-level pressure: 1005.1 mb; 29.68 in. Hg: rising, then falling
Visibility: 20 miles, hazy
6-hr Max temp: 59F
6-hr Min temp: 54F
24-hr Precip:  0.00 inches
BHO SA 1155 E110 BKN 180 BKN 250 OVC 20 051/59/51/1806/968/
FEW BINOVC DSNT NNE-ESE HAZY WND LGT/ 8/077 58008 10059 20054

10 A.M.
Weather: Sky obscured, vertical visibility 200ft, light rain showers
Temperature: 56F; Dew Point: 56F; Relative Humidity: 100%
Wind: S @ 14G21 kts
Sea-level pressure: 1003.5 mb; 29.63 in. Hg: falling, then more rapidly
Visibility: 1/4 mile, fog
3-hr Precip:  0.44 inches
BHO SA 1455 X W2 1/4RW-F 035/56/56/1814G21/963/ 8//// 58016 6044/

1 P.M.
Weather: Overcast stratus, fog bank NW-NNE
Temperature: 61F; Dew Point: 60F; Relative Humidity: 97%
Wind: SW @ 9 kts
Sea-level pressure: 1002.2 mb; 29.59 in. Hg: falling, then more slowly
Visibility: 12 miles, 6 miles NW-NNE
6-hr Max temp: 61F
6-hr Min temp: 54F
6-hr Precip:  0.46 inches
BHO SA 1755 E3 OVC 12 022/61/60/2209/959/ F BNK NW-NNE VSBY 6 NW-NNE/
8/6// 56013 6046/ 10061 20054

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SUMMARY FOR TUESDAY, MAY 7, 2024

TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)
MAX…….78   NORMAL…..65
MIN…….55   NORMAL…..46
MEAN……67   NORMAL…..55

DEPARTURE FROM 30-YEAR (1991-2020) NORMAL…………+12
TOTAL DEPARTURE FOR THE MONTH…………………….+1 [-0.1 DEGREES/DAY]

HEATING DEGREE DAYS (SEASON: JUL 2023 THRU JUN 2024)
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR YESTERDAY…………….0  DEPARTURE…….-10
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE MONTH……………76  DEPARTURE……..-2
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE SEASON…………5233  DEPARTURE……-732
TOTAL HEATING UNITS LAST SEASON TO DATE…….5055  DEPARTURE……+178

COOLING DEGREE DAYS (SEASON: JAN 2024 THRU DEC 2024)
TOTAL COOLING UNITS FOR YESTERDAY…………….2  DEPARTURE……..+1
TOTAL COOLING UNITS FOR THE MONTH…………….2  DEPARTURE……..-1
TOTAL COOLING UNITS FOR THE SEASON……………2  DEPARTURE……..-4
TOTAL COOLING UNITS LAST SEASON TO DATE……….9  DEPARTURE……..-7

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

F420C (Official)……….E23 NW   @  03:16 P.M.
VECTOR #1 (1-Sec)……….24 NE   @  06:50 A.M.
VECTOR #2 (1-Sec)……….23 ENE  @  08:05 A.M.
DAVIS #1……………….22 NE   @  06:50 A.M.
DAVIS #2 ………………25 S    @  06:55 P.M.
RMY #1 (Instantaneous)…..23 NE   @  06:48 A.M.
RMY #2 (Instantaneous)…..24 SSE  @  06:47 P.M.
MERLIN…………………21 ENE
RICHARDS (C5C) (Inst)……22      @  03:17 P.M.

FASTEST MILE:
CONTACTING ANEMOMETER/OFFICIAL………………15 NE   @  06:51 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE VECTOR #1 AVERAGE…………..16      @  07:54 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE VECTOR #2 AVERAGE…………..18      @  07:57 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS #1 AVERAGE……………17 NE   @  07:58 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS #2 AVERAGE……………19 S    @  06:57 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RMY #1 AVERAGE……………..16 SSW  @  07:54 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RMY #2 AVERAGE……………..17 NE   @  07:57 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RICHARDS (C5C) AVERAGE………16      @  03:58 P.M.

AVERAGE WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION:
CONTACTING/OFFICIAL…….8.7 S [208 total miles] VECTOR #1……………..9.0
VECTOR #2……………..9.3
DAVIS #1………………8.9 NE
DAVIS #2………………9.1 ENE
RMY #1………………..8.7 N
RMY #2………………..9.1 N
RICHARDS (C5C)…………9.3

PRECIPITATION (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST):
TOTAL PRECIPITATION 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M……..0.00 DEPARTURE…..-0.12
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH…………..0.66 DEPARTURE…..-0.22
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE YEAR (2024)…….25.62 DEPARTURE…..+5.96

SNOWFALL (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST):
TOTAL SNOWFALL 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M…………..0.0 DEPARTURE…….0.0
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE MONTH………………..0.0 DEPARTURE…….0.0
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE SEASON (2023-2024)……26.8 DEPARTURE…..-42.9

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PRELIMINARY CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR MAY 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
DAILY EXTREMES
Temperature and precipitation records back to 1885, and
wind records back to 1940 (e = estimated)

5/1   53/42/48/-5/0.06/0.0/177/21         18 ESE VEC1 18 ESE RMY 18
5/2   69/44/57/+3/0.21/0.0/535/63         35 NE  VEC1 36 NE  RMY 35 TSTM
5/3   57/44/51/-3/0.02/0.0/408/48         24 NE  VEC1 24 NE  RMY 25
5/4   55/44/50/-4/0.00/0.0/589/69         22 ENE VEC1 21 NE  RMY 21
5/5   51/42/47/-8/0.35/0.0/000/00         21 S   VEC1 22 S   RMY 21
5/6   75/46/61/+6/0.02/0.0/343/40         20 SW  VEC1 18 SW  RMY 20
5/7   78/55/67/+12/0.00/0.0/851/99        23 NW  VEC1 24 NE  RMY 23

5/8 The low since midnight is 54F, the daily normal low is 46F.

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MAY DAILY RECORDS TO DATE

NONE…

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

RECORDS FOR MAY 8
HIGH 89F IN 2000
LOW 29F IN 1956
PRECIP 1.48 INCHES IN 1886
SNOWFALL TRACE IN 1898, 1947
PEAK GUST 68e MPH NNW IN 1943

RECORDS FOR MAY 9
HIGH 93F IN 2000
LOW 31F IN 1947
PRECIP 2.72 INCHES IN 1954
SNOWFALL 5.0 INS IN 1977 (RECORD FOR MAY)
PEAK GUST 70e MPH NE IN 1977

TODAY’S REPORT PREPARED BY: Matt Douglas
May