April cool and wet, what about May?
Jack Hughes
Virginia bluebells spotted in Cedar Creek Park in Rostraver Township.
Jack Hughes
After above normal temperature for the first three months of the year, April went into the record books as a cool and wet month. Most places in Southwestern Pennsylvania received between 4 and 6 inches of rain. In the mountains, we were close to 8 inches and these figures once again are above our normal.
Perhaps the most significant reminder of this April was the amount of cool dreary days. We did have a few much welcomed sunny days and it was hard to put more than one sunny day next to another. Temperature across the region averaged 4 degrees below our normal. For the month, the high temperature was 72 degrees on the April 29 and the low was a chilly 29 on the April 17.
Looking ahead into May, the next 14 days are forecast to be on the cool side, but rainfall may ease up a bit and allow for more sunny days. By the first of May, our temperatures should average 70 degrees for the high and 43 for our morning low. By the end of the month, these climb to a daily high of 78 and a morning low of 54 degrees. Records for the Uniontown area are a high of 93 degrees on May 26,1939, and a low of 23 degrees on May 25 1963. Ninety degree weather is unusual for May, but on any day we can experience a 90 degree reading.
Since May puts us well into the growing season, we always urge caution on any early planting. Temperature readings below freezing can occur on any day in May, although in the warmer cities, the last killing frost date is late April. Outlying areas have a frost date of mid-May and the mountains can experience frost until the end of the month. On May 24, 1963 Uniontown had a morning low of 30 degrees. Snow is rare in May. Both Uniontown and Pittsburgh experienced 2 inches of snow on the first of May in 1963. Pittsburgh also had 3 inches on May 9, 1966 and our mountains have had a number of snows in May.
Around our state, Bradford had 8 inches of snow fall on an early May date. Just a short distance away Clermont in McKean County recorded a state low of 10 degrees on May 10 1966. Marcus Hook in the Southeastern part of the state recorded a high of 102 on May 27 1941. Rainfall records for May include 15.02 inches in Quakertown and just .06 for the entire month in Bethlehem over in Northampton County.
An interesting side effect of the lockdown is the greatly reduced pollution in just about all areas of the world; however; in large metropolitan areas, the reductions are dramatic. By now you have all seen the pictures of smog free cities the world over. Sort of reinforces what the scientists have been telling us. We are the cause of the pollution and the increased temperatures and thus the fires, storms and rising sea levels. With the amount of folks out walking these days the lower pollution levels is a bit of good news.