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| Storm Reports |
| Are you interested in what happened during a recent event? Check out the
report below. |
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July 2008 Storm Report |
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| Short Weather Summary |
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| A large ridge of high
pressure split time between the western United States and south central
portions of the county in July...including Arkansas. When the high was in
the state, it was hot and dry...with better chances for rain and severe
weather when the high was away. The central and southern counties were
most affected by the high, with above normal temperatures and below normal
rain. |
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| There was only one record high temperature
in July, and it was at North Little Rock (Pulaski County).
Check out the record below. |
| Site |
Record
High (Date of Occurrence) |
| North Little Rock |
101T (07/21) |
| Note:
"T" means record was tied. |
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High pressure started asserting itself in Arkansas during
the latter half of the month. In Little Rock (Pulaski County), for
example, high temperatures were 95 degrees or above only twice through the
15th...but twelve times after the 15th. |
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In the picture: The weather pattern at 7 pm CDT on
07/22/2008. High pressure ("H") was headed slowly toward the western
United States, with a northwest wind flow aloft over Arkansas (to drive
systems into the state). Meanwhile, Hurricane Dolly was nearing the Texas
Gulf Coast. |
| One hundred degree days became more common by the 20th,
with five hundred degree days to finish July at Little Rock (Pulaski
County), six at El Dorado (Union County), and seven at the Hot Springs
Airport (Garland County) and at Fort Smith (Sebastian County). |
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In the picture: High temperatures on 07/21/2008. |
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It was not so hot across the northern counties, which is
where clouds and storms were most prevalent (farthest away from the center
of the high). |
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In the picture: The satellite showed clouds and
precipitation moving through the northern half of Arkansas from 1015 am
CDT to 215 pm CDT on 07/09/2008. |
| Heavy rain accompanied these storms at times. For
example, twenty four rainfall amounts through 7 am CDT on the 4th included
3.17 inches at Lead Hill (Boone County) and 2.70 inches at Calico Rock
(Izard County). A little over a week later (twenty four rainfall amounts
through 7 am CDT on the 13th), 2.85 inches was measured at Lead Hill
(Boone County)...with 1.78 inches at Calico Rock (Izard County). |
| By contrast, for the entire month of July...only 0.27
inches of rain fell at El Dorado (Union County), with 0.43 inches at
Monticello (Drew County). |
| Temperatures/Rainfall
in July, 2008 |
| Site |
Avg
Temp (Deg F) |
Departure
(Deg F) |
Rain (Inches) |
Departure (Inches) |
| Fayetteville (NW AR) |
77.1 |
-1.2 |
4.29 |
+1.15 |
| Harrison (NC AR) |
77.5 |
-1.6 |
6.05 |
+3.33 |
| Jonesboro (NE AR) |
81.8 |
+0.2 |
2.51 |
-0.22 |
| Fort Smith (WC AR) |
83.3 |
+1.1 |
1.29 |
-1.90 |
| Little Rock (C AR) |
83.4 |
+1.0 |
2.15 |
-1.16 |
| North Little Rock (C
AR) |
83.4 |
+0.2 |
1.56 |
-1.59 |
| West Memphis (EC
AR) |
81.5 |
+0.0 |
1.47 |
-1.85 |
| Texarkana (SW AR) |
83.6 |
+0.9 |
1.17 |
-2.61 |
| El Dorado (SC AR) |
82.9 |
+0.9 |
0.27 |
-3.86 |
| Monticello (SE AR) |
83.4 |
+2.7 |
0.43 |
-3.64 |
| In the Tropics |
| |
| There were three named storms in July. Bertha became a
Category 3 hurricane (with winds of 120 mph) in the Atlantic on July 8th
before weakening. The system came close to Bermuda (on the 14th) as a
Tropical Storm, and generally stayed over open water. Bertha was the longest
lived July tropical cyclone on record (17 days).
Cristobal became a Tropical Storm on the 19th just off the North Carolina
coast. The system then moved northeast and away from land, and never reached
hurricane strength.
Dolly became a Tropical Storm in the western Caribbean on July 20th. The
system weakened a bit as it moved over the Yucatan Peninsula, but
strengthened again and became a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico on July
22nd. Maximum winds reached 100 mph before Dolly made landfall along South
Padre Island, Texas on July 23rd. |
| Additional July Details |
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| For more details about
July, 2008...go to the "Temperatures and Precipitation"
section below. |
| Temperatures and Precipitation |
| Temperatures
were slightly below normal across northern Arkansas, and at or a little
above normal farther south. Readings at Little Rock are shown to right. |
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Rainfall was above normal in the north, and below normal
elsewhere. Amounts at Little Rock are shown to left. |
| To right, a look at precipitation across the state. |
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| For a look at actual temperatures and precipitation
in Arkansas as measured by the cooperative observer network, click
here. |
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|
www.weather.gov
