| These pages provide temperature and precipitation rank maps and graphics as well as textual weather and climate summaries for June 2003, the three-month period April-June 2003, the six-month period January-June 2003, and the last 12 months - July 2002-June 2003.
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National Overview:
Despite some warmth in the Great Lakes and Northeast late in the month, the predominant signal in the eastern half of the U.S. for June was colder than average, while the West remained warmer than normal. Conditions were generally wetter than average in the East and drier than average across much of the West, Southwest and Great Lakes states for June 2003.
Rainfall was heavy across Kentucky, West Virginia and North Carolina mid-month causing flooding leading to 7 deaths in those states. The Southeast also received heavy rainfall late in the month as Tropical Storm Bill made landfall in Louisiana on the 30th and the remnants moved northeastward through the Carolinas. Severe weather in Nebraska and Kansas also caused problems around June 22nd, with large hail, tornadoes and up to a foot of rain in some locations.
More details and graphics on these and other weather events can be found on NCDC's Global Hazards page.
The eastern North Pacific hurricane season officially begins on May 1st and the first tropical storm of 2003 (Andres) formed on May 20th. In June, 2 tropical storms formed - Blanca and Carlos. Blanca did not affect land, however, Carlos came ashore in Mexico with an intensity of 55 kts (63 mph).
The Atlantic season officially begins on June 1st, though some pre-season activity was recorded in April leading to the first named storm of the season for the Atlantic. In June, Tropical Storm Bill developed in the Gulf and came ashore along the Louisiana coast on June 30th. See the East Pacific Hurricane page and the Atlantic Hurricane page for further details.
Indices used to determine the presence of La Nina conditions diminished slightly across the tropical Pacific during June, including a weakening of the negative sea-surface temperature anomalies, leading to a lower probability of La Nina occurring in the coming months. To see the latest NOAA advisory and typical impacts of a La Nina episode for the U.S., go to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center.
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Monthly and Seasonal Highlights:
National:
June 2003 ranked as the 6th coldest June in the 1895 to present record. The preliminary nationally averaged temperature was 66.8�F (19.3�C) which was 2.5�F (1.4�C) below the long-term mean.
June 2003 was wetter than average, ranking 7th wettest.
April-June was near average and ranked as the 45th coldest such period in the 1895 to present record. The preliminary nationally averaged temperature for April-June was 60.7�F (15.9�C) which was 0.1�F (0.06�C) below the long-term mean.
April-June 2003 was wetter than average, ranking 11th wettest in the last 109 years.
July 2002-June 2003 ranked as the 25th warmest such 12 months in the 1895 to present record. The preliminary nationally averaged temperature was 53.3�F (11.8�C) which was 0.5�F (0.3�C) above the long-term mean.
Precipitation for last 12 months (July-June) was wetter than average, ranking 23rd wettest in the last 108 such periods.
Regional and Statewide:
Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and West Virginia ranked record cold for June 2003, as did the Southeast region.
Alaska had its second warmest June on record in 2003.
Ten states were much wetter than average, while Oregon was record dry for June.
For the Primary Corn and Soybean Belt, preliminary data indicate that precipitation was above average for June and also slightly above average for the growing season thus far (March-June) in 2003. The growing season runs from March to September for corn and soybean.
Massachusetts, New Jersey and Maryland ranked as 5th and 7th and 10th coldest on record, respectively for the 3-month period, while the majority of other states in the East were below normal and many western states were warmer than average for April-June 2003.
Virginia and Alabama were record wet for April-June 2003, and three other southeastern states had their second wettest such three months. The Southeast as a whole ranked as the wettest such three months on record.
Virginia, Delaware and Alabama were record wet over the last 12 months, as was the Southeast region as a whole. Warmth remained in many western states.
See NCDC's Monthly Extremes web-page for weather and climate records for the month of June.
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Maps and Graphics:
It should be emphasized that all of the temperature and precipitation ranks and values are based on preliminary data. The ranks will change when the final data are processed.
For all climate questions other than questions concerning this report, please contact the National Climatic Data Center's Climate Services Division:
Climate Services Division
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4876
phone: 828-271-4800
email: ncdc.info@noaa.gov
For further information on the historical climate perspective presented in this report, contact:
Jay Lawrimore
NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
151 Patton Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801-5001
fax: 828-271-4328
email: Jay.Lawrimore@noaa.gov
 NCDC / Climate Monitoring / June / U.S. Climate / Search / Help
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Last Updated Friday, 18-Nov-2005 14:12:04 EST by Anne.Waple@noaa.gov
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