April 2012 Saint Cloud Weather Summary
Saint Cloud Weather Summary for April 2012
Seventh Straight Warm Month Doesn't Feel That Warm
Despite having temperatures more than three degrees warmer than average, April 2012 in St. Cloud paled before the month that came before. According to the statistics from the St. Cloud Regional Airport, the average April temperature was 47.7°F, only ranking 24th warmest out of the 132 Aprils in St. Cloud records. That is because March 2012 was so extremely warm. As a comparison:
|
Month
|
March 2012
|
April 2012
|
| Average Temperature |
43.9°F
|
47.7°F
|
| Rank |
1st
|
27th
|
| Highs >=70°F |
6
|
3
|
| Highs >=75°F |
4 (highest: 78°F on March 19)
|
0 (highest: 74°F on April 24)
|
| Lows <=28°F |
10 (none after March 10)
|
6
|
| Lows >=50°F |
7
|
0 (warmest low of 49°F)
|
| Days At Least 20°F Warmer Than Avg. |
11 (3 30°F warmer)
|
1
|
| Colder than Average Days |
4
|
13
|
| Record Warm Temperatures Broken or Tied |
23 (8 highs, 9 means, 7 lows)
|
0
|
April 2012 was also far short of the 51.1°F in April 2010 (third warmest) or the 49.9°F in April 2006 (9th warmest).
Warmest Oct-Apr Warm Season in St. Cloud Records
This did finish, however, St. Cloud's warmest cold season ever. Not only was the winter (Dec-Feb) the warmest on record, but also the average Oct-Apr temperature was 35.3°F, more than three degrees over the previous warm cold season in 1986-1987.
As warned earlier, those fooled by the early spring warmth were burned with 6 days of hard freezes in April, including April 9-12 and as late as April 20. On the average, the last day of a hard freeze is April 30. The average day of the final frost is May 18. Still, St. Cloud has set a record for fewest highs of freezing or colder (49, breaking the old record of 53) and is on track to break a record for the fewest lows of freezing or colder (151 days through April).
Wettest Month Since August 2011
On the other hand, St. Cloud finally got some badly needed rain in the second two-thirds of April. The total rainfall for April was a mere 2.60 inches, just 0.03 inch above normal. However, all but 0.03 of it fell from April 13 on, including a record daily rainfall of 1.51 inch on April 15. This was nearly double the rainfall St. Cloud had received in the previous month since the snow had melted (1.07 inches from March 12 through April 12) and more rain than the entire fall season (Sept-Nov 2011: 2.39 inches). Of course, this is only "treading water," as rainfall deficits still exceed 2-4 inches in Sauk Rapids and Rice, 4-6 inches in western Stearns County, 6-8 inches in the Arrowhead and 7-10 inches in much of the state south of Hwy. 12.
The reason for the increase in rainfall is a change in the primary stormtrack. While storms tended to miss St. Cloud well to the north or even to the south in March, a major period of west-to-east storm track during the last two-thirds of April allowed more storms to approach Minnesota. Since the warm and sticky air was a bit closer to us, Minnesota had moist enough air masses to allow some rain to fall. This pattern shows some promise for the upcoming week as Minnesota will be on the cool side of a mostly stalled front that will mostly remain in Iowa. A warmer surge could put us in the sticky air on Tuesday, raising the threat for severe weather, but the ingredients will be on hand for the possibility of repeating thunderstorms over the next several days, which could produce a large amount of rain.
Two Tornado Outbreaks in April
While severe weather mostly missed us to the south, there were two days: April 15 and April 21 that produced some tornado touchdowns in Minnesota. The April 15 tornadoes were only on the ground for a short period, but the April 21 storms did knock down a few barns and a flower shop ion southwestern Minnesota.
There was a much larger tornado outbreak on April 14 into the early morning hours of April 15. While most of the powerful tornadoes stayed in rural areas, major damage was produced in Thurman, IA, Wichita, KS, and especially Woodward, OK where 6 people were killed.
Both more rain and severe weather could be on tap for the start of May.
|
Temperatures (°F)
|
April 2012
|
Normal
|
|
| Average High Temperature (°F) |
58.4
|
54.9
|
|
| Average Low Temperature (°F) |
36.3
|
32.2
|
|
| Mean Temperature for April (°F) |
47.4
|
43.6
|
|
|
|
|||
|
April Extremes
|
Temperature(°F)
|
Date
|
|
| Warmest High Temperature for April 2012 (°F) |
74
|
April 14,24
|
|
| Coldest High Temperature for April 2012 (°F) |
43
|
April 10
|
|
| Warmest Low Temperature for April 2012 (°F) |
49
|
April 25
|
|
| Coldest Low Temperature for April 2012 (°F) |
20 |
April 11
|
|
|
Record Temperatures in April 2012
|
Temperature(°F)
|
Date
|
Old Record
|
|
Temperature Thresholds
|
Number of Days
|
Normal
|
|
| April 2012 Days with High Temperatures =>90°F |
0
|
0.04
|
|
| April 2012 Days with High Temperatures <= 32°F |
0
|
0.73
|
|
|
|
87.7
|
|
| April 2012 Days with Low Temperatures <= 32°F |
11
|
15.7
|
|
|
|
170.4
|
|
|
**Fewest Days with High of Freezing or Colder on Record (old record: 53 days in 1918-1919)
|
++On Track for Fewest Lows<=32°F on Record (current record 152 days in 1899-1900,1924-1925,2009-2010) | ||
|
Liquid Equivalent Precipitation (in)
|
April 2011
|
Normal
|
|
|
April 2012 Rainfall (in)
|
2.60
|
2.57
|
|
|
April Extremes
|
Precipitation (in)
|
Date
|
|
|
Most Daily Precipitation in April 2012
|
1.51 (broke daily record; see below)
|
April 15
|
|
| Record Precipitation in April 2012 |
Rainfall (in)
|
Date
|
Old Record
|
|
Daily Record Rainfall
|
1.51 inch
|
April 15
|
1.20 in 1994
|
|
Precipitation Thresholds
|
Number of Days
|
Normal
|
|
| April 2012 Days with Measurable (>= 0.01 inch) Precipitation |
9
|
8.4
|
|
| April 2012 Days with >= 0.10 inch Precipitation |
5
|
4.9
|
|
| April 2012 Days with >= 0.25 inch Precipitation |
3
|
3.1
|
|
| April 2012 Days with >= 0.50 inch Precipitation |
1
|
1.5
|
|
| April 2012 Days with >= 1.00 inch Precipitation |
1
|
0.2
|
|
|
Snowfall (in)
|
April 2011
|
Normal
|
|
|
April 2011 Snowfall (in)
|
Trace
|
2.9
|
|
|
27.4
|
42.9
|
||
|
Snowfall Thresholds
|
Number of Days
|
Average
|
|
| April 2012 Days with Measurable (>= 0.1 inch) Snowfall |
0
|
1.9
|
|
| 2011-2012 Cold Season Total Days with Measurable (>= 0.1 inch) Snowfall |
|
|
|
|
April 2012 Days with >= 1.0 inch Snowfall |
0
|
0.9
|
|
| 2011-2012 Cold Season Total Days with >= 1.0 inch Snowfall |
10
|
14.0
|
|
| April 2012 Days with >= 2.0 inch Snowfall |
0
|
0.6
|
|
| 2011-2012 Cold Season Total Days with >= 2.0 inch Snowfall |
8
|
7.6
|
|
| April 2012 Days with >= 5.0 inch Snowfall |
0
|
0.1
|
|
| 2011-2012 Cold Season Total Days with >= 5.0 inch Snowfall |
0
|
1.4
|
|
|
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Send comments to: raweisman@stcloudstate.edu