12/22/2024 - 12/28/2024

Climate in the News:

Last week was packed full of severe weather across the Southern Region, disrupting holiday travel. A historic severe weather outbreak occurred on Saturday and into the early hours of Sunday. As shown on the map below, a line of tornado warnings occurred from Southeast Texas to Northern Mississippi. Throughout the Southeast there were 75 confirmed tornado reports. In the Houston area alone, there were five tornadoes, two of which reached EF-3 strength injuring several people. 

Tornado and Severe Thunderstorm warning across the Southeast

Weather Synopsis:

Ahead of Saturday’s destructive severe weather event, a strong upper-level trough dipped far south into Texas. The trough provided storms with adequate lift that allowed for the development of strong storms.

Deep trough in Texas

Temperature: 

Overall, December is when most of the region starts to see cooler temperatures most of the time as the “cool” season begins. Frequent cold fronts bring with them colder air masses from the north, bringing freezing temperatures to the northern portions of the region.

Graphic showing the average temperature across the Southern Region for December 22nd - 28th

Graphic showing the mean temperature anomalies across the Southern Region for December 22nd - 28th

Last week the Southern Region was unseasonably warm and muggy. Throughout the Region, weekly average temperatures were as much as 12 degrees above normal, reaching 17 degrees above normal in Texas. Despite several cold fronts, temperatures remained warm and weekly average temperatures ranged from 80 degrees Fahrenheit in Deep South Texas to 42 degrees in the Oklahoma Panhandle. 

Precipitation: 

With the majority of the region being in a humid subtropical climate, rainfall is common at any point of the year. During the winter months, cold fronts bring with them showers, thunderstorms, and frozen precipitation to the Texas Panhandle, Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Tennessee. The boundary between the cold and warm air masses serves as a trigger mechanism for storms.

Graphic showing the accumulated precipitation across the Southern Region for December 22nd - 28th

Graphic showing the precipitation anomalies across the Southern Region for December 22nd - 28th

Several low-pressure systems tore through the Southern Region last week bringing severe weather and flooding rains. On Christmas Eve and into Christmas Day, the first round of storms brought about two inches of rain from Central Texas to Southern Mississippi. The day after Christmas, another set of severe storms resulted in nearly 4 inches of rain, resulting in flash flooding from East and Southeast Texas into Louisiana. Lastly, the historic severe weather that occurred from Saturday into Sunday was associated with up to five inches of rain in Southern Mississippi. Rainfall totals for the week were much greater than normal, with up to eight inches of rain falling in East-Central Texas into Northwest Louisiana. 

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