| June 7, 2019 | No.122 |
May 2019
(Back Issues Here)
May 2019 brought lots of rain to the Palmira Arriba Station. The reports from around the District of Boquete for May generally indicate normal levels of rain as we enter the full-fledged rainy season:
Rainfall for
May 2019 |
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Area |
Contributors |
May |
Total 2019 |
El Santuario |
Terry Zach |
22.50 | 26.19 |
Jaramillo Arriba |
Steve Sarner |
28.58 | 34.03 |
Jaramillo Abajo |
Don Berkowitz |
30.77 | 40.50 |
Jaramillo Abajo |
Bobi McGann |
28.28 | 33.38 |
El Salto Arriba |
Rodrigo Marciacq |
27.12 | 31.19 |
Brisas Boquetenas |
Austin Perry |
27.30 | 37.25 |
| Brisas Boquetenas | Richard Sturtz | 35.08 | 46.84 |
Los Molinos |
Sela Burkholder |
34.66 | 46.14 |
| Los Molinos | Fred Donelson | 35.43 | 44.59 |
Santa Lucia |
Paula Litt |
22.21 | 25.7 |
Lucero (Cielo Paraiso) |
Michael Mullin |
n/a | n/a |
Cerro Verde |
Charlotte Lintz |
27.07 | 32.36 |
Boquete Country Club |
Paul Arrandale |
28.03 | 34.19 |
Palmira Abajo |
Betty Gray |
28.74 | 33.98 |
Palmira Arriba |
Lloyd Cripe |
23.98 |
29.68 |
n/a = not currently available but will be posted when available |
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Thanks again to all the volunteer rainfall data collectors. We really appreciate your help to better understand micro rain climates in the Boquete District.
The monthly rainfall at our Palmira Arriba station was 23.98 inches.
Compared to the data for 13 previous years at our station, this months rain is near average. Check out the data over the past years. You can also look at the tables in the Climate Section to see what rains we have had in the month of May over the years.
The latest ENSO Cycle Report is now saying that "El Niño is present. Equatorial sea surface temperatures (SSTs) are above average across most of the Pacific Ocean. The pattern of anomalous convection and winds are consistent with El Niño. El Niño is likely to continue through the Northern Hemisphere summer 2019 (70% chance) and fall (55-60% chance)."
Here is an excellent source for understanding El Niño. Give it a read and you will learn a lot about this important weather phenomenon.
The IRI (International Research Institute for Climate and Society) (select South America from the Region menu) is reporting the following precipitation predictions for June-July-August of 2019. Note the prediction of below normal precipitation for most of Panama (mostly yellow to some brown).
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ETESA's, hydrology and meteorology section is predicting that Chiriqui will have generally normal levels of precipitation in June of 2019 depending upon the specific area. You can read their June report and check out the details in the "documents" section at this link. They mention that May was the beginning of the rainy season.
I think the rainy season is solidly upon us. Interestingly, we often get less rain in June than in May.
In case you are not aware of it, the Palmira Arriba weather station data is posted and available at Weather Underground as ICHIRIQU4. You can check out and review the Weather History by day, month or year at this website. For example, the tables indicate that on May 20th we had 4.68 inches of rain. There are tables and graphs. They even make some weather forecasts (I don't understand how!).
The 2019 Atlantic Hurricane Season has begun (June 1 to November 30) . NOAA is predicting a "near-normal" Hurricane Season. Although Panama is generally out of the direct path of hurricanes, the hurricane systems often affect our weather and it is a good idea to keep an eye on them. I follow them using the information at the Boquete Weather Tropical page and the Weather Underground Hurricane and Tropical Cyclone section.
With the rainy season in full-swing, I am again grateful to those who invented and have improved the umbrella. Thanks to all, especially the Chinese. Next time you use your umbrella, pause a bit for a moment of thankfulness.
Lloyd Cripe