| July 1, 2010 | No. 31 |
I posted the June 2010 weather data for the Palmira Weather Station. We recorded 51.00 inches of rain for the month and a total of 97.44 inches for the year. This was the rainiest month of June that we have recorded since we started collecting data in 2007. Compared with the previous years for this station this was a very rainy month. June quantity varies from year to year, but this seems to have been an exceptionally wet month. Since I put the station up in 2007, we have had 13.86, 12.97, 24.06 and 51.00 inches of rain in June 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 respectively. You can see from these numbers that the years vary and we had more than normal this year. Last year at this time we had a cumulative rainfall of 49.76 inches of rain by the end of June. This year we have logged 97.44 inches which is 47.68 inches more than last year, nearly double. Whether this trend will continue for the year is yet to be seen. Regardless, we need not worry that this will be a drought year as some of you were wondering a few months back!
The first hurricane of the year, Alex, landed last night in northeastern Mexico and southeastern Texas. It is dumping lots of rain in it's path. According to Dr. Master's Blog, this is the "...the strongest June hurricane in 44 years..." Is this harbinger of a strong hurricane season? You will have to stay tuned. While we don't get direct hits from hurricanes here in Panama, our weather can be affected by the outer boundaries of the storms passing over our region dropping lots of moisture.
Remember in the last update, I said, "...don't become complacent about the rain in June. We are plunging into the rainy season and you will need those umbrellas even if there isn't a lot mildew on them!" I don't like to say "I told you so" but perhaps I was more prophetic than usual or at least I was just lucky. Regardless, it is a safe bet that we will need to keep the umbrellas handy for the month of July. If this keeps up, we may need to get together and start builing an ark! I'll let you know.
Lloyd Cripe