Nebraska is known for one thing when it comes to weather, you don’t have to wait long for it to change.
Whether it be calm to gusty winds, high temperatures dropping like a lead balloon when a cold front moves in OR seeing the sun come out just before sunset at the end of a cloudy day, it’s part of our heritage.
The year 2020 saw below normal rainfall which meant farmers were forced to run their center pivots more than in past years.
A review of weather records compiled by Observer Leonard Orlowski show a weather year dry with mild temperatures, not the harsh extremes which have been commonplace in past years.
Here’s a breakdown of the year’s weather:
January — The high for the month was 44 degrees which occurred on the 4th and 5th. The low for the month was six degrees below zero which came on the 15th.
Altogether, 0.63 of an inch of precipitation was received.
February — Just 0.05 of an inch of precipitation was recorded during the month, a sign of things to come the rest of the year.
The low for the month was 11 degrees below zero. That came on the 19th.
The high for the month was an unseasonably warm 62 degrees on the 29th.
March — Spring didn’t arrive til the 21st but it sure felt like spring on the 8th when the high reached 71 degrees. The low for the month was eight degrees on the 19th. Precipitation during the month totalled 2.27 inches.
April — The fourth month of the calendar year can bring a mix of weather and this year was no exception. The low for the month was 13 degrees on April 3.
The high came during the last week of the month when the temperature reached 81 degrees on the 27th. Altogether 0.87 of an inch of precipitation was recorded.
May — Measurable precipitation was recorded on 14 of the 31 days of the month. Still no one day produced an inch of rain.
The total was 3.59 inches of rain. The warmest day was the first day of the month when the temperature reached 86 degrees.
The low for the month was 30 degrees on the 9th.
June — Eleven of June’s 30 days saw the temperature rise to 90 degrees or higher. The highest recorded was 95 degrees on the 2nd and 3rd. The low for the month was 50 degrees on the 9th.
Altogether, 2.25 inches of precipitation was recorded and the first one-inch rain fell on the 8th.
July — On the 18th and 19th, the thermometer rose to 95 degrees.
The low was 54 degrees, reached on the 11th and 30th. Eight days saw measurable precipitation, but the amounts were small. Altogether, 3.7 inches of rain fell during the month.
August — The month proved to be dry when the farmers needed moisture. Just 0.70 of an inch of precipitation fell. The high for the month was 92 degrees on 23rd while the low was 50 degrees on the 28th.
September — When it came to moisture, the month wasn’t much better than August as less than an inch of rain was recorded.
Altogether, 0.85 of an inch of rain was recorded. It didn’t rain from the 12th through the 30th.
The high was 91 degrees on the 5th. The low dipped to 36 degrees on the 28th.
October — The weather was dry for most of the month as the annual harvest progressed. The high for the month was 87 degrees on the 9th while the low was 12 degrees on the 25th. Total precipitation was 0.74 of an inch.
November — The warmest day of the month was one of the earliest as the thermometer topped out at 84 degrees on the 3rd.
The low was 14 degrees on the 10th. Altogether, 1.46 inches of precipitation was recorded.
December — The temperatures fluctuated greatly as is the case when Fall turns into Winter. The high was 61 degrees on the 8th and 9th.
The low was three degrees on the 30th.
Precipitation during the month totalled 0.78 of an inch.
