HAPPY VALLEY, OREGON WEATHER: MAY 2022

HAPPY VALLEY, OREGON WEATHER: MAY 2022

TEMPERATURES

May 2022 averaged much cooler than Normal for this area. In fact, due to the persistent clouds and rain, Maximum Temperatures averaged between 4 and 5 degrees below Normal. Through the first 20 days of the month, there was only 1 day when the temperature reach ≥70° here in Happy Valley (72.3° on the 4th), with a chilly Max. of just 49.2°, coldest of the month, occurring on the 8th (and the first sub-50° Max. Temp. in any May). It wasn’t until the 21st when a string of milder days finally arrived, with 6 of 7 days exceeding ≥70° (barely) before quickly cooling again from the 27th-30th (only 56.1° on the 29th). The final day of May was suddenly the warmest of the month as it soared to 76.0°, the highest temperature since Sept. 25, 2021 when it reached 80.0°. May 2022 was a rare one to not reach 80°, at some point, and was the first such occurrence since records began at this location in 2014.  

Minimum Temperatures were chilly but not as far below Normal as Maximums, with departures averaging about -2° to -3°. Only 4 days had Minimum Temperatures remain ≥50°, 3 of those were consecutive (25th-27th), with the highest Min. Temp. being 55.1° on the 15th. The chilliest temperatures occurred the second week, bottoming out at 36.7° on the 9th and 13th, the latter date having a very late frost and these were also the coldest May readings at this location.

Splitting the month in two, the Average Max./Min./Mean Temperatures were thus:

  • 1st-15th, 59.5°/43.5°/51.5°
  • 16th-31st, 65.5°/46.9°/56.2°

The Maximum Diurnal range was 30.6° (72.3°/41.7°) on the 4th, the least being 8.5° (56.1°/47.6°) on the chilly and damp 29th.

Comparing May 2022 to the previous coolest Mays back to 2014 shows this month was much cooler overall. Here are the May Monthly Averages and Departures compared to the previous coolest years:


             Time Period                       Average Maximum                         Departure

May 2020  68.2°
May 2022  62.6°  -5.6°

             Time Period                       Average Minimum                          Departure
May 2021  47.4°
May 2022  45.2°  -2.9°


             Time Period                         Average Mean                               Departure

May 2021  58.1°
May 2022  53.9°  -4.2°

 

 With both April and May 2022 being the coolest since 2014, this also made the meteorological spring (March-May) the coolest: 

 

             Time Period                       Average Maximum                         Departure

Spring 2017  61.2°
Spring 2022  58.3°  -2.9°

             Time Period                       Average Minimum                          Departure
Spring 2021  42.7°
Spring 2022  42.0°  -0.7°


             Time Period                         Average Mean                               Departure

Spring 2017 & 2020  52.8°
Spring 2022  50.1°  -2.7°

 

Average Monthly Maximum: 62.6°
Average Monthly Minimum:  45.2°
Average Monthly Mean:  53.9°
Monthly High Maximum: 76.0° (31st)
Monthly Low Minimum:  36.7° (9th, 13th)
Monthly Low Maximum: 49.2° (8th)
Monthly High Minimum: 55.1° (15th)
Monthly High Mean: 62.8° (26th)
Monthly Low Mean: 43.6° (8th)

 

NUMBER OF DAYS:
Maximums ≥90°:   0
Maximums ≥75°:   1
Maximums ≥70°:   7
Maximums ≥65°:  12
Maximums ≥60°:  19
Maximums ≥55°:  28
Maximums ≥50°:  30
Maximums ≥45°:  31
————————–
Maximums ≤90°:  31
Maximums ≤75°:  30
Maximums ≤65°:  21
Maximums ≤60°:  13
Maximums ≤55°:   4
Maximums ≤50°:   1
Maximums ≤32°:   0
_________________________
Minimums ≤55:   31
Minimums ≤50°:  27
Minimums ≤45°:  15
Minimums ≤40°:   4
Minimums ≤35°:   0
Minimums ≤32°:   1

 

PRECIPITATION

Continuing the area’s very wet spring, a whopping 6.48″ fell during May, 190% of the monthly Normal of 3.41″ for this station (per the 30-year Normals (1991-2020) by the National Centers for Environmental Information). This total even slightly surpassed our very wet April 2022 which totaled 6.45″. This May surpassed the previous wettest May here since 2015 by 2.07″ (2020 measured 4.41″). From 2015-2021, the May average was just 2.28″. Overall, 23 days had measurable precipitation, tied for the second highest amount in the last 15 months (only Dec. 2021 was higher with 28 days). The 4 days from the 21st-24th was the only stretch of the month with more than 2 days without measurable precipitation. The chilly temperatures, combined with instability in the atmosphere, caused a mix of hail and graupel in the early evening on the 8th, the graupel even whitening local roofs.

 

Total Monthly Precipitation: 6.48
Maximum Calendar-Day Amount: 0.85″
Maximum Precipitation Rate: 6.33″/Hour (at 15:39 Hrs on the 6th)
Total Monthly Snowfall: Trace (Graupel on the 8th)
Maximum Calendar-Day Amount: Trace (8th)
NUMBER OF DAYS OF PRECIPITATION:
0700-Hr Observation Time (Manual Gauge):
≥0.01″: 23
≥0.25″:  8
≥0.50″:  6
≥0.75″:  3
≥1.00″:  0
_________________________
NUMBER OF DAYS OF ATMOSPHERIC PHENOMENA:
Thunder: 0
Hail:  2
Fog: 15
Heavy Fog: 4 (Visibility ≤1/4 Mile)
Glaze (Freezing Rain): 0
Sleet (Ice Pellets):
_________________________
NUMBER OF DAYS OF SNOWFALL/SLEET & SNOW DEPTH
(as measured at 2400-hour observation time):
Snowfall ≥Trace: 1 (Graupel on the 8th)

 

OTHER OBSERVATIONS

Sky Cover:  3 Clear, 17 Partly Cloudy, and 11 Cloudy days.

Barometric Pressure:  Average Maximum/Minimum readings were 30.15″/29.96″, with the Highest Daily Value of 30.32” on the 3rd & 20th, the Lowest Daily Reading of 29.86” on the 5th & 6th.

Relative Humidity:  Maximum/Minimum Averages were 96%/56%, having a Daily Maximum of 98% on the 9th; Daily Minimum of 28% on the 22nd.

Dew Point:  Averages were a Maximum/Minimum of 54°/42°, with a Daily Maximum of 63° on the 15th & 26th, Daily Minimum of 34° on the 5th.

Wind:  The Daily Average Speed was 1.1 MPH from the SW, and the highest Daily Average was 2.8 MPH from the SSE on the 12th; the Daily Average Gust was 13.1 MPH and the Highest Gust reached 21 MPH from the SSW on the 18th.

 

HAPPY VALLEY MONTHLY WEATHER FORM: MAY 2022 (click the month/year to link to the form).

 

Cover photo: Bartzella Peony, 5/31/2022.

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