HAPPY VALLEY, OREGON WEATHER: APRIL 2023
TEMPERATURES
April 2023 continued the relentless cool, damp weather that has persisted since mid-October. Maximum Temperatures didn’t even reach 60° until April 14th, the first time reaching that value since back on March 22nd, 28 days ago. This “warmth” was short-lived as It wouldn’t reach 60° again until the 21st. Weather that actually felt like spring finally arrived on the 26th when, under sunny skies, it reached 73.6°, the first reading ≥70° since it was 81.5° on Oct. 16, 2022 (192 days ago) and, just 2 days later, it soared to 85.0° for the highest reading of the month, the first Max. Temp. ≥80°, again, since it was 81.5° on Oct. 16, 2022 (194 days ago). From the 1st-25th, Maximum Temperatures averaged 53.9° but from the 26th-30th they averaged 76.6°.
As far as Minimum Temperatures, they followed a similar pattern as Maximums but not varying quite as much. Lows the first 5 days remained in the 30s (the lowest being the 33.4° on the 2nd), increasing slightly to the low-to-mid 40s from the 6th-9th before retreating back to the 30s until the 20th, also the last date this month with frost. By the 21st, Min. Temps. remained above 40° through month’s end. It wasn’t until the 28th that it remained ≥50° when it didn’t drop below 60°, the first time it has remained above 60° since way back on September 12, 2023 (227 days ago).
Because the first 25 days of the month were near/at record coolness for April, splitting the month in two results in the following – the Max/Min/Mean Temperatures from the 1st-25th: 53.9°/39.5°/46.7°; 26th-30th 76.6°/51.8°/64.2°, the departures for the final 5 days vs. the first 25 days being +22.7°/+12.3°/+17.5°. The month’s greatest diurnal range was 29.1° on the 26th (73.6°/44.5°); the least was 8.4° on the 9th (55.2°/46.8°).
HAPPY VALLEY APRIL 2023 STATISTICS:
PRECIPITATION
A wet beginning, a mostly dry ending. This was the second-consecutive very wet April and also the second-consecutive April recording more than 6 inches of precipitation. The 6.53″ that fell in 2023 was 149% of the Normal of 4.39″ and barely superseded 2022’s 6.45″. Measurable rain and snow occurred each of the first 13 days before finally drying out a bit for a 3-day period until persistent rain returned from the 17th-25th. Not a drop of rain fell afterwards to finish out the month. Periodic wet snowflakes and/or graupel were observed during each of the first 4 days of the month, with measurable snow/graupel totaling 0.4″ on the 2nd. Later in the month, snow was seen mixing with the rain in the afternoon of the 19th. As happened in 2022, this was a late-season snowfall, upping the seasonal snowfall total to 14.3″.
Overall, 20 Calendar days of measurable precipitation were recorded, with 10 of these being ≥0.25″.
Total Monthly Snowfall: 0.4″.
Maximum Snowfall Depths: Trace (2nd, Midnight Observation); 0.0″ (at 07:00 AM Observation Time).
≥0.25″: 10
≥0.50″: 3
≥1.00″: 1
≥0.25″: 10
≥0.50″: 4
≥1.00″: 1
OTHER OBSERVATIONS
Sky Cover Days: 5 Clear, 13 Partly Cloudy, and 12 Cloudy.
Barometric Pressure: Average Maximum/Minimum readings were 30.15″/29.98″, with the Highest Daily Value of 30.43” (21st), the Lowest Daily Reading of 29.72” (17th).
Relative Humidity: Maximum/Minimum Averages were 94%/63%, having a Daily Maximum of 97% (12 different days); Daily Minimum of 22% (29th).
Dew Point: Averages were a Maximum/Minimum of 50°/38°, with a Daily Maximum of 59° (27th & 29th), Daily Minimum of 31° (13th).
Wind: The Daily Average Speed was 1.3 mph from the SW, and the highest Daily Average was 3.7 mph from the N (28th); the Daily Average Gust was 13.9 mph and the Highest Gust reached 23 mph from the SSW (18th).
HAPPY VALLEY MONTHLY WEATHER FORM: APRIL 2023 (click the month to access a pdf of the form).
For the three official Portland National Weather Service weather stations, here is Temperature and Precipitation data for each location for APRIL 2023:
The 3 official Portland stations were significantly Below Normal temperature-wise, precipitation being well-above Normal:
April 2023 Max/Min/Mean Temperatures (and Departures from Normal for 30-Year Period 1991-2020):
– PDX Airport: 59.5°/43.9°/51.7° (-2.5°/+0.2°/-1.1°)
– Downtown: 57.5°/42.5°/50.0° (-3.2°/-1.7°/-2.5°)
– WFO: 58.3°/42.0°/50.1° (-3.7°/-1.4°/-2.6°)
April 2023 Precipitation (Departures, Percentages from Normal for the 30-Year Period 1991-2020):
– PDX Airport: 5.08″ (+2.19″, +175.8%)
– Downtown: 6.52″ (+2.89″, +179.6%)
– WFO: 5.94″ (+2.33″, +164.5%)
Data Periods of Record for these stations:
Portland – Downtown (currently at KGW-TV) – Period of Record: since 1/1871.
Portland International Airport (PDX) – Period of Record: since 11/1940.
Portland – National Weather Service Forecast Office (WFO) – Period of Record: since 2/1996.
Cover photo: Pear Tree Blooms, Happy Valley_2023-04-17