2015 Year in Review at Northern and Eastern Maine

...2015 CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR CARIBOU AND BANGOR...

Caribou:

The average temperature at Caribou during 2015 was 40.3 degrees, which was 4 tenths of a degree (0.4F) above the 30-year average.  It tied with 2014 as the coolest year since 2009.  It ranked as the 19^th coldest year on record since 1940.

There were a total of 32 days with a high temperature of 80 degrees or warmer, which was above the long term average of 26 days.  There were no 90 degree days this past year.  On average, there are one or two 90 degree days each summer. There were 175 days with a low temperature of 32F or lower, and 52 nights with a low temperature of zero or lower, which was above the long term average of 40.  There were 3 days with a high temperature below zero.  The 30-year average is 2 days when the high temperature remains below zero all day.

Temperatures ranged from a low of 22 below on January 8^th to a high of 88F on August 18^th. 

A total of 36.17 inches of rain (and melted snow) was observed in 2015, which was 2.32 inches below average.   It was the driest year since 2004, and bucked the recent trend of very wet years.  It ranked as the 29^th driest year since 1940. Seven of the top 10 wettest years have been observed since 2000.

Yearly snowfall (which differs from seasonal snowfall) was 118.1 inches, which was 7.4 inches above normal.

Bangor:

The average temperature at Bangor during 2014 was 43.8 degrees, which was 1.0 degree (F) below the 30-year average.  It was the coolest year since 2009.  It ranked as the 23^rd coldest year on record since 1926.

There were a total of 52 days with a high temperature of 80 degrees or warmer, which was above the long term average of 40.  There was one day when the high temperature reached 90F.  There were 161 days with a low temperature of 32F or lower, and 38 nights with a low temperature of zero or lower, which was well above the long term average of 18 nights.

The high temperature for the year was 90F, which was observed on August 18^th .   On average, there are 4 days with a high temperature of 90 degrees or warmer each year. The low temperature for the year of 23 below was observed on February 14^th.   It was the lowest temperature observed at Bangor since January 2009.

A total of 35.53 inches of rain (and melted snow) was observed in 2015.  It was the driest year since 2004.  It ranked as the 16^th driest year on record since 1926. Yearly snowfall was 119.7 inches, making it the 4^th snowiest calendar year on record, and the snowiest year since 1963.

Here are some of the more memorable events in 2015:

February was the all-time coldest month ever observed at Bangor.  It was the coldest February on record at Caribou, and was the 4^th coldest month ever observed at Caribou.  Snowfall was well above average across the Downeast region, and Eastport in Washington County observed 82.3 inches of snow, which is an unofficial all-time record monthly snowfall for any long term climate site in northern and eastern Maine.  The cold weather eased a bit in March, but it was still a persistently cold month with only 5 days in most areas with above average temperatures during the entire month.  The first half of 2015 ranked as the coldest on record at Bangor and the 6^th coldest on record at Caribou.

The late summer and fall were unusually warm. August was the warmest on record at Caribou, and there was a record setting 10 consecutive days with a high of 80 degrees or warmer.   September was the 2^nd warmest on record at Caribou, and the 3^rd warmest at Bangor.  The combined two month period of August-September was the warmest on record at Caribou, and the 3^rd warmest at Bangor which has a longer period of record.

December ended as the warmest on record at Caribou, Bangor, and Houlton with temperatures that averaged near 10 degrees above the 30-year average.  There were even reports of spring flowers starting to sprout in coastal communities on Christmas Day when highs were in the 50s.