2021 Year In Review for Northern and Eastern Maine

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PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CARIBOU ME

557 PM EST TUE JAN 4 2022

...2021 YEAR IN REVIEW...

JANUARY WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR MUCH ABOVE AVERAGE TEMPERATURES AND

WELL BELOW AVERAGE PRECIPITATION, INCLUDING SNOWFALL. IT WAS THE

2ND WARMEST JANUARY ON RECORD IN CARIBOU AND THE 7TH WARMEST IN

BANGOR. THERE WERE ONLY 4 NIGHTS WITH A SUB-ZERO LOW IN CARIBOU 

WHICH IS THE FEWEST ON RECORD. THE SNOW DEPTH WAS UNUSUALLY LOW 

AND AVERAGED ONLY 40 PERCENT OF NORMAL IN CARIBOU AND 25 PERCENT 

OF NORMAL IN BANGOR. 

FEBRUARY FEATURED TEMPERATURES THAT WERE SLIGHTLY ABOVE AVERAGE

WITH ABOVE TO WELL ABOVE AVERAGE SNOWFALL AS SEVERAL WINTER STORMS

AFFECTED THE AREA. CARIBOU ENDED UP WITH A TOTAL OF 38 INCHES OF

SNOW, AND IT WAS THE SNOWIEST FEBRUARY SINCE 2013 AND THE 10TH

SNOWIEST FEBRUARY ON RECORD. THE SNOW DEPTH INCREASED

SIGNIFICANTLY FROM JANUARY, AND BY THE END OF THE MONTH THERE WAS

15 TO 30 INCHES OF SNOW ON THE GROUND ACROSS THE NORTH AND 5 TO 

10 INCHES ALONG THE COAST. 

MARCH ALSO HAD ABOVE AVERAGE TEMPERATURES THAT RANGED FROM 2 TO 3

DEGREES ABOVE THE 1991-2020 NORMALS. THE BIG STORY WAS A WARM-UP

ON THE 20TH THROUGH THE 25TH WHICH BROUGHT SIX CONSECUTIVE DAYS

WITH HIGHS IN THE 50S AND 60S AND MELTED OUT A LOT OF THE WINTER

SNOWPACK. SNOWFALL WAS WELL BELOW AVERAGE WITH ONLY A TRACE

OBSERVED ALL MONTH IN BANGOR, WHICH TIED WITH 1946 FOR THE LEAST 

AMOUNT OF SNOW OBSERVED DURING THE MONTH OF MARCH. THE MOST

SIGNIFICANT WEATHER EVENT OF THE MONTH OCCURRED ON THE 2ND ACROSS

NORTHERN AND EASTERN AROOSTOOK COUNTY WHEN VERY STRONG WIND

COMBINED WITH FRESHLY FALLEN SNOW THE DAY PRIOR TO PRODUCE

SIGNIFICANT BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW. MANY ROADS INCLUDING PARTS

OF U.S. 1 WERE CLOSED AND THERE WERE NUMEROUS ACCIDENTS AND LOCAL

WHITE-OUT CONDITIONS. 

APRIL WAS YET ANOTHER MONTH OF ABOVE AVERAGE TEMPERATURES ACROSS

THE REGION WITH ALL LONG TERM CLIMATE SITES OBSERVING A TOP 5

WARMEST APRIL ON RECORD. PRECIPITATION WAS CLOSE TO AVERAGE, BUT

SNOWFALL WAS BELOW AVERAGE DOWNEAST AND NEAR TO SLIGHTLY ABOVE

AVERAGE FOR CENTRAL AND NORTHERN AREAS. THE MOST SIGNIFICANT 

EVENT WAS A SNOWFALL ON THE 21ST-22ND THAT PRODUCED SEVERAL INCHES

OF SNOW ACROSS NORTHERN AREAS WITH LOCALIZED HEAVY SNOW TOTALS UP

TO A FOOT ACROSS THE HIGH TERRAIN OF CENTRAL, NORTHWEST, AND FAR 

NORTHERN SECTIONS OF MAINE. 

MAY FINISHED WITH NEAR NORMAL TEMPERATURES AND BELOW TO NEAR

NORMAL RAINFALL. THE MONTH BEGAN AND ENDED COOL WITH MOST INLAND

AREAS WITH HIGHS IN THE 80S ON THE 26TH WITH A FEW CENTRAL AREAS

IN THE LOW 90S. THIS WAS FOLLOWED BY FROST AND EVEN SOME FREEZES

AT THE END OF THE MONTH ON THE 27TH THROUGH THE 30TH.  

JUNE WENT DOWN IN THE RECORD BOOKS AS A VERY WARM MONTH. IN FACT,

IT WAS THE ALL-TIME WARMEST JUNE ON RECORD IN CARIBOU. THIS 

FOLLOWED ON THE HEELS OF 2020 WHICH HAD JUST BECOME THE WARMEST

JUNE ON RECORD. HOULTON AND MILLINOCKET OBSERVED THEIR 2ND WARMEST

JUNE, AND IN BANGOR IT WAS THE 3RD WARMEST ON RECORD. OF NOTE, FOR

THE FIRST TIME SINCE WEATHER RECORDS BEGAN IN 1939 THERE WAS A

90-DEGREE DAY IN CARIBOU DURING THE FIRST TEN DAYS OF JUNE. THE

LOW OF 69 DEGREES ON THE 27TH TIED FOR THE ALL-TIME WARMEST LOW

TEMPERATURE IN CARIBOU DURING THE MONTH OF JUNE. IT RANKED AS THE

2ND DRIEST JUNE ON RECORD IN CARIBOU WITH ONLY 0.97" OF RAIN.

THERE WERE A COUPLE OF SIGNIFICANT EVENTS DURING THE MONTH. ON THE

MORNING OF THE 9TH, THERE WAS FLASH FLOODING IN PARTS OF HANCOCK

AND WASHINGTON COUNTIES WITH LOCAL REPORTS OF OVER 5 INCHES OF

RAIN. ON THE 21ST, THERE WAS A MICROBURST OVER LIMESTONE THAT

PRODUCED WIND GUSTS ESTIMATED AT 100 TO 110 MPH. THE SAME DAY

ANOTHER MICROBURST WAS OBSERVED FROM CASTLE HILL TO JUST SOUTHWEST

OF CARIBOU THAT PRODUCED GUSTS THAT WERE ESTIMATED AT 90 TO 100

MPH. DROUGHT CONDITIONS WORSENED ACROSS THE REGION DURING THE

MONTH WITH SEVERE DROUGHT IN PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN PENOBSCOT AND

SOUTHWEST PISCATAQUIS COUNTIES.

JULY WAS THE FIRST MONTH SINCE MAY 2020 WITH BELOW AVERAGE

TEMPERATURES IN CARIBOU, HOULTON, MILLINOCKET, AND BANGOR. IT WAS

THE COOLEST JULY SINCE 2009. IT WAS THE ALL-TIME WETTEST JULY ON

RECORD IN BANGOR WITH 7.67 INCHES OF RAIN WHICH BROKE THE PREVIOUS

RECORD OF 7.25 INCHES IN 1983. IT WAS A VERY WET MONTH DOWNEAST

AND A VERY DRY MONTH ACROSS FAR NORTHERN MAINE. SEVERE WEATHER,

WHICH TYPICALLY PEAKS IN JULY WAS ABSENT THIS YEAR WITH ONLY 2

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNINGS ISSUED ALL MONTH, AND THEY WERE IN 

HANCOCK AND WASHINGTON COUNTIES. DROUGHT CONDITIONS IMPROVED 

DOWNEAST DUE TO THE THE ABOVE AVERAGE RAINFALL. 

AUGUST WAS A VERY WARM AND DRY MONTH. IN FACT, IT RANKED AS THE

ALL-TIME WARMEST AUGUST ON RECORD IN CARIBOU AND HOULTON, AND THE

2ND WARMEST ON RECORD IN MILLINOCKET. RAINFALL WAS ONLY ABOUT 40

PERCENT OF NORMAL ACROSS THE FAR NORTH AND WEST AND CLOSER TO

AVERAGE DOWNEAST. SOME OF THE RAIN THAT WAS OBSERVED DOWNEAST WAS

THE RESULT OF THE REMNANT LOW PRESSURE OF HENRI ON THE 23TH INTO

THE 24TH.  

SEPTEMBER WAS WARMER AND WETTER THAN AVERAGE. ALL OF THE LONG TERM

CLIMATE SITES HAD A TOP 10 WETTEST SEPTEMBER, WHICH HELPED

SIGNIFICANTLY TO REDUCE THE DROUGHT CONDITIONS ACROSS THE REGION. 

OCTOBER WAS WARMER THAN AVERAGE WITH NO MEASURABLE SNOWFALL EXCEPT

FOR THE HIGHEST ELEVATIONS. PRECIPITATION WAS BELOW AVERAGE TO

NEAR AVERAGE. CARIBOU SET A RECORD FOR THE LATEST FIRST FREEZE ON

RECORD WHICH DID NOT OCCUR UNTIL THE 25TH. THIS SMASHED THE

PREVIOUS RECORD OF OCTOBER 17, 1970. 

NOVEMBER WAS A BIT WARMER AND DRIER THAN AVERAGE. THE FIRST

SIGNIFICANT SNOWFALL OCCURRED ON THE 15TH INTO THE 16TH ACROSS 

THE NORTH WITH 3 TO 4 INCHES OF SNOW. A LARGER STORM AFFECTED THE 

REGION ON THE 26TH-27TH WITH UP TO 7 INCHES OF SNOW ACROSS THE 

NORTH, BUT WITH LIGHTER AMOUNTS ACROSS CENTRAL AND DOWNEAST AREAS.

DECEMBER WAS A LITTLE WARMER AND DRIER THAN AVERAGE ACROSS THE

REGION. THERE WAS A PRONOUNCED LACK OF ARCTIC AIR WITH ONLY ONE

NIGHT WITH A LOW TEMPERATURE BELOW ZERO IN CARIBOU. SNOWFALL WAS

NEAR TO SLIGHTLY BELOW AVERAGE ACROSS THE NORTH AND BELOW AVERAGE

DOWNEAST. BY THE END OF THE MONTH, THE SNOWPACK RANGED FROM 6 TO

12 INCHES ACROSS THE NORTH, EXCEPT 12 TO 18 INCHES ACROSS THE 

HIGHER ELEVATIONS OF NORTHWEST MAINE. AMOUNTS WERE GENERALLY IN 

THE 4 TO 8 INCH RANGE FOR CENTRAL AREAS, AND FROM 2 TO 4 INCHES 

DOWNEAST, EXCEPT RIGHT ALONG THE IMMEDIATE COAST WHERE THERE WAS 

LITTLE TO NO SNOW. 

$$

CB