October 2022 Climate Summary for Northern and Eastern Maine

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PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CARIBOU ME

422 PM EDT TUE NOV 1 2022

...PRELIMINARY OCTOBER 2022 CLIMATE NARRATIVE FOR NORTHERN AND 

EASTERN MAINE...

OCTOBER 2022 FINISHED WITH WELL ABOVE AVERAGE TEMPERATURES AND

RAINFALL THAT VARIED FROM WELL ABOVE AVERAGE TO SLIGHTLY BELOW

AVERAGE.

TEMPERATURES FOR THE MONTH RANGED FROM 3 TO 6 DEGREES ABOVE

AVERAGE ACROSS THE REGION. TEMPERATURES ALTERNATED FROM BELOW TO

ABOVE AVERAGE EARLY IN THE MONTH, BUT FROM THE 13TH OF THE MONTH

THROUGH THE END OF THE MONTH WERE CONSISTENTLY ABOVE AVERAGE.

THE MONTH ENDED AS THE 3RD WARMEST OCTOBER ON RECORD IN BOTH

CARIBOU AND HOULTON BEHIND ONLY 2017 AND 2021. IN MILLINOCKET IT

WAS THE 5TH WARMEST OCTOBER ON RECORD, AND IN BANGOR IT RANKED AS

THE 10TH WARMEST ON RECORD. 

IN CARIBOU THERE WAS AN AMAZING 21 DAYS WITH A HIGH TEMPERATURE OF

60 DEGREES OR WARMER, WHICH WAS THE MOST EVER DURING THE MONTH OF

OCTOBER. HOULTON ALSO OBSERVED 21 DAYS WITH A HIGH OF 60F OR 

WARMER, JUST ONE SHY OF THE RECORD OF 22 SUCH DAYS SET IN 2017. 

MILLINOCKET HAD 23 DAYS WITH A HIGH OF 60F OR WARMER, WHICH WAS 

JUST SHY OF THE ALL-TIME RECORD OF 25 DAYS SET IN 1903 AND AGAIN 

IN 2017. BANGOR HAD 22 DAYS WITH A HIGH OF 60F OR WARMER, WHICH 

FELL SHORT OF THE RECORD OF 28 DAYS IN 2017. 

ANY AREAS ACROSS NORTHERN MAINE THAT DID NOT EXPERIENCE A HARD

FREEZE IN MID TO LATE SEPTEMBER DID DURING THE OPENING DAYS OF 

OCTOBER WITH SEVERAL CONSECUTIVE NIGHTS BELOW FREEZING. BANGOR AS 

WELL AS MOST OF THE DOWNEAST REGION ALSO RECEIVED MULTIPLE FREEZES

EARLY IN OCTOBER.

THE FALL FOLIAGE PEAKED DURING THE FIRST WEEK OF THE MONTH ACROSS

THE SAINT JOHN VALLEY AND BY THE MIDDLE OF THE MONTH IN BANGOR AND

ALONG THE COAST. 

TOTAL RAINFALL RANGED FROM 150 TO 225 PERCENT OF NORMAL IN A

CORRIDOR FROM BANGOR NORTH TO THE WESTERN SAINT JOHN VALLEY, BUT

FROM ONLY 60 TO 90 PERCENT OF NORMAL IN NORTHERN WASHINGTON COUNTY

AND SOUTHEAST AROOSTOOK COUNTY AS WELL AS NORTHERN SOMERSET

COUNTY. THE U.S. DROUGHT MONITOR INDICATED THAT THE REMAINING 

AREA OF ABNORMALLY DRY CONDITIONS IN WESTERN HANCOCK COUNTY WAS

REMOVED BY THE END OF THE MONTH, AND THE END OF OCTOBER NO DROUGHT

OR ABNORMALLY DRY CONDITIONS WERE OBSERVED ANYWHERE IN NORTHERN OR

EASTERN MAINE. 

IN BANGOR IT WAS THE 3RD WETTEST OCTOBER ON RECORD WITH 8.87

INCHES OF RAIN OBSERVED. ONLY 2003 AND 2005 WERE WETTER. IN

MILLINOCKET IT WAS THE 5TH WETTEST ON RECORD WITH 7.71 INCHES. IN

SHARP CONTRAST, HOULTON OBSERVED ONLY 2.65 INCHES OF RAIN, WHICH

WAS 1.39 INCHES BELOW AVERAGE.

A SIGNIFICANT RAIN EVENT ON THE 14TH INTO THE 15TH PRODUCED A

2-DAY TOTAL OF 5 INCHES OF RAIN AT BANGOR, INCLUDING 3.2 INCHES ON

THE 15TH. THE 2-DAY TOTAL OF 5 INCHES WAS THE 13TH GREATEST 2-DAY

TOTAL ON RECORD, AND THE 2ND GREATEST 2-DAY TOTAL FOR THE MONTH OF

OCTOBER. THE 3.2 INCHES OF RAIN ON THE 15TH WAS THE 2ND GREATEST 

DAILY RAINFALL EVER OBSERVED IN BANGOR DURING THE MONTH OF OCTOBER

BEHIND ONLY OCTOBER 8, 2005, WHEN 3.98 INCHES OF RAIN WAS 

OBSERVED. NO SNOW WAS OBSERVED THIS PAST OCTOBER ACROSS NORTHERN 

AND EASTERN MAINE. ON AVERAGE, MEASURABLE SNOWFALL IS OBSERVED 

ABOUT 3 OUT OF 5 YEARS ACROSS NORTHERN MAINE DURING OCTOBER, AND 

ABOUT 1 OUT OF 5 YEARS DOWNEAST.

THE OUTLOOK FOR NOVEMBER FOR THE REGION FROM THE CLIMATE 

PREDICTION CENTER IS CALLING FOR HIGH PROBABILITIES OF ABOVE 

AVERAGE TEMPERATURES. THE ODDS ARE SLIGHTLY TILTED TOWARD BELOW 

AVERAGE PRECIPITATION. THE AVERAGE HIGH IN CARIBOU DROPS FROM 46 

DEGREES ON THE 1ST TO 33 DEGREES BY THE END OF THE MONTH. THE 

AVERAGE LOW FALLS FROM 31F TO 19F. ON AVERAGE, 10.4" OF SNOW IS 

OBSERVED DURING THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER. IN BANGOR, THE AVERAGE HIGH

IS 52F ON THE 1ST AND 40F AT THE END OF THE MONTH. THE AVERAGE 

LOW DROPS FROM 34F TO 23F. ON AVERAGE, 4.3" OF SNOW IS OBSERVED. 

JUST UNDER 2 HOURS OF DAYLIGHT IS LOST DURING THE MONTH OF 

NOVEMBER.

$$

CB/VJN

October weather some of the warmest ever in New Brunswick, say meteorologists

Curling club member says high temperatures, humidity caused bumps on ice

Jennifer Sweet · CBC News · Posted: Nov 01, 2022 6:00 PM AT | Last Updated: November 1

This October was one of the warmest on record in the Maritimes, say meteorologists.

Based on preliminary data, it was among the top three warmest months in the books for Fredericton, Moncton and Charlo, said CBC meteorologist Ryan Snodden.

"Definitely this fall has been warmer than normal and especially in October," agreed Jill Maepea, a New Brunswick meteorologist with Environment Canada.

Almost all of Environment Canada's weather data sites have seen one of their top five warmest Octobers on record, she said. For some sites, that data extends back to the late 1800s.

The year 1913 holds records across the board, said Snodden.

But this year Bas-Caraquet and Charlo experienced their second warmest Octobers, said Maepea, while Moncton had its third warmest.

Average daily temperature for October 2022 versus 1981-2010 average. Based on preliminary data, this October was among the top three warmest months in the books for Fredericton, Moncton and Charlo, said CBC meteorologist Ryan Snodden. (Ryan Snodden)

In Bas-Caraquet, the monthly mean temperature was 10.3 C, said Maepea. The normal is 7.6 C.

"If you're always three degrees warmer on your minimum and your maximum, it's quite a contrast in terms of how warm it really was."

Charlo had an even larger aberration.

Their normal mean temperature for October is 5.7 C. And this year's was 9.3 C.

Behind the warm temperatures has been "a very slow progression of any weather patterns," said Maepea, under the influence of a stationary high pressure system known as the "Bermuda high."

At this time of year, the Bermuda high usually gets pushed out of the way, she said, but it's remained "really strong," and brought a southwesterly flow and warm temperatures.

The Maritimes have seen "the good side" of that, said Maepea. Other parts of Canada have seen "almost the opposite," with snowstorms on the Prairies.

A short-term episode such as this wouldn't be considered "climate change," she said. That term refers to longer-term changes.

But last year was also very warm, as was 2017.

The "warmer-than-average theme" is continuing into November, said Snodden.

Temperatures are set to climb back into the mid-to-high teens Friday and into the weekend.

Wild roses are still blooming into November in Fredericton. (Jennifer Sweet/CBC)

That will likely continue well into the month, said Maepea.

While that may be welcome news for those looking to get out the yard rake, it's not so great for those who'd rather be using a curling broom.

At the St. Stephen Curling Club members usually hit the ice for the season the last week of October, but high temperatures and humidity late last week put up some bumps in the road, said member Abby Pond.

"I woke up last Thursday, I think it was 19 degrees," Pond said, describing the weather as "a perfect storm of heat and humidity."

With the ice plant on in the old barn-like building, its uninsulated, peaked roof was like a cold beer on a hot summer day, said Pond.

So much water dripped down from the rafters — which are charred and dirty from old fire damage — it created hundreds of big, brown bumps across the ice.

Warm temperatures haven't helped the ice at the St. Stephen Curling Club. (Submitted by Abby Pond)

They used to get little bumps before the dehumidifier was upgraded in 2017, and the ice scraping machine can take care of those, she said.

But these ones had to be scraped off individually by the chief ice maker and a crew of volunteers and the resulting divots repaired.

They got some "great tips," for removing the bumps from members of a curling club in southern Georgia, where this type of weather is more common during curling season.

They call them "moguls," she said.

"It's a little bit of home ice advantage if there are a few moguls and you know where they are and the other team doesn't," said Pond. 

"But this? This is a little bit too many."