Jump to content
  • Member Statistics

    18,284
    Total Members
    7,904
    Most Online
    happyclam13
    Newest Member
    happyclam13
    Joined

October 2025 Discussion and Obs


wdrag
 Share

Recommended Posts

 

Records:

Highs:

EWR: 92(1949)
NYC: 91 (1939)
LGA: 89 (1949)
JFK: 86 (1997)


Lows:

EWR: 35 (1979)
NYC: 35 (1888)
LGA: 36 (1979)
JFK: 35 (1979)

Historical:


1780: The Hurricane Season of 1780 was one of the worst in recorded history. The storm which destroyed the Windward Islands from this date through the 12th is the deadliest ever in recorded Atlantic history. It became known simply as the "Great Hurricane of 1780." It is believed that 22,000 people perished in the week long rampage. 9,000 died on the island of Martinique, 5,000 in Eustatius and 4,000 in Barbados. Thousands more died at sea. It was just one of three deadly hurricanes that month. The first week of the month saw a hurricane strike Jamaica, killing 1,000 people. The eastern Gulf of Mexico was hit later that month, and 2,000 were killed. The October storms hampered much of the British and Spanish Navies and aided the colonies in the American Revolution. (Ref. AccWeather Weather History)

1804 - A famous snow hurricane occurred. The unusual coastal storm caused northerly gales from Maine to New Jersey. Heavy snow fell across New England, with three feet reported at the crest of the Green Mountains. A foot of snow was reported in the Berkshires of southern New England, at Goshen CT. (David Ludlum)

1846: The Great Hurricane of 1846 struck Cuba. The pressure over the island dropped to 916 millibars or 27.06 inches of mercury. 92 vessels in the Havana Harbor was sunk, wrecked, dismasted or severely damaged. The storm went on to wreak great havoc at Key West, FL. Fort Taylor, FL was reportedly reduced to ruins. (Ref. AccWeather Weather History)

1894: A hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico came ashore in the Florida panhandle then moved up the east coast over the coastal land regions, passing only about 20 miles southeast of Atlantic City, NJ, where it weakened to a tropical storm. Atlantic City and New York City measured wind gusts to 60 mph. Although a tropical storm as it entered Rhode Island, Block Island measured a wind gust to 100 mph. (Ref. Wilson Wx. History)

1925: Weekend football games were played in deep snow across New England as up to two feet fell in northern Vermont and New Hampshire. (Ref. AccWeather Weather History)
 

1928 - The temperature at Minneapolis, MN, reached 90 degrees, their latest such reading of record. (The Weather Channel)

1949 A rapidly deepening area of low pressure produced gale to hurricane force winds across much of Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Michigan, and the Dakotas. Sustained 1-minute winds reached 85 mph at Rochester, MN and 79 mph at La Crosse, WI during the early afternoon. Winds gusts were as high as 100 mph. This produced extensive damage to buildings and power lines. In addition, many corn crops were flattened.
Bizzare storm brings Hurricane force winds across Minnesota. This was possibly the strongest non-thunderstorm winds seen in Minnesota. Top winds were clocked at 100 mph at Rochester, with a gust of 89 mph at the Twin Cities International Airport. 4 deaths and 81 injuries were reported. Numerous store windows were broken, and large chimneys toppled. The top 10 floors of the Foshay building were evacuated with the tenants feeling seasick from the swaying building.
(Ref. AccWeather Weather History)

1954: Heavy rains continued for a second day across parts of northern Illinois. Up to 5 inches of rain created havoc as traffic was cut off by flooded underpasses and communication and power were seriously affected. Many people had to be evacuated. A small tornado was also reported. Flood damage from the two day event was estimated at $25 million dollars in the Chicago area and at least $10 million dollars in Chicago. (Ref. Wilson Wx. History)

1962: Severe thunderstorms brought very destructive hail to Bryan County, in southeast Oklahoma. Hail up to the size of golf balls broke more than half the windows of the businesses in downtown Durant, shattered many car windshields, broke out 1,400 panes of glass in seven greenhouses, and broke electrical insulators, resulting in widespread power outages. (Ref. Wilson Wx. History)

1972: Chicago, Illinois from the 9th to the 11th: A 48-hour deluge of 6.72 inches (170.7 mm) floods the Chicago River, causing ten million dollars damage in the Chicago area. (Ref. WxDoctor)

1973 - Fifteen to 20 inch rains deluged north central Oklahoma in thirteen hours producing record flooding. Enid was drenched with 15.68 inches of rain from the nearly stationary thunderstorms, which established a state 24 hour rainfall record. Dover OK reported 125 of 150 homes damaged by flooding. (David Ludlum) (The Weather Channel)

1979 - A storm blanketed Worcester, MA, with 7.5 inches of snow, a record snowfall total for so early in the season for that location. (The Weather Channel)


1979: This was the earliest snow ever recorded in Richmond, Virginia. KRIC had but a trace of snow on this date.
(Ref. Richmond Weather Records - KRIC) This is also the earliest snow ever recorded at the Annandale-Barcroft Hills station 0.5 inches. KDCA had 0.3 inches on this date and the greatest snowfall in October was 2.2 inches on October 30, 1925.
(Ref. Annandale-Barcroft Hills records) (Ref. Washington Weather Records - KDCA)Dale Enterprise west of Harrisonburg had 8.0 the heaviest early snow in more than 143 years records there back to 1868 (The Weather Channel)

1982: Beginning on the 8th through this date, record amounts of snow piled up in the northern Black Hills in South Dakota. Not only was the storm a record breaker because it came so early in the season, it was a record snowfall producer for anytime of year. Amounts of 3 to 6 feet were common across the northern hills. On the 9th, 32 inches of snow buried the town of Lead. The 32 inches that day is the most on record for a 24 hour period in South Dakota. Lead's three day storm total of 55.3 inches is the largest single storm total on record in South Dakota. (Ref. Wilson Wx. History)

1987 - Eleven cities in the north central U.S. reported record low temperatures for the date, including Colorado Springs CO with a reading of 23 degrees, and Havre MT with a low of 11 degrees above zero. Light snow was reported as far south as Kansas. Omaha NE reported their third earliest snow of record. (The National Weather Summary)

1988 - Sunny and mild weather prevailed across the nation for Columbus Day. The afternoon high of 77 degrees at Kalispell MT was the warmest reading of record for so late in the autumn season. Thunderstorms developing along a cold front produced wind gusts to 56 mph at Lorain OH. Snowflakes were observed at Milwaukee WI around Noon, but quickly changed to rain as temperature readings were in the lower 60s. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)

1989 - Thunderstorms produced torrential rains along the northeast coast of Florida. Augustine was deluged with 16.08 inches of rain. The heavy rain caused extensive flooding of homes and businesses, and left some roads under three feet of water. Ten cities from South Carolina to New England reported record low temperatures for the date, including Concord NH with a reading of 23 degrees. Temperatures dipped into the 30s in the Carolinas. (Storm Data) (The National Weather Summary)

2000: In Charlotte, NC, the low Oct. 10, 2000 was 30 degrees. This set a record for the earliest date that the temperature has dropped below freezing in Charlotte. St. Joseph, Missouri set a new record low 4 mornings in a row. (Ref. Additional Temperatures Listed On This Link)

2009: Nome, Alaska: Nome experiences its first ever October (Autumn) thunderstorm with five lightning strikes between 8 and 9 PM ADT.(Ref. WxDoctor) (Ref. Weather Guide Calendar with Phenomenal Weather Events 2012 Accord Pub. 2011, USA)

2011: Eight straight days of 100 percent sunshine in Chicago, IL is simply extraordinary - the longest previous streak in October was 7 days back in 1934. It was the longest streak for any month, except the one-time 10-day record established July 21-30, 1916 when a record 95 percent sunshine was received for that month. (Ref. WGN Chicago Weather Clear -- Very Long Period of Clear Weather)

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pretty much the greatest divergence between the max and min departures for the first week of October that you will see. Saranac Lake may be the best example of this big spread. Record temperature rises and falls for early October within a few days. They were at a +9.4° max and a -2.9° min through yesterday. 
 

IMG_4886.thumb.jpeg.e26b61e0e1c808fe4435e9ab726efed1.jpeg

 

IMG_4885.thumb.jpeg.79b46395df3d9fb26848f074d24aeaaa.jpeg


 

Climatological Data for Saranac Lake Area, NY (ThreadEx) - October 2025
Click column heading to sort ascending, click again to sort descending.
Sum 617 293 - - 127 0 1.11
Average 68.6 32.6 50.6 3.2 - - -
Normal 59.2 35.5 47.4 - 159 0 1.14
2025-10-01 59 26 42.5 -6.4 22 0 0.00
2025-10-02 64 23 43.5 -5.0 21 0 0.00
2025-10-03 72 29 50.5 2.4 14 0 0.00
2025-10-04 77 38 57.5 9.8 7 0 0.00
2025-10-05 82 42 62.0 14.6 3 0 0.00
2025-10-06 80 36 58.0 11.0 7 0 0.00
2025-10-07 75 42 58.5 11.9 6 0 1.08
2025-10-08 59 34 46.5 0.3 18 0 0.03
2025-10-09 49 23 36.0 -9.9 29 0 0.00
2025-10-10 M M M M M M M
2025-10-11 M M M M M M M
2025-10-12 M M M M M M M
2025-10-13 M M M M M M M
2025-10-14 M M M M M M M
2025-10-15 M M M M M M M
2025-10-16 M M M M M M M
2025-10-17 M M M M M M M
2025-10-18 M M M M M M M
2025-10-19 M M M M M M M
2025-10-20 M M M M M M M
2025-10-21 M M M M M M M
2025-10-22 M M M M M M M
2025-10-23 M M M M M M M
2025-10-24 M M M M M M M
2025-10-25 M M M M M M M
2025-10-26 M M M M M M M
2025-10-27 M M M M M M M
2025-10-28 M M M M M M M
2025-10-29 M M M M M M M
2025-10-30 M M M M M M M
2025-10-31 M M M M M M M
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, MANDA said:

Nothing here that I saw.  Currently 40 degrees.  Beautiful just past full moon popped above the horizon a short time ago, was out on the deck looking at it.  Crystal clear and calm.  

It's a meteor storm called the Draconids.  150 meteors per hour but only for a short time. Also called a star burst.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, IrishRob17 said:

It was early here based on 21 seasons of records. The average dates are 10/12 for first frost, 10/22 for first freeze and 10/28 for first hard freeze. 

I personally don't have data to go far enough back for that. I was going by the averages for the first freeze at Montgomery and Poughkeepsie which average out to October 12. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

33 minutes ago, LibertyBell said:

Highs:

EWR: 92(1949)
NYC: 91 (1939)
LGA: 89 (1949)
JFK: 86 (1997)

interesting that this record heat in 1949 happened on the same date as this


1949 A rapidly deepening area of low pressure produced gale to hurricane force winds across much of Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Michigan, and the Dakotas. Sustained 1-minute winds reached 85 mph at Rochester, MN and 79 mph at La Crosse, WI during the early afternoon. Winds gusts were as high as 100 mph. This produced extensive damage to buildings and power lines. In addition, many corn crops were flattened.
Bizzare storm brings Hurricane force winds across Minnesota. This was possibly the strongest non-thunderstorm winds seen in Minnesota. Top winds were clocked at 100 mph at Rochester, with a gust of 89 mph at the Twin Cities International Airport. 4 deaths and 81 injuries were reported. Numerous store windows were broken, and large chimneys toppled. The top 10 floors of the Foshay building were evacuated with the tenants feeling seasick from the swaying building.
(Ref. AccWeather Weather History)

 

also interesting this record cold in 1979

 

Lows:

EWR: 35 (1979)
NYC: 35 (1888)
LGA: 36 (1979)
JFK: 35 (1979)

 

happened on the same date as this

1979 - A storm blanketed Worcester, MA, with 7.5 inches of snow, a record snowfall total for so early in the season for that location. (The Weather Channel)


1979: This was the earliest snow ever recorded in Richmond, Virginia. KRIC had but a trace of snow on this date.
(Ref. Richmond Weather Records - KRIC) This is also the earliest snow ever recorded at the Annandale-Barcroft Hills station 0.5 inches. KDCA had 0.3 inches on this date and the greatest snowfall in October was 2.2 inches on October 30, 1925.
(Ref. Annandale-Barcroft Hills records) (Ref. Washington Weather Records - KDCA)Dale Enterprise west of Harrisonburg had 8.0 the heaviest early snow in more than 143 years records there back to 1868 (The Weather Channel)

 

so DC did get more snow than NYC during one of those October snow events.

 

 

 

I also found this extremely interesting

 

 

Additional infro on the Oct 10 1979 storm  / cold

The record earliest snowstorm for Washington, DC. --- Washington's earliest measurable snowfall occurred on October 10, 1979. National Airport reported only 0.3 inches of snow; however, much heavier snow fell to the west of Washington causing significant tree damage in the mountains of Virginia. The tree damage was especially severe because the trees had not yet lost their leaves, allowing huge amounts of snow to accumulate on the branches. The storm began on October 9th when a low- pressure area moved east through New York state and Massachusetts. A storm blanketed Worcester, MA with 7.5 inches of snow, a record snowfall total for so early in the season for that location. Washington was in the warm sector of the storm and temperatures topped out in the low '70's before the trailing cold front swept through during the late afternoon. During the nighttime hours, unseasonably cold air surged down the East Coast. As cold air invaded the D.C. area, a second storm center took shape over the Carolinas. A chilly rain broke out that evening and continued all night. By midnight, the temperature had fallen to 50 degrees F. The relentless drop of the mercury continued during the pre-dawn hours and many people in the northern and western suburbs awoke to see snow falling. During the early morning a burst of 1 - 3 inches of snow fell in central and northern Montgomery County and a coating of snow accumulated in Fairfax and lower Montgomery County. The precipitation tapers off in all sections between 7 and 9 A.M. but by 10:00 A.M. a new band of heavy snow broke out this time centering its fury on the southern half of the metropolitan area. Huge snowflakes were accompanied by lightning and thunder. By noon, the worst was over and the snow tapered off. During the second burst 3 inches of snow fell in the central and southern parts of the region. A snowfall maximum of 3.0 inches was centered in Fairfax County. Aside from the October 10, 1979 storm, there have been only two measurable October snows on record in Washington. Those took place October 19, 1940 with 1.5 inches and October 30, 1925 with 2.2 inches, the greatest snow in October.
(p. 86-87 Washington Weather Book 2002 by Ambrose, Henry, Weiss)


NYC 1979

47 37 0.85 0.0
50 37 0.00 0.0

 

Of interest is the rapid turn around later in Oct 1979

NYC 1979

76 61 0.00 0.0
80 64 0.00 0.0
88 67 0.00 0.0
78 67 0.00 0.0
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, SACRUS said:

The record earliest snowstorm for Washington, DC. --- Washington's earliest measurable snowfall occurred on October 10, 1979. National Airport reported only 0.3 inches of snow; however, much heavier snow fell to the west of Washington

The big winner that winter was Virginia. I can remember flying out of JFK with bare ground and seeing the ground covered with snow in the mid-Atlantic from over 30K feet.

We were under a winter storm warming here on a Sunday morning in February and the storm missed to our south. That was common in the old days with really big snowfall  misses from the models only 12-24 hrs out in time. 

 

Data for October 1, 1979 through April 30, 1980
Click column heading to sort ascending, click again to sort descending.
BIG MEADOWS COOP 68.3
MOUNT LAKE BIOL STN COOP 66.1
MONTEREY COOP 56.6
LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE WBAN 50.0
GOSHEN COOP 48.0
CHARLOTTESVILLE 2W COOP 45.9
SCOTTSVILLE 6SE COOP 45.5
NORFOLK NAS WBAN 45.4
DRIVER 4 NE COOP 44.5
BUCKINGHAM COOP 43.5
SUFFOLK LAKE KILBY COOP 43.0
OCEANA NAS WBAN 42.6
BURKES GARDEN COOP 42.5
DIAMOND SPRINGS COOP 42.0
NORFOLK INTL AP WBAN 41.9
Norfolk Area ThreadEx 41.9
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, winterwarlock said:

29

 

That was unexpected

Wow that's a very early first freeze for your area. Thankfully I only got down to 37 here, so the growing season continues. My pole lima beans are still producing heavily and I don't want that to stop anytime soon. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, bluewave said:

The big winner that winter was Virginia. I can remember flying out of JFK with bare ground and seeing the ground covered with snow in the mid-Atlantic from over 30K feet.

We were under a winter storm warming here on a Sunday morning in February and the storm missed to our south. That was common in the old days with really big snowfall  misses from the models only 12-24 hrs out in time. 

 

Data for October 1, 1979 through April 30, 1980
Click column heading to sort ascending, click again to sort descending.
BIG MEADOWS COOP 68.3
MOUNT LAKE BIOL STN COOP 66.1
MONTEREY COOP 56.6
LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE WBAN 50.0
GOSHEN COOP 48.0
CHARLOTTESVILLE 2W COOP 45.9
SCOTTSVILLE 6SE COOP 45.5
NORFOLK NAS WBAN 45.4
DRIVER 4 NE COOP 44.5
BUCKINGHAM COOP 43.5
SUFFOLK LAKE KILBY COOP 43.0
OCEANA NAS WBAN 42.6
BURKES GARDEN COOP 42.5
DIAMOND SPRINGS COOP 42.0
NORFOLK INTL AP WBAN 41.9
Norfolk Area ThreadEx 41.9

Was the big miss February 1989? I remember that storm.

a 6-8 inch virga storm and in a very cold December 1989 we had a 6-8 inch rainstorm with blown winter storm warnings in both events.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, SACRUS said:

 

 

Additional infro on the Oct 10 1979 storm  / cold

The record earliest snowstorm for Washington, DC. --- Washington's earliest measurable snowfall occurred on October 10, 1979. National Airport reported only 0.3 inches of snow; however, much heavier snow fell to the west of Washington causing significant tree damage in the mountains of Virginia. The tree damage was especially severe because the trees had not yet lost their leaves, allowing huge amounts of snow to accumulate on the branches. The storm began on October 9th when a low- pressure area moved east through New York state and Massachusetts. A storm blanketed Worcester, MA with 7.5 inches of snow, a record snowfall total for so early in the season for that location. Washington was in the warm sector of the storm and temperatures topped out in the low '70's before the trailing cold front swept through during the late afternoon. During the nighttime hours, unseasonably cold air surged down the East Coast. As cold air invaded the D.C. area, a second storm center took shape over the Carolinas. A chilly rain broke out that evening and continued all night. By midnight, the temperature had fallen to 50 degrees F. The relentless drop of the mercury continued during the pre-dawn hours and many people in the northern and western suburbs awoke to see snow falling. During the early morning a burst of 1 - 3 inches of snow fell in central and northern Montgomery County and a coating of snow accumulated in Fairfax and lower Montgomery County. The precipitation tapers off in all sections between 7 and 9 A.M. but by 10:00 A.M. a new band of heavy snow broke out this time centering its fury on the southern half of the metropolitan area. Huge snowflakes were accompanied by lightning and thunder. By noon, the worst was over and the snow tapered off. During the second burst 3 inches of snow fell in the central and southern parts of the region. A snowfall maximum of 3.0 inches was centered in Fairfax County. Aside from the October 10, 1979 storm, there have been only two measurable October snows on record in Washington. Those took place October 19, 1940 with 1.5 inches and October 30, 1925 with 2.2 inches, the greatest snow in October.
(p. 86-87 Washington Weather Book 2002 by Ambrose, Henry, Weiss)


NYC 1979

47 37 0.85 0.0
50 37 0.00 0.0

 

Of interest is the rapid turn around later in Oct 1979

NYC 1979

76 61 0.00 0.0
80 64 0.00 0.0
88 67 0.00 0.0
78 67 0.00 0.0

wow in none of these three DC October snowstorms did NYC get any snow?

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...