LPWB Skycam Livestream, Looking NW-N-NE

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Note: LPWB operates on Eastern Standard Time (EST) year round.

Today (Friday): 0.00"

Yesterday: 0.09" 

Month to Date: 0.33" (Whole month normal 3.82")

December: 4.43"

Year to Date: 0.33" (Whole year normal 52.79")

Year 2024 Final: 46.68"

* As measured with manual double-cylinder gauge

Today (Friday): 0.0" 

Yesterday: 1.0"

Month to Date: 3.6" (Whole month normal 9.2")

December: 1.6"

Season to Date: 5.2" (Whole season normal 28.3")

Depth Snow/Ice: 1"

Download full-year lists

Record Type      16 Jan     17 Jan     18 Jan

Norm Temps#     39/24       39/23      38/23

Hi Max Temp   62/1995    62/1990   66/1990

Hi Min Temp    43/1995    37/2017   82/1990

Lo Max Temp   12/1994   20/2009+  16/2005

Lo Min Temp     1/1994     2/2009    -1/1994

Most Pcpn   0.74/1991  2.04/1994  1.35/2006

Most Snow   3.3/2022   10.6/1994   3.0/1984

Last Year     29/17/0.28 26/9/0.00 34/15/0.00

# 1991-2020 LPWB 30-yr smoothed averages

+ Most recent of more than one  

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News items contain only factual statements.  Blogs may contain opinion or speculation.

The coldest temperatures in two years invaded the region which includes LPWB beginning on the winter solstice, 21 December 2024. At LPWB, the temperature fell below freezing shortly after 12:00 AM of early Saturday 21 December and did not climb above till midday of Tuesday the 24th. In the midst of those 80-some hours of sub-freezing, the minimum of 8 degrees came early morning of the 23rd. The official Reading PA (RDG) minimum also was 8. This beat the coldest of last winter which was 9 on 17 January 2024. A slightly colder blast occurred almost exactly two years earlier from 23 to 25 December 2022 which included a lowest of 5 above early on the 24th. The maximum of 16 that same day tied the lowest date maximum for December at LPWB since 1984. Patchy thin snow cover accompanied this latest cold blast. A rebound to 60-some degrees followed both arctic blasts within a week and included a high of 65 degrees on Sunday 29 December 2024.

Barometer readings throughout southeastern Pennsylvania soared to near record high sea-level pressures (SLP) on 14 December 2024 as a burly high-pressure system (anticyclone) built southward from eastern Canada. At LPWB, the SLP peaked at 30.97 in*Hg (1048.7 hPa) at 9:35 AM. This marked the highest SLP during the 42 years of record at LPWB. Meanwhile, SLP peaked at 30.98 in*Hg at Reading Regional Airport (RDG). Temperatures during 14 December climbed from 15 to 37 degrees at LPWB, which were much colder than normal but not quite severely cold. The record highest SLPs throughout eastern Pennsylvania occurred on 13 February 1981 and peaked at or very near to 31.08 in*Hg (1052.5 hPa).  Before this occurrence, the official highest SLP recorded by the Reading PA U.S. Weather Bureau Office was 31.00 in*Hg (1049.8 hPa) on 25 December 1949. Only moderately cold temperatures accompanied these two previous occurrences of very high SLPs.  Reference this NWS product to learn of United Sates & Canada SLP Extremes by Month.

After 18 of the first 22 days of September having warmed to at least 80 degrees, daily highs of at least 80 suddenly ended at the autumnal equinox. Normally, a few more 80-days occur in early fall with the last in early October. This early fall had none as autumnal cooling progressed as usual. Then 13 October warmed to 84 at LPWB. But 80-days became rather numerous during late October (4) and even into November with two more. The warmest was 87 on 22 October. After a brief cool snap which contained the first freezing temperature this fall, 31 October warmed to 85 to mark the latest in fall to become that warm. That early evening was balmy for trick-or-treat with temperatures dropping slowly from the upper to lower 70s. The high of 81 on 1 November marked the first 80-some temperature in November since 2003 at LPWB. But that was outdone with 84 on 6 November for a new November highest and the latest 80-some in a year in 42 years of record. Reading PA with a high of 83 set a new latest 80 also in 127 years. Reading's November highest of 84 on 1 November 1950 endured. Repeating upper-level ridging over the region that produced this repeating mid-autumnal warmth also contributed to the unusual dryness. Read previous article for those details.

Official NWS stations from the Lehigh Valley southward to southern Delaware and eastward to the New Jersey shore marked their driest October and also driest of any month with October rainfall totals from zero to a few hundredths of an inch according to records back to over 150 years for some.  Previous driest for most locations was October 1924. During last 42 years, LPWB with 0.09" pulverized its previous driest October, which was 2001 at 0.83" and driest month, 0.22" from August 1995. Officially for Reading PA, 0.03" of this October stayed under the driest of any month since 1869 of 0.04" from October 1924. This dry event having repeated after exactly 100 years makes for a curious coincidence. The region was already abnormally dry as October began and then escalated to severe drought status region-wide according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.  

June 2024 became the warmest of 41 at LPWB with a final average temperature of 76.1 degrees, which is 4.2 above the 1991-2020 30-year average and was keyed by a strong seven-day heat wave around the summer solstice. Read article below for those details. This average widely surpassed the previous warmest of 75.2 from 2010. Abundance of mainly sunny days with a very long stretch of paltry rainfall contributed to a new highest June average daily maximum temperature of 88.9 (+6.4) which was bolstered by a new June greatest of 14 days that heated to at least 90 (previously 11 during June 2012). The average of the daily minimums of 63.3 (+2.1) was not nearly as anomalous as many clear nights allowed significant nocturnal cooling. The official average for the Reading PA (RDG) also was 76.1degrees which edged above 76.0 from 1925 for second place of 127 but rather distance from tops 76.6 of June 1943.

A strong heat wave gripped the Reading PA area during seven days on and surrounding the summer solstice, 17-23 June 2024. Respective max temperatures of 92,95,95,96,99,102,98 and min temperatures of 66,70,70,68,70,76,78 included several LPWB date records and two June records.  The 102 on the 22nd became a new June highest, surpassing 100 of 16 June 1988. Then min of 78 on the 23rd survived as cooling PM thunderstorms missed the area, thus remaining above 77 of 28 June 1999.  Official Reading area (RDG) temperatures were same or close these seven days and included a few new record highs during 127 years. The 101 on the 22nd became hottest June temperature since 102 on 26 June 1952. This 22 June was first with triple-digit temperatures since 18 July 2012 for both LPWB and RDG and is a much longer than the average return period of a few years.  Abnormally parched grounds and stressed plants availed more energy for raising air temperatures that otherwise would have been consumed by evaporation and transpiration. The result was daily max temperatures a few degrees above almost everywhere else in the region as most places had not become so arid.

A M2.4 earthquake shook the area that includes LPWB at 4:36 PM EDT on Friday 19 April 2024. The USGS determined the epicenter was not quite 1 mile NE of LPWB in the adjoining borough of Wyomissing.  The tremblor was brief consisting of a loud boom with a thump as the shock wave propagated NE to SW. No damage was reported. Read pertinent Reading Eagle article for further details.

Precipitation totaling 6.43" during January 2024, keyed by 2.17" within 24 hours that spanned the 9th and10th, ensured drought would not return anytime soon.  This sum included the melt of 8.6" of snow from three moderate snow accumulations, slightly under the 40-year mean of 9.2" but slightly above the median.  The first snow, a slushy 2.1" early in the month, melted quickly within a January that was predominantly mild.  However, eight days of harsh cold in the middle of the month included five days not above freezing and the other two snow accumulations.  As a result, this rather long cold spell preserved brumal scenery for longer than a couple of days for the first such stretch in nearly two years.

Precipitation totaling 8.75" during December 2023, keyed by 3.48" within 24 hours that spanned the 17th and 18th, swelled the final year 2023 total to 54.06" which is above the 1991-2020 average of 52.79". Two-day amount of 2.44" on 10th-11th and soaking of 1.81" on the 27th contributed significantly also.  Copious rains of July and September reduced drought, which became severe by early summer, but did not eliminate it.  The sum of 8.75" placed third wettest December of 40, slightly behind 8.89" of December 1996 but distant to 11.76" of December 1983.  Only snow came as three scattered coatings totaling 0.6 inch which briefly whitened the ground each time.