GLOBAL WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS

DECEMBER 2009


UNITED STATES

The spatial extent of drought conditions remained generally unchanged
across the contiguous United States and Hawaii, but grew for Alaska
and Puerto Rico. Several large storm systems affected the eastern half
of the country and eliminated drought in Florida and North Carolina.
Conditions improved for southern Texas where a devastating drought was
the most costly weather disaster in the U.S. this year, causing nearly
$4 billion in crop losses. At the end of December, there was no
exceptional or extreme drought for the state. Precipitation in the
upper Midwest largely missed the drought stricken areas of Wisconsin
and Minnesota, leaving the drought footprint there unchanged.
Precipitation improved drought for southern California and Nevada,
while dry conditions increased drought extent in Northern California
and parts of Idaho. The remainder of the West remained unchanged over
the course of December. Precipitation was light for interior parts of
Alaska for the past several months leading to the development of
abnormally dry conditions. Snowpack in the Koyukuk Basin is reported
to be 50 percent of normal. The severe-to-extreme drought conditions
across portions of Hawaii continued, prompting the USDA to declare
parts of the islands a disaster area due to crop losses.
According to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

Southeast

Heavy rains soaked the already soggy Southern U.S. on December 15th.
Flooding caused roads and schools to be closed in Louisiana, Alabama,
and Georgia. New Orleans received more than 7 inches (18 cm) of rain
in a 24-hour period. This storm, as well as previous rain events for
the month, led New Orleans to have its wettest month on record with
25.92 inches (65.9 cm) of rain, beating the old record of 25.11 inches
(63.8 cm) set in October 1937, when a slow moving tropical cyclone
passed the area. The New Orleans's International Airport typically
receives 5.07 inches (12.9 cm) of rain in December, and the previous
December rainfall record was 10.77 inches (27 cm) in 1967.

South

Severe storms and heavy rainfall were associated with the same storm
that brought blizzard conditions to the central parts of the U.S. on
December 23rd and 24th. At least one death in Louisiana was blamed on
the heavy rainfall and storms. There were 35 preliminary tornado
reports and 34 hail and wind reports along the Gulf Coast over the 2-
day period. The 10 year average number of tornadoes across the country
in December is 36.

Northeast

A monster snow storm affected the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions
of the U.S. on December 18th through December 20th. The storm
originated in the Gulf of Mexico and moved northward along the Eastern
Seaboard, leaving behind heavy snow accumulations from North Carolina
to Massachusetts. Impacts from this storm included the closing of
major airports, interstate highways, and rail systems. Over 1,200
flights were cancelled at the three major airports in the New York
City area, and hundreds of thousands of people lost power due to the
storm. Seven people were reported killed across the Mid-Atlantic
(source: Reuters).

Over two feet (61 cm) of snow accumulation was reported in portions of
North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, and New
York. At one point, the storm was over 500 miles (800 km) in width,
and affected 14 states and tens of millions of Americans (Source:
AFP). The National Weather Service reported this to be the heaviest
snow event to ever affect Washington, D.C. during the month of
December, with 16 inches (41 cm) of accumulation, and the 6^th
greatest snow storm in D.C. history. Philadelphia received 23.2 inches
(59 cm) of accumulation, marking it second-highest snowfall ever for a
single event. Philadelphia typically receives 19.3 inches (49 cm) of
snowfall for the entire winter season.

Central

A massive snow storm hit the middle part of the U.S. on December 24th
and 25th, leaving behind several feet of snow from Texas to North
Dakota. At least 24 deaths were attributed to the impacts of the heavy
snowfall (Source: AFP). Several airports and interstate highways were
forced to close. South Dakota, Texas, Oklahoma, and Minnesota declared
states of emergency and required National Guard soldiers to dig out
stranded motorists. Dallas, Texas experienced its first white
Christmas since 1926. 13.9 inches (35 cm) of snow accumulated in
Oklahoma City in 24 hours, breaking the previous record for snowfall
in a 2 hour period and the record for greatest storm accumulation.
Numerous other records were broken in the region. The large weather
system was also responsible for strong storms in the southeastern
United States.

ASIA

A severe dust storm affected South Korea on December 25th. The
Country’s weather service issued warnings of yellow dust in Seoul. The
dust originated over China and Mongolia and was blown eastward to the
western parts of South Korea. The Yonhap news agency reported that
this was the first dust storm to ever affect South Korea on Christmas
Day. The dust storms that affect the country usually occur in the
spring. The dust originating from China often contains toxic smog from
factories.

SOUTH AMERICA

Two significant rainfall events on December 4th and 9th caused
widespread flooding and induced mudslides in southern Brazil killing
at least 26 people. Brazil’s largest city, Sao Paulo, was the hardest
hit. Traffic was paralyzed and the city’s airports were forced to
close. The Climatempo weather service claims the second storm on the
9th caused the heaviest 24-hour period of rainfall for the city this
year. On the night of December 8th, the city received half of its
total average December precipitation of 7.5 inches (19 cm). Along the
southern border with Uruguay and Argentina, in the Rio Grande do Sul
state, rivers swelled to 10 meters (33 feet) above normal levels and
18,000 people were forced from their homes. A state of emergency was
declared in over 130 towns and cities in the area.

Heavy rainfall on December 18^th in the Peruvian Andes led to flooding
and landslides in the city of Ayacucho. At least 9 people were killed
due to a torrent of mud sweeping through the city (Source: UPI).
Dozens of homes and businesses were destroyed. Meteorologists in the
region reported that the seasonal rains have begun earlier than what
is typical and have been more intense. They also said that the
anomalous rainfall is driven by the El Niño conditions across the
Pacific Ocean.

AUSTRAILIA

Heavy rainfall led to flooding in portions of New South Wales
Australia on December 23rd through 27th. Some areas had upwards of 20
cm (7.9 inches) of rain. Heavy rain also fell in Sydney causing road
closures.
Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology reported this is the heaviest
widespread rainfall for inland New South Wales in over a decade. The
low pressure system bringing the beneficial rain was associated with
the remnants of tropical cyclone Laurence #tropical. The rain was a
welcome site to many as this region has been dealing with a multi-year
drought. Several ongoing wildfires were doused by the heavy rains.


TROPICAL CYCLONES

Tropical Cyclone Mick made landfall on Fiji Viti Levu Island as a
Category 2 storm on December 14^th , marking the first tropical
cyclone of the season for the South Pacific basin. The storm brought
widespread wind damage and flooding, leaving at least five people dead
(Source:RNZI). According to the Fiji Meteorological Service, an
average of one tropical cyclone a year affects the island nation, with
a damaging storm hitting the islands about once every 7 years.

Tropical Cyclone Laurence made three landfalls in Australia between
December 12th and 21st. The first landfall brought heavy rain and
strong winds to the Northern Territory. Darwin experienced a 93 km/
hour (58 mph) wind gust and 40 cm (16 inches) of rainfall. Laurence
caused Darwin to have its wettest December in 11 years. The storm
moved off the coast and intensified to a category 5 storm on December
16th and made landfall along the Kimberly Coast late in the day on the
16th. The storm weakened over land, and re-emerged over the warm ocean
waters on December 18th. The storm re-intensified to a category 5
storm with winds of 285 km/hour (177 mph) on December 21st, and made a
third landfall in a sparsely populated region of Western Australia,
near the towns of Pardoo and Sandfire. More than 30 cm (12 inches) of
rain was reported along the coastal areas.

EUROPE
A severe cold snap and a succession of snow storms affected most of
Europe December 11^th through 22nd. Heavy snow fell from Spain across
the continent into portions of the Ukraine. According to the BBC, at
least 90 people have died across Europe, including 79 people who froze
to death in Poland as temperatures were reported as cold as -4°F
(-20°C). Portions of southern Germany had temperatures of -27°F
(-33°C). The snow forced airports to close in France, Germany,
Belgium, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Forty percent of the
flights departing Paris’s Charles de Gaule airport were canceled.
Germany's third largest airport - in Duesseldorf - was closed because
of heavy snow on the 20th. Two of London’s three airports were also
forced to close, while Heathrow Airport remained open. Up to 8 inches
(20 cm) of snowfall was reported across southeast England.