Press "Enter" to skip to content

Temperature ups and downs mark April weather in Berks

April weather is typically the product of temperature extremes in Berks County and the region, and last month was no exception.

The final average temperature of 51.5 degrees at Reading Regional Airport looks as normal as can be, but how it got there was via a roller coaster.

Early cold created a near-freezing low temperature on the 11th with the temperature rebounding to highs of 80 and 83 on the 13th and 14th, respectively.

At the time, it appeared that might indicate the last freeze in spring 2022 might be in late March.

“That was not to be,” said Jeffrey R. Stoudt, retired meteorologist and founder of the Berks Area Rainfall Networks. “(The) weather chilled rapidly after that 83 (degree) temperature. It plunged to 46 later that same evening, then to 39 by daybreak of the 15th, a 44-degree plunge within 15 hours.”

After a brief warmup, the next chill arrived on Easter, the 17th.

“Temperatures would hover mainly in the 40s with blustery winds and considerable cloudiness, which augmented the chill, then sank to 34 late in the evening and down to 27 by daybreak of Monday the 18th,” Stoudt said.

The 27 was a record cold low for the date, bettering 31 from 1990 and 2001, and became the coldest reading of last month.

“It would have been not so unusual had it occurred during the first few days (of April),” Stoudt said.

That date, April 18, for a temperature of freezing or lower is a few days later than the long-term average for a final freezing temperature in the spring, Stoudt said.

Overall, the 51.5-degree average was 1 degree below normal. But normal itself is moving target.

The current normal is the average of the years 1991 to 2020 and 52.5 is the highest normal temperature in the database. The National Weather Service calculates normal based on the most recent 30-year block ending with the zero year.

The lowest April normal is 50.4 degrees from the 1971 to 2000 period.

The background

The Berks temperature database begins with 1898 and from that year there is an unbroken string of measurements. Snippets of data exist from prior years, but they are not part of the official record.

The automated equipment at the airport has been the official weather service site in Berks since February 1999.

In the area overseen by the weather service office in Mount Holly, N.J., the other sites are Allentown, Mount Pocono and Philadelphia in Pennsylvania; Trenton, Atlantic City International Airport and Atlantic City Marina in New Jersey; and Wilmington and Georgetown in Delaware.

The Berks precipitation database begins with 1869.

This year has seen numerous records for temperature, with most of them occurring on dates that had what could be called be weak records. The 27 knocked off a 31 for the date, but the 31 was among the warmest of such date records in the second half of April.

The 27 fits in nicely now with the other dates.

The rainfall

The monthly rainfall total of 4.41 inches was above normal by any calculation, in this case by 1.06 inches.

The period of 1991 to 2020 overall has the highest annual precipitation average, but the first four months of the year weren’t in on many of the deluges from the final few years of last decade, and those months do not have high bars to meet.

Rainfall on April 7 of 1.60 inches continued the 2022 trend of plucking low-hanging fruit since it knocked off 1.25 inches from 1971, which had been the fourth-lowest total for a date record in April.

On April 18, a cold rain started and accumulated 1.32 inches for the measurement day.

But that storm had bad luck because it “coincided with a very stout date record precipitation for the 18th of 4.40 inches from 1870,” Stoudt said. “The 1.32 would have been a new date record had it occurred on either the 17th or 19th.”

But the soggy times would be over, and the last 11 days of April delivered only 0.04 inch of rain, with an unseasonable chill setting in the final few days.

“The fresh cold air from eastern Canada threatened very late freezing low temperatures,” Stoudt added. “(But) Winds kept mixing the chilly air, even overnight, to prevent freezes at most locations.”

The weather service issued fire danger alerts to be followed by red flag alerts a few times due to very low desert-like humidity combined with suddenly dry grounds and gusty winds, Stoudt said.

A thunderstorm that crossed Berks in the predawn hours on May 2 added moisture to the mix in many spots, and the fire danger weather has passed.

The Berks forecast is for normal conditions with a drenching rain expected late May 6 into May 7.

April weather

• Temperature: 51.5

• Normal: 52.5

• Rainfall: 4.41 inches

• Normal: 3.35 inches

Records:

• Rainfall: 1.60 inches on the 7th (1.25, 1971)

• Cold: 27 degrees on the 18th (31, 1990 and 2001)

Source: National Weather Service

Precipitation totals in inches from the Berks Area Rainfall Network included:

Mohnton (1), 5.95 inches; Henningsville, 5.73; Gilbertsville, 5.50; New Morgan, 5.43; Reading (east), 5.14; Mohnton (2) and Lobachsville, 5.02; Gibraltar, 5.0; Reiffton, 4.96; Shillington, 4.82; Lincoln Park, 4.81; West Reading and Mertztown, 4.79; Cornwall Terrace, 4.74; Wyomissing, 4.73; Shartlesville, 4.70; Wyomissing (Highlands), 4.69; Boyers Junction, 4.63; Pine Grove, 4.53; Knauers, 4.46; Mohrsville, 4.34; Adamstown, 4.12; Hamburg, 4.01; and Vinemont, 4.0.


Source: Berkshire mont

Be First to Comment

    Leave a Reply