EASTON MASSACHUSETTS
NORTHEAST BRISTOL COUNTY
CLIMATOLOGICAL REPORT

DECEMBER 1996 

Summary:  December, known to all in Eastern Massachusetts as the traditional
first month of winter, never really gave way to the normal expected drop in
temperature.  December 1996 was approximately  six to seven degrees warmer 
than normal daily as winds prevailed mainly from the west and southwest 
instead of the usual northwest.  This unusual vector for the wind to blow 
brought up plenty of warm air to allow for that great anomaly in mean 
temperature....Prooving the point that December really never caught on to 
the idea of being cold is the mean temperature...The reading of 38.9 degrees
was just 0.4 degrees cooler than the average for November which was 39.3 
degrees!!!  

December also continued the active, extreme year that 1996 has put on...
and what a grand show it was.  As the December cast the final act of 1996,
we saw 20 days with measurable precipitation and 4 storms that brought 
greater than one inch of precipitation for each episode. The wettest storm 
of the year brought 1.88" on the 6th and 7th only to be follwed by a rival 
storm on the 8th that brought 1.54" of precip.  After all was said and done,
a total of 7.79" of precipitation fell making this December the second 
wettest on the twelve year record.  

Snowfall was a precious commodity.  Only two snowfall events were recorded 
at the station. The monthly total was 20" short of last December's record 
total.  

The most intense storm for wind occurred on the 2nd with the peak wind gust 
(as measured at Oliver Ames HS) of 47 MPH from the South...The storm of the 
8th brought the lowest pressure of the month and the lowest pressure since 
Oct. 8 as the mercury fell to 29.20."

It is not surprising that the month was unusually bleak with a 8 day period 
with absolutely no sunshine ( Dec. 10-17).  Any day that brought at least 
partial sunshine was a real treat. 

Here are the detailed statistics for the month: 

TEMPERATURES
Highest		58	17th
Lowest		8	31st
Highest Min	49	18th
Lowest Max	30	31st
Average High	45.3
Average Low	32.4
Mean for Dec.	38.9

DEGREE DAYS
Total Heating		793
Total Heating Season	2134
Snow Depth Days (SDD's)	13

PRECIPITATION
Total for the Month:			7.79"
Departure from Normal:			+3.38"
Greatest in 24 hr. Obs Day:		1.63"		6th
Days with Measurable Precip:		20
Total for the Year 1996:		61.21"
Total Snowfall:				5.6"
Greatest Snowfall in 24 hr Obs Day:	3.8"
Departure from Normal:			-1.7"

PRESSURE
Lowest was 29.20" on the 8th @ 0432
Highest was 30.54" on the 21st @ 0900

WIND
Peak Wind Gust at Oliver Ames High School- 47 MPH from the South 
                                           @ 0831 on the 2nd

WEATHER
Days with FOG		4
Days with THUNDER	1

DEW POINT AND RELATIVE HUMIDITY (Average of all 8PM Observations)
Average Dew Pt:	31F
AVerage RH:	81%

A LOOK AHEAD....
Normal Snowfall for January:	10.7"
Normal Precipitation:	3.96"

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!

Josh
**********


Josh Nichols
Easton, MA weather observer
Email: nicholsj@joker.lsc.vsc.edu or 
75613.1534@compuserve.com
The Easton,MA Weather Home Page: 
WWW: http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/6738
Lyndon State College Freshman '96-'97
Meteorology Major
"The realities of tomorrow begin with the dreams
of today"-OAHS Class of '96 Motto