What a lousy month for the weather! June 2009 will go down in the record books as one of the coolest and wettest.

This June is tied for the 8th coolest on record. The average temperature in Central Park was 67.5 (3.7 degrees below normal). This also occurred in 1897. We had below average temperatures for 75% of the month….. 23 out of 30 days.

Warmest Temperature: 84 degrees on June 30th

Coolest Temperature: 50 degrees on June 1st

It was also the 2nd wettest June on record with 10.06″ of rain. The wettest June on record is 2003 with 10.27″. Rainfall was recorded in Central Park on 23 out of 30 days this month. The wettest day was June 18th with 2.30″ of rain.

Anyone looking forward to July?

The weather is going to be a BIG factor at the U.S. Open tomorrow at Bethpage State Park in Farmingdale, Long Island. Rain is in the forecast (surprise, surprise) for tomorrow and could cause a delay. The two most common reasons for a weather delay at a golf tournament are lightning and heavy rain.

Lightning is dangerous and if it is detected anywhere in the area, a horn is sounded and the course is cleared. Rain, on other hand, doesn’t always stop a tournament. It must be raining hard enough to cause standing water on the greens and/or fairway to warrent a delay or suspension. That is possible tomorrow.

High winds don’t typically cause a delay, but can be problematic for the players. Tomorrow’s wind speeds will be between 10-15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph. That will probably affect the players’ performances.

More rain, and thunderstorms, are in the forecast for Saturday. I wouldn’t be surprised if this year’s tournament is extended into next week.

One of my esteemed colleagues has jumped on the blogging bandwagon. He calls his blog “Blog or Bust.” In the weather world, we use the term “bust” for a forecast gone bad. This particular forecaster is very good, so I don’t think he is refering to his weather reports. Many folks use the term when refering to a road trip. They put a sign in their car window saying something like “California or Bust.” In that sense “bust”  would imply not reaching your destination. So, if one does not blog daily (like the aforementioned weatherman), is that a “bust”? If so, then  I’m busted.

Today is the 1st day of Hurricane Season in the Atlantic Basin. The tropics are quiet today, but we have had hurricanes in June before. The strongest June Hurricane on record happens to be Hurricane Audrey. It reached Category 4 status before making landfall on the Texas/Lousiana border on June 27, 1957. Audrey caused catastrophic damage across eastern Texas and western Louisiana. The name Audrey has been retired, but here are the names selected for this year’s season:

Ana

Bill

Claudette

Danny

Erika

Fred

Grace

Henri

Ida

Joaquin

Kate

Larry

Mindy

Nicholas

Odette

Peter

Rose

Sam

Teresa

Victor

Wanda

Here is your newest member of the Twitter Nation…..My9Weather.

I started tweeting yesterday and am still trying to figure out how this all works. The plan is to keep you posted on the weather during the day.  Well today was a great day to get my Twitter feet wet…literally and figuratively. During today’s storms I was able to keep everyone posted on what to expect in their area. As each storm cell popped up the radar, I was able to track them and send out tweets to let folks know where the rain was heading. And the way all of my computers are set up in the My 9 Weather Center, I am able to forecast, track and tweet all at the same time. I love it!

Sign up at Twitter.com and follow me @My9Weather.

Today the forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Weather Service Climate Prediction Center said we can expect a near-normal Atlantic hurricane season this year. This year’s outlook is being influenced by enhanced rainfall over West Africa, warmer Atlantic waters, reduced wind shear, and the possible development of an El Nino in the Eastern Pacific this summer.

The predictions are:

9-14 Named Storms

4-7 Hurricanes

1-3 Major Hurricanes

An average season has 11 named storms, including 6 hurricanes with 2 becoming major hurricanes.

Hurricane Season begins June 1st.

I have been hearing A LOT of complaining about the weather lately. The last 5 days of rain have sparked serious looks and sarcastic comments everywhere I go. I’ve lost count how many times I have had to act as Mother Nature’s spokesperson and explain this damp and dreary scenario.

This morning was the last straw……

I walked into my 3 year old’s bedroom to wake her up for preschool. I opened up the window blinds and heard a loud gasp of  shock coming from her bed. She said ” Mommy! It’s not raining! Look! It’s not raining!” With the sun glaring through a break in the clouds, I said “I’m sure the rest of the city is as excited as you right now.” As my daughter proceeded the cheer and jump around her room, I rolled my eyes. I thought, “Come on!….It hasn’t been THAT bad!”

So I decided to check the stats…..

May 2009 Rainfall So Far: 1.60″     Normal: 0.75″

2009 Rainfall: 11.95″     Normal: 16.68″ 

Conclusion…..We need the rainfall because we are 4.73″ below average for the year and our reservoirs levels are 4% below normal.

We are expecting a few more days of rain, but don’t worry. You will have reason to jump and cheer by the 2nd half of the weekend. See you at 10pm!

For about a year now, I have been avoiding all Disney movies for my children. Every Disney movie has evil, death, orphans, and/or violence (fire, guns, etc.). These are things that I don’t want my children exposed to yet. I know they will eventually learn about them. But for now, it’s all rainbows and unicorns in our household.

I grew up watching the Peanuts Gang and still love them. No one ever died in any of the Peanuts specials. And I like what my children are watching now: “Go Diego Go” teaches them about animals, without shooting any of them. “Dora The Explorer” depicts evil in the form of a fox who swipes things. The Flyboat on “The Wonder Pets” never sinks or explodes. My little ones are very happy with their tv friends.

My dilema now is that my preschool-aged daughter is hearing about the Disney Princesses from her classmates. I have overheard several conversations where my daughter didn’t know who her friends were talking about. So now I am feeling the “Princess Pressure.” My daughter already has a fascination with mermaids and ocean creatures, so I figure we will start with “The Little Mermaid.” Wish me luck!

Today General Motors and Chrysler have asked the Treasury for  money in addition to the $17.4 billion of government funding they already received. They say that they need an additional $22 billion in out in order to really straighten things out.

Does this sound familiar?

This sounds like that cousin/brother/sister/friend that keeps asking you for money after you have already helped them out. The cousin that asks you for $200 to pay the electric bill after you already gave him $500 to cover his monthly expenses. The brother who needs to “borrow” $600 while you’re still waiting for him to repay the $3000 you already lent him. The sister, carrying the latest designer bag, asking you to help pay for her kid’s braces. The friend who has yet another great idea for a business and is looking for investors…..this time she ’s sure her idea will be a hit.

Usually we have a choice. We can either choose to help the aforementioned “needy”, or we can choose not to.  Those who have shown financial irresponsibility don’t really get much sympathy from me. You can guess what my choice would be.

But now those of us who have played by the rules, worked hard for our money, and have made sacrifices for our families are not allowed to make a choice. The money to bail out these car companies is going to come from our wallets. 

I would rather pay for my nephew’s braces.

Yes, there is such a holiday!

Today is National Weatherperson’s Day. The day we recognize all the wonderful people that provide you with your daily weather forecast.

Okay, the holiday actually commemorates the birth of one of America’s first weather observers, John Jefferies. He was born on February 5, 1745.

John, a physician, began taking daily weather observations in Boston in 1744. He took his first balloon observation over London in 1784.