The year 2024 in Taos weatherwise averaged quite a bit warmer than usual, with a little above average precipitation overall. The year started off wetter and snowier than usual through March, but with milder temperatures. Warmer than usual weather continued through April, May and June with adequate rainfall. July was warm and quite dry, with August and September still warmer than usual with a little above average rainfall. October was dry and warm, with just 2 days of rainfall that made it the 9th wettest October on record. November was the only month of the year that was cooler than average, then December ended up quite warm and dry.

The main weather story of the year was the persistent above average temperatures each month except for November. For the year, the average temperature ended up at 49.8 degrees, some 2.7 degrees above average, which was the 4th warmest year on record. Only the years 2003, 2017, and 2012 were warmer than 2024.

Most of the warmer than usual temperatures was due to the higher than average low temperatures throughout the year, starting with January with the 12th warmest lows for that month. June had the warmest lows on record, August had the 4th warmest lows, and October recorded the 3rd warmest lows. Overall, the year had the 4th warmest lows on record. As for warmer than average high temperatures, October recorded the 6th warmest highs for that month, while December had the 2nd warmest highs.

Precipitation totaled was 15.05 inches, which was nearly 2.50 inches above average. Only April, July, November and December had below average precipitation, with the rest of the months of the year above average.

Snowfall was a little above average, totaling 47 inches, mainly due to the snowy start of the year.

Below is the yearly summary by month, with departures from the long term (1902-2019) average in the Dep column. Also included are the monthly/seasonal records set during the year, showing only those values that ended up in the top 12 positions.

—————————————————————————–

December 2023 was overall warmer and a bit wetter than average. The average temperature was 30.2 degrees, 3.2 degrees above average, while the precipitation total was 0.95″, which was about 0.26″ above average. Most areas of the valley recorded about 0.60″ to 0.90″ of precipitation for the month.

The month was mainly above average due the the milder than average lows. The average low temperature for the whole month was 17.9 degrees (5.3 degrees above average), which was the 8th warmest December average low. 

The month started cold and snowy on the 1st and 2nd, but then warmed up by the 5th to 7th with highs in the low to mid 50s. A weak cool front brought cooler conditions on the 8th to 10th, with some warming on the 11th to 13th as highs rebounded into the mid to upper 40s. 

The main weather event of the month occurred on the 14th with a couple of periods of heavy wet snow mixed with rain at times. About two-thirds of the monthly precipitation fell that day (0.59″), which was a record amount for the date.  

After some dense fog on the morning of the 15th, it warmed up and dried out through the third week of the month, with highs back into the 40s. Another period of rain and snow occurred on the 23rd, with colder temperatures prevailing through Christmas week. The last few days of the month were milder with highs in the mid 40s. 

The warmest high for the month occurred on the 6th with 54 degrees, while the coldest high was 32 degrees on the 25th. The warmest low was 30 degrees on the 13th, while the coldest low was 8 degrees on the 10th.

Wind speeds overall were a bit above average for the month, with 2 days having gusts of 35 mph or higher. The day with the highest average wind speed was on the 13th, while the highest gust of 45 mph occurred on the 8th.

Here are the actual numbers for the month…

Average Temp . . . . 30.2 degrees, +3.2 degrees above average

Average High . . . . . 42.6 degrees, +1.2 degrees above average

Average Low . . . . . 17.9 degrees, +5.3 degrees above average

Total precip . . . . . . 0.95 inches, +0.26 inches above average

Total snowfall . . . . . 7.0 inches, -0.8 inches above average

DEC 2023 DAILY DATA

DATE	HIGH	LOW	DAILY DEP.	MON. DEP.	PCPN	SNOW	REMARK
1	37	22	-1.4	-1.4	0.12″	1.4″
2	36	21	-2.7	-2.0	0.02″	0.3″
3	43	21	+0.8	-1.1
4	49	23	+5.8	+0.6
5	52	18	+5.7	+1.6
6	54	20	+7.3	+2.6
7	53	25	+10.0	+3.6
8	41	17	+0.2	+3.2	T	T
9	34	11	-5.3	+2.3
10	39	8	-4.5	+1.6
11	48	13	+2.2	+1.6
12	46	22	+5.7	+2.0
13	44	30	+10.1	+2.6	0.04″	0.6″
14	36	28	+5.7	+2.8	0.59″	4.4″
15	37	17	+1.5	+2.7	T	T	Dense AM fog
16	42	11	+0.6	+2.6
17	44	13	+2.4	+2.6
18	48	14	+4.5	+2.7
19	43	20	+5.5	+2.8
20	44	25	+8.0	+3.1
21	44	26	+9.2	+3.4	0.01″	T	AM Fog
22	45	20	+7.0	+3.5	T	T
23	41	30	+9.7	+3.8	0.17″	0.3″
24	36	23	+4.7	+3.9
25	32	13	-2.2	+3.6
26	34	9	-3.5	+3.3
27	42	12	+2.5	+3.3
28	41	9	+0.8	+3.2
29	45	10	+3.1	+3.2
30	44	10	+2.3	+3.2
31	45	14	+5.4	+3.2
AVGS/ TOTAL	42.6 Avg	17.9 Avg	30.2 Avg	+3.2	0.95″ Total	7.0″ Total

DAILY DEP. – Departure from the long term daily average temperature

MON. DEP. – Cumulative departure from the long term monthly average temperature

PCPN – Precipitation

—————————————————————————–

November 2023 was overall warmer and a bit wetter than average. The average temperature was 38.2 degrees, 2.0 degrees above average, while the precipitation total was 0.96″, which was about 0.20″ above average. Most areas of the valley recorded about 0.50″ to 0.75″ of precipitation for the month, with a bit higher amounts across the northern quarter of the region (including my location).

The first half of the month was warm and mainly dry, with highs in the 50s to mid 60s and lows in the upper teens to low 30s. There was a brief cool spell on the 9th and 10th with some rain showers around and highs in the upper 40s.

The weather pattern changed starting on the 18th, with cooler and wetter conditions for the rest of the month. Some showers moved through the area on the 18th and 19th, with even an afternoon thunderstorm with lots of small hail in the northern part of the region along US 64 on the 19th.

The main weather event of the month occurred on the 24th and 25th as a snowstorm moved through the area, dropping about 4 to 6 inches of snow. The last week of the month was quite cold, with highs only in the 30s to low 40s, and lows in the single figures and teens. Because of the cold readings, the snow lingered on the ground through the end of the month.

The warmest high for the month occurred on the 4th and 6th with readings of 69 degrees, while the coldest high was 30 degrees on the 25th. The warmest low was 40 degrees on the 7th (a record warm low for the date), while the coldest low was 1 degrees on the 26th.

Wind speeds overall were about average for the month, with just 2 days having gusts of 35 mph or higher. The day with the highest average wind speed was on the 8th, while the highest gust of 38 mph occurred on both the 8th and 23rd.

Here are the actual numbers for the month…

Average Temp . . . . 38.2 degrees, +2.0 degrees above average

Average High . . . . . 53.7 degrees, +2.4 degrees above average

Average Low . . . . . 22.7 degrees, +1.7 degrees above average

Total precip . . . . . . 0.96 inches, +0.20 inches above average

Total snowfall . . . . . 6.7 inches, +1.8 inches above average

NOV 2023 DAILY DATA

DATE	HIGH	LOW	DAILY DEP.	MON. DEP.	PCPN	SNOW	REMARK
1	58	16	-4.8	-4.8
2	63	21	+0.9	-2.0
3	67	24	+4.9	+0.3
4	69	26	+6.5	+1.9
5	68	30	+8.4	+3.2
6	69	32	+9.8	+4.3
7	68	40	+14.3	+5.7			Record warm low
8	60	36	+8.7	+6.1
9	48	30	0	+5.4	0.01″	Trace
10	48	24	-2.8	+4.6
11	53	22	-0.5	+4.1
12	62	16	+1.9	+3.9
13	58	19	+1.2	+3.7
14	60	25	+5.2	+3.8
15	63	24	+7.4	+4.1
16	63	33	+12.5	+4.6
17	61	31	+10.5	+4.9
18	57	28	+8.1	+5.1	0.08″
19	43	31	+2.8	+5.0	0.31″	0.4″	Tstorm & 1/4″ hail
20	47	27	+2.6	+4.9
21	49	19	-0.7	+4.6
22	55	19	+2.7	+4.5
23	52	20	+2.8	+4.5
24	42	24	+0.3	+4.3	0.22″	2.5″
25	30	16	-9.8	+3.7	0.34″	3.8″
26	32	1	-16.0	+3.0
27	37	5	-10.0	+2.5
28	42	6	-6.5	+2.2
29	46	14	-0.5	+2.1
30	41	22	+1.3	+2.0
AVGS/ TOTAL	Highs 53.7	Lows 22.7	Month 38.2	Month +2.0	0.96″	6.7″

DAILY DEP. – Departure from the long term daily average temperature

MON. DEP. – Cumulative departure from the long term monthly average temperature

PCPN – Precipitation

—————————————————————————–

——————————————————————