December 2024 overall was much warmer and drier than average. The average temperature was 32.7 degrees, nearly 6 degrees above average, which made it the 7th warmest December on record. Precipitation was also quite sparse with only 0.03 of an inch recorded during the month (about 2/3 of an inch below average), with the month ending up as the 7th driest December on record.

The precipitation for the month occurred on just one day – Christmas Day the 25th when occasional afternoon snow showers brought just 0.03 inches of moisture. Snowfall was only a tenth of an inch that day, resulting in the 8th least snowy December on record.

The month started off warm for the first week or so, with highs in the low to mid 50s and lows in the teens. A strong cold front around the 9th brought the coldest weather of the month, with highs falling into the 30s to mid 40s and lows of 5 to 15 for a few days. It warmed right back up though from the middle of the month to around Christmas Eve, with highs in the 50s for the most part and lows in the teens. Another cold front brought colder conditions and snow showers on Christmas Day, as highs fell into the low to mid 40s with lows in the teens for a few days. The last few days of the month saw a return to the warm and dry weather, with highs of 45 to 55 and lows of 15 to 25.

Highs during the month were quite warm on average, about 8.6 degrees above average, the 2nd warmest on record for December. Record daily warm highs were set on the 19th, 21st and 22nd with highs topping out all 3 days at 57 degrees, the warmest for the month. A record daily warm high was tied on the 29th. The coldest high for the month was 32 degrees on the 10th. The coldest low of the month was 4 degrees on the 11th, while the warmest low was 29 degrees on the 23rd.

Winds for the month were a little below average, due to the rather quiet weather patterns. The highest gust was 35 mph which occurred on the 9th as a strong cold front blew through the region.

Here are the actual numbers for the month at the 4 NNW Taos location…

Average Temp . . . . 32.7 degrees, +5.7 degrees above average (7th warmest)

Average High . . . . . 49.9 degrees, +8.6 degrees above average (2nd warmest)

Average Low . . . . . 15.4 degrees, +2.8 degrees above average

Total Pcpn. . . . . . . . 0.03 inches, -0.66 inches below average (7th driest)

Total Snow. . . . . . . . 0.1 inches, -7.8 inches below average (8th least snow)

DEC 2024 DAILY DATA for 4 NNW Taos

DATE	HIGH	LOW	DAILY DEP.	MON. DEP.	PCPN	SNOW	REMARK
1	54	14	+3.1	+3.1
2	55	15	+3.8	+3.5
3	55	17	+4.8	+3.9
4	56	18	+6.8	+4.6
5	52	17	+5.2	+4.7
6	53	16	+4.8	+4.8
7	53	15	+5.0	+4.8
8	51	13	+3.2	+4.6
9	47	11	+1.2	+4.2
10	32	8	-8.0	+3.0
11	40	4	-6.3	+2.1
12	48	10	+0.7	+2.0
13	45	13	+2.1	+2.0
14	49	12	+4.2	+2.2
15	51	18	+9.0	+2.6
16	50	12	+5.1	+2.8
17	53	17	+8.9	+3.1
18	48	13	+4.0	+3.2
19	57*	14	+9.5	+3.5			*Record warm high
20	53	13	+6.5	+3.7
21	57*	13	+9.2	+3.9			*Record warm high
22	57*	18	+12.0	+4.3			*Record warm high
23	54	29	+15.7	+4.8
24	52	16	+9.2	+5.0
25	43	19	+6.3	+5.0	0.03″	0.1″
26	44	13	+3.5	+5.0	Trace	Trace
27	43	22	+8.0	+5.1	Trace	Trace
28	47	18	+8.3	+5.2
29	55*	22	+14.1	+5.5			*Tied record warm high
30	49	21	+10.3	+5.7
31	44	17	+6.4	+5.7
AVGS/ TOTAL	49.9	15.4	32.7	+5.7	0.03″	0.1″

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

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

PCPN – Precipitation

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November 2024 overall was a little cooler than usual with below average precipitation. The average temperature was 35.3 degrees, about a degree below average, while only about a half inch of precipitation fell which was about a quarter of an inch below average.

The precipitation for the month occurred during the first week, as a mix of rain and snow occurred on a few days. Amounts were about 0.50 to 0.75 inches across the northern part of the valley, with about 0.25 to 0.50 inches in the central and southern sections. At my northside location, the total was 0.51 inches, about a quarter of an inch below average.

The month started off warm at first, then things cooled down quite a bit through the 10th, with some rain and snow on a few days, especially the 6th and 7th. Temperatures dropped to around 30 on the 7th and 8th, which were record cold high readings for those dates. The rest of the month was pretty much mild and dry, with lots of sunny days and highs in the upper 40s and 50s. Cold fronts dropped temperatures a bit on the 19th, and from the 27th to the 29th.

Highs during the month were nearly 2 degrees below average, mainly due to the cold snap during the first week. Lows were right around average for the month. The warmest high for the month was 63 degrees on the 2nd, while the coldest high was 30 degrees on the 8th. The warmest low was 39 degrees on the 26th, while the coldest low of the month was 8 degrees on the 29th.

Winds for the month were about average, with only 3 days with gusts over 35 mph. The highest gust of 39 mph occurred on the 19th as a strong cold front blew through the region.

Here are the actual numbers for the month at the 4 NNW Taos location…

Average Temp . . . . 35.3 degrees, -0.9 degrees below average

Average High . . . . . 49.6 degrees, -1.8 degrees below average

Average Low . . . . . 21.0 degrees, exactly average

Total Rain. . . . . . . . . 0.51 inches, -0.25 inches below average

Total Snow. . . . . . . . 4.9 inches, exactly average

NOV 2024 DAILY DATA for 4 NNW Taos

DATE	HIGH	LOW	DAILY DEP.	MON. DEP.	PCPN	SNOW	REMARK
1	59	24	-0.3	-0.3
2	63	27	+3.9	+1.9
3	45	28	-4.1	-0.1	0.01″	Trace
4	44	32	-3.0	-0.8	0.02″	0.2″
5	48	28	-2.6	-1.2
6	37	24	-10.2	-2.7	0.32″	3.3″
7	31*	18	-15.2	-4.5	0.12″	0.9″	*Record cold high
8	30*	14	-17.3	-6.1	0.04″	0.5″	*Record cold high
9	39	27	-6.0	-6.1
10	50	22	-2.8	-5.7
11	54	20	-1.0	-5.3
12	54	23	+1.4	-4.7
13	50	20	-2.3	-4.6
14	60	19	+2.2	-4.1
15	60	22	+4.9	-3.5
16	51	22	+1.0	-3.2
17	53	19	+0.5	-3.0
18	48	23	+1.1	-2.8
19	41	16	-5.7	-2.9
20	49	10	-4.9	-3.0
21	56	16	+1.3	-2.8
22	58	13	+1.2	-2.6
23	60	16	+4.8	-2.3
24	58	28	+10.3	-1.8
25	51	28	+6.7	-1.3
26	55	39	+14.5	-0.8
27	47	21	+3.0	-0.7	Trace	Trace
28	42	14	-2.5	-0.7
29	44	8	-4.5	-0.9
30	50	9	-0.7	-0.9
AVGS/ TOTAL	49.6	21.0	35.3	-0.9	0.51″	4.9″

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

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

PCPN – Precipitation

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October 2024 overall was much warmer and wetter than average. The average temperature was 53.8 degrees, about 5.3 degrees above average, which made it the second warmest October on record. Rainfall for the month was also way above average at 2.61″, which was the 9th wettest on record.

The rainfall for the month occurred on just 2 days, on the 19th and 20th. As an upper level low pressure system stalled over Arizona, numerous bands of rain moved across the area. Rainfall was fairly uniform across the valley, ranging from about 2.50 to 2.75 inches across the northern and eastern sections of the valley, to about 2.10 to 2.40 inches across the western and southern areas. At my northside location, rainfall totaled 2.61 inches, about an inch and a half above average. Daily rainfall on the 19th totaled 1.73 inches, a record for the date as well as a new record for any day in the month of October.

The first half of the month was quite warm and dry with mainly clear skies. Highs were in the 70s to low 80s with lows in the mid 30s to low 40s. It cooled off during the third week as the rains came, with highs down into the 50s to mid 60s and lows in the 30s to low 40s. Warm and dry conditions returned for the much of the last week as highs were in the mid 60s to low 70s with lows in the 30s. The last few days of the month saw a strong cold front bring much colder air into the region, as highs dropped in the upper 40s to mid 50s, and lows fell into the mid teens to mid 20s.

Highs during the month were about 5.6 degrees above average, with lows coming in at about 5.1 degrees above average. The warmest high for the month was 82 degrees on the 3rd, which was a record for the date. Another record high was set on the 4th with 81 degrees. The coldest high was 48 degrees on the 30th. The warmest low was 47 degrees on the 5th, while the coldest low of the month was 19 degrees on the 31st. The month also was notable because of the scant number of days with lows of 32 or less. Only 4 days in October had lows that cold, the lowest number on record for the month.

Winds for the month were a little below average, with only 3 days with gusts over 35 mph. The highest gust of 43 mph occurred on the 29th as a strong cold front blew through the region.

Here are the actual numbers for the month at the 4 NNW Taos location…

Average Temp . . . . 53.8 degrees, +5.3 degrees above average (2nd warmest)

Average High . . . . . 70.4 degrees, +5.6 degrees above average (6th warmest)

Average Low . . . . . 37.3 degrees, +5.1 degrees above average (3rd warmest)

Total Rain. . . . . . . . . 2.61 inches, +1.51 inches above average (9th wettest)

Total Snow. . . . . . . . Trace, -1.1 inches below average

OCT 2024 DAILY DATA for 4 NNW Taos

DATE	HIGH	LOW	DAILY DEP.	MON. DEP.	RAIN	REMARK
1	79	44	+6.4	+6.4
2	80	41	+5.6	+6.0
3	82*	40	+6.6	+6.2		*Record warm high
4	81*	41	+7.7	+6.6		*Record warm high
5	81	47	+11.1	+7.5
6	81	39	+7.4	+7.5
7	78	41	+7.6	+7.5
8	78	38	+6.4	+7.3
9	79	36	+5.9	+7.2
10	76	39	+6.2	+7.1
11	79	37	+6.6	+7.0
12	78	37	+7.3	+7.1
13	77	37	+7.5	+7.1
14	76	44	+10.4	+7.3
15	71	37	+4.9	+7.2
16	68	37	+3.8	+7.0
17	63	40	+2.8	+6.7
18	65	43	+6.3	+6.7
19	51	41	-1.0	+6.3	1.73″*	*Record daily rainfall
20	57	40	+3.4	+6.1	0.88″	1/4″ hail 658-704 PM
21	56	34	-0.9	+5.8
22	65	32	+3.1	+5.7
23	69	33	+6.0	+5.7
24	70	34	+7.2	+5.8
25	65	34	+4.8	+5.7
26	70	32	+6.5	+5.8
27	72	34	+9.0	+5.9
28	70	42	+11.9	+6.1
29	63	39	+7.4	+6.1	Trace
30	48	25	-5.6	+5.7	Trace
31	53	19	-5.6	+5.3
AVGS/ TOTAL	70.4	37.3	53.8	+5.3	2.61″

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

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

PCPN – Precipitation

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