Iowa 2008: A Weather Review

While I was present throughout much of this year's weather that occurred throughout the state of Iowa, it was helpful to read through some of these great products that the Des Moines National Weather Service has issued over the past couple of days. It will remind you of the bitter cold that was endured in January and February, which also coincided with one of the snowiest February's on record for the state. These events led into a very active spring, it started dry for March and quickly turned to a very wet April. A break in the rain for mid-May would only help the farmers get their crop in the fields, as the latter half of May led to the destructive and national news headlines of the Parkersburg, IA tornado. The state wouldn't stay out of the national spotlight for too long, as the floods across much of Iowa would once again enter during the month of June. Tornadoes would once again lead to national news headlines for the state of Iowa, as on June 11th several boy scouts were killed near Little Sioux, IA. The state ended the summer with heavy rains and more flooding in July, and then a record-setting dry spell for the month of August. The warmth of summer and fall would be the only headlines for the next couple of months, with a very late fall freeze. This warmth continued into the early part of November with temperatures continuing in the 70s and even an 80 degree reading. We finally got back to the cold air that we started out the year with in the latter half of November and this has continued for the most part through the end of the year. December has also brought headlines with the continued round of snow storms, with blizzard and near-blizzard conditions and snowfall amounts greater than 20 inches to lead this month as the 4th snowiest December in Iowa history.

For a complete review of 2008 view the Des Moines NWS document here: DMX NWS Year in Review

Another read for those interested in this years' tornadoes across the state will be the table-listing of all tornadoes. It includes the city, county, specific location and time of each tornado; it will also show the maximum length and width of each tornado along with any injuries and deaths that unfortunately were to occur with the tornado. To view this document, head to the link: 2008 Iowa Tornadoes

Thanks for making this a successful year of the blog, with several thousands of readers and with the comments and views that I'm sure to keep going. Hope you had a great 2008, and here's to looking forward to a even better 2009!