Not as many 100-degree days forecast for July

AUSTIN (KXAN) — June ended Friday with the one day where a new record high was set. The 102° high broke the previous record of 101° first set in 1980 and tied in 2018. It capped the heatwave that gripped the region during the second half of the month during which the average high temperature was 102.26°.

There were 15 days in the month where the high was 100° and higher, six fewer than in 2022. In addition to the record set on the 30th, there were three other records tied.

Rain was scarce during what is, on average, the third wettest month in Austin. The monthly normal is 3.68". This June? Only 1.16", a deficit of 2.52".

We know at least one statistic starting July. There likely won't be as many triple-digit highs this July as there were in 2022 when 29 days had maximums at or above 100°, nine of which resulted in records.

July is this area's 2nd warmest month with an average temperature of 85.8°. The Climate Prediction Center is forecasting a warmer-than-normal month. As this forecast is likely to hold you can expect triple-digit highs to return as the month progresses.

Normal starts with highs averaging the middle 90s and end with highs closing in on 100°. The normal high on July 31 is 99°. Normal lows are in the middle 70s for the entire 31 days.

While it's the 2nd warmest month of the year it's also the 2nd driest with an average of 1.96". If just .01" of rain falls this July it will exceed all of July 2022 when just a trace was recorded the entire month, that on the 14th.

The Climate Prediction Center is forecasting a near-normal month for precipitation. Should that happen it will not be enough to ease the ongoing drought.