New Brunswick, NJ

There is rarely a month in New Jersey where something interesting, exciting, and different than normal doesn’t occur in the weather and climate department. However, not often do you find a month like this past June where one is left with their head spinning as smoke from near and distant wildfires darkened the sky, creating exceptionally unhealthy air quality, where growing drought concerns were quieted in most locations by late-month downpours, where two tornadoes touched down, and with temperatures averaging cooler than normal for the second consecutive month. Strange, indeed.

June temperatures across the state averaged 67.8°. This was 2.5° below the 1991–2020 mean and tied as the 36th coolest June since 1895. The average daily maximum temperature of 79.0° was 2.0° below normal and ranks 40th coolest. The daily minimum averaged 56.6°, 3.0° below normal and was 35th coolest. The northern NJ climate division averaged 66.1° (-2.5°, 33rd coolest), the southern division averaged 68.9° (-2.5°, 36th coolest), and the coastal division averaged 68.2° (-2.3°, 45th coolest). Both May and June averaged below normal, the first such back-to-back occurrence in NJ since April and May 2020.

NJ June precipitation averaged 3.87”. This was 0.43” below normal, however, it ranks as the 53rd wettest of the past 129 years (or 77th driest) due to the skewed nature of the distribution of monthly precipitation over this period. The north averaged 5.13” (+0.52”, 29th wettest [101st driest]), the south 3.19” (-0.95”, 51st driest [79th wettest]), and the coast 2.20” (-1.65”, 28th driest [102nd wettest]).

What can you say about a month that began with a swarm of tornadoes, finished with flooding rain, and in between, featured record heat, wildfires, and increasing drought concerns? Best to say that it was an odd one! Fitting this theme, the statewide average temperature of 55.4° was 3.9° above the 1991–2020 normal. This ranks as the third warmest April on record (since 1895) only behind 2017 and 2010 for top honors. April was the fifth month of the past ten ranking in the top 10, joining July (#7), August (#1), January (#1), and February (#5). The first four months of 2023 come in as the warmest start of the year on record with an average of 44.4°. This exceeds the previous record of 44.2° in 2012, with seven of the 10 warmest January–April periods (1895–present) occurring since 2002. The average April maximum temperature across NJ was 67.4° (+4.7°, 3rd warmest) and the average minimum was 43.4° (+3.1°, 5th warmest). Northern counties averaged 53.5° in April (+3.6°, 5th warmest), southern counties 56.6° (+4.0, 2nd warmest), and the coastal zone 55.8° (+4.1°, 2nd warmest).

April precipitation averaged 5.84” across New Jersey. This was 2.14” above normal, ranking as the 10th wettest on record. It was the wettest April since 2007 and second wettest since 1983. All but scattered areas in the northwest received above-normal precipitation, the greatest amounts falling near the Atlantic and Delaware Bay coasts. Northern counties averaged 5.55” (+1.65”, 26th wettest), southern counties 6.04” (+2.49”, 7th wettest), and the coastal zone 5.94” (+2.39”, 10th wettest). It is important to note that these totals and those for individual stations in the next section, do not include heavy rain that fell after standard early morning observation times at CoCoRaHS and National Weather Service Cooperative stations on April 30th. These rains were reported in morning observations on May 1st, thus will be included in May totals.

Abnormal conditions were seemingly the norm cross the Garden State during the second month of 2023 and, for that matter, during much of the winter (December–February). More on winter later in this report. First, focusing on February, milder-than-normal temperatures and limited snowfall were the rule, a short-lived frigid blast was followed by 70° warmth, and the most notable February tornado of at least the past 74 years touched down.

The statewide average temperature of 38.9° was 5.0° above the 1991–2020 normal and ranked as the 5th mildest February since 1895 (tied with 2012). Five of the six mildest Februarys have occurred in the last 11 years. Exemplifying the warmth, the New Brunswick (Middlesex County) Cooperative station experienced 23 days with above-average temperatures and just five below average. The same was true at both Sussex (Sussex) and Newark Airport (Union). Atlantic City Airport in Pomona (Atlantic) had 18 above and ten below normal, and Cape May (Cape May) reported 21 above and seven below.

The average February maximum was 49.3°, which is 6.2° above normal and ranks 3rd mildest, while the average minimum of 28.5° was 3.9° above normal, ranking 7th mildest. Temperatures in the northern climate division averaged 36.0° (+4.7°, 7th mildest), southern 40.6° (+5.1°, 4th mildest), and coastal 41.1° (+5.1°, 3rd mildest).

As has so often been the situation in 2022, December’s weather never settled into any persistent pattern. Unless, of course, a pattern of frequent variations constitutes persistence! In any case, it seems appropriate to co-label this combined monthly and annual report as intervals in search of identities!

Looking first at December, the statewide average temperature of 35.5° is 1.1° below the 1991–2020 normal. This ranks as the 44th mildest December dating back to 1895. The statewide average maximum temperature of 44.9° is 0.1° below normal and ranked 31st mildest. The average minimum was 26.1°, which is 2.1° below normal and ranks 54th mildest. North Jersey averaged 33.3° (-0.8°, 36th mildest), south Jersey 36.8° (-1.3°, 49th mildest), and the Jersey coast 37.7° (-1.4°, 50th mildest).

Statewide precipitation averaged 4.76”, which is 0.49” above normal and ranks 35th wettest. North Jersey averaged 4.93” (+0.68”, 32nd wettest), south Jersey 4.68” (+0.40”, 37th wettest), and the Jersey coast 4.49” (+0.13”, 43rd wettest). The wettest locations were in the northeast and along the northern coast, while the northwest and much of the south were on the drier side.