Ithaca Climate Summary for December 1996

Temperature

• The month of December averaged 5.9 degrees warmer than normal.
• This was 11 degrees warmer than the same month a year ago and the warmest December since 1984.
• This month's temperature departure was the largest of any month during 1996.
• The warmest reading was 59 degrees on the 1st. This was a record for the day, exceeding the old record of 58 degrees set in 1908.
• The coldest temperature of the month was 1 degree just before midnight on the 31st.
• Only 4 days during the month were cooler than normal.

Precipitation

• The total precipitation for the month was 3.70 inches, which was 1.13 inches more than the monthly normal.
• It was the wettest December since 1990.
• The greatest one-day amount this month was 1.30 inches for the twenty-four hours ending on the morning of the 2nd.
• The annual precipitation accumulation (January through December) of 47.76 inches was 12.36 inches above normal and easily made 1996 the wettest year on record (previous record 46.87 inches in 1958).

Snowfall

• The monthly snowfall total was 9.6 inches, which was 5.8 inches below normal.
• This total was much less than December 1995 (23.4 inches), but significantly more than December 1994 (1.8 inches).
• The greatest depth of snow on the ground during the month was 4 inches on the 20th.
• Amounts for surrounding communities included 10.6 inches in Groton and 10.3 inches in Freeville.