Ithaca Climate Summary for September 1997

Temperature

• With an average temperature of 59.0 degrees, the month of September averaged 0.8 degrees cooler than normal.
• Six of the last seven months have been cooler than normal.
• The temperature hit 80 degrees only once this month (83 on the 2nd). The September normal is 5 such days.
• The coldest temperature of the month was 32 degrees on the 27th. This threshold was reached just one day before the normal first occurrence of a freezing temperature in the fall.
• The length of the freeze-free season this year was 123 days, 13 days less than normal.

Precipitation

• September rainfall totalled 3.22 inches, which was 91% of normal.
• This total was 1.17 inches less than the amount received last September.
• A measurable amount of rain fell on 15 days, with a trace occurring on another 4 days.
• Eight of the nine months this year have had below normal rainfall.
• September's precipitation total was the second greatest of any month this year.
• The annual precipitation deficit at the end of the month was 5.44 inches, which represented 79% of normal.