News - Blogs - How do Tulsas 100degree days now compare to previous records

How do Tulsa's 100-degree days now compare to previous records?
Published: 7/19/2011 7:00 AM
Last Modified: 7/19/2011 10:08 AM

In this map provided by the Oklahoma Mesonet, a lot of temperatures in the 100s statewide by early evening on Monday.

"100" was a mythical temperature back in Wisconsin that sometimes appeared, but only if the thermometer was in a sunny spot (for other ways on why your thermometer might be wrong, read here).

And even then, it was only about once per year where I lived, usually mid to late July.

As Tulsa's history shows, this area is much different when it comes to triple digit temperatures. It's not a question of if, but when.

So, how does 2011 compare with all-time records? Let's relive history, shall we?

April 2011: Our last month with normal rainfall had two days hit the 90s. 90 precisely, to be exact.
April 12, 1972: The earliest recorded high in the 100s in a calendar year, at 102.

May 2011: After starting the month with highs in the 50s (no joke!), we hit 91 by May 31.
May 31, 1934: Like April, May has only recorded one day in the 100s. This day had a high of exactly 100 degrees.

June 2011: Tulsa has two days in the 100s, with the hottest being June 27 (106 degrees).
June 10, 1911: Tulsa has its hottest June day ever, with a high temperature of 108 degrees.
June 1911: 100 years ago, Tulsa had the most 100-degree days in the month in city's history, with 18.

July 2011: 13 days of highs in the 100s as of July 17. The hottest was 107 degrees on July 10.
July 21, 1980: A 21-day streak for the most consecutive days in the 100s ends.
July 19, 1936: Tulsa's hottest July day, which hit 113 degrees.
July 1934: The most days with 100s in a month in Tulsa history happened, with 27.

Others of note:

115 degrees: The hottest temperature ever recorded, on Aug. 10, 1936.
22: The longest streak for consecutive days with highs in the 100s, set twice in August 1918 and August 1936.
16: The number of years Tulsa hasn't had any days reach the 100s. The most recent was in 2004.
14: The number of days each year in the 100s in 2010 and 2009.

In June this year, we had two days in the 100s.

This month, we've already had 13 days in the 100s as of July 17.

And here's a weather record that has a lot to do with those highs without being in triple digits itself:

91.7 degrees, set in July 1980.

That's the hottest July on record (as mention in a previous blog entry here).

As of July 17, we're averaging 89.9 degrees and rising.

-- Althea Peterson

Reader Comments

4 Total

Show: Newest First

Learn About Our Comment Policy

TulsaOkie (last year)

"July 1934: The most days with 100s in a month in Tulsa history happened, with 27."

Which month?

FS (last year)

So - Al Gore didn't cite 1934 and 1936 in his BS scam of Global Warming?

I find it hard to imagine considering he invented the internet.

BRob11 (last year)

Congratulations, FS. You've now demonstrated that you're clueless about how global warming works. The science supporting the existence of climate change is overwhelming. Do some homework on a legit science site. (And incidentally, Al Gore NEVER, EVER said he invented the internet. This was a completely made up claim by his opponents. He talked about his supporting the funding for the programs that resulted in the internet, which is absolutely true. Check www.snopes.com/quotes/internet.asp.)

Tulsa World Staff Writer Althea Peterson (last year)

"Which month?"

Any month, actually. The records for each month are as follows:

July: 27 (1934)
August: 26 (1936)
June: 18 (1911)
Sept: 10 (1939)
And April and May both have just one.

The most in a calendar year is 65, set in 1936.

I'll be sure to touch on more records relating to the number 100 later this summer :)

4 comments displayed

To post comments on tulsaworld.com, you must be an active Tulsa World print or digital subscriber and signed into your account.

To sign in to your account, go to tulsaworld.com/signin.
To activate your print subscription for unlimited digital access and to post comments, go to tulsaworld.com/activate.
To purchase a subscription, go to tulsaworld.com/subscribe.

Almanac

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun
Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec

	Temperature		Precipitation
Date	High Temp	Low Temp	Total	Month to date	Historical average
1	44°	16°	0	0.00	0.05
2	59°	24°	0	0.00	0.11
3	57°	33°	0	0.00	0.16
4	68°	37°	Trace	0.00	0.21
5	69°	29°	0	0.00	0.26
6	66°	33°	0	0.00	0.32
7	59°	38°	0.05	0.05	0.38
8	51°	34°	0	0.05	0.44
9	44°	36°	0.01	0.06	0.51
10	62°	37°	0.07	0.13	0.57
11	54°	28°	0	0.13	0.64
12	44°	30°	0.25	0.38	0.70
13	55°	40°	0.01	0.39	0.76
14	°	°			0.83
15	°	°			0.89
16	°	°			0.95
17	°	°			1.02
18	°	°			1.09
19	°	°			1.16
20	°	°			1.23
21	°	°			1.31
22	°	°			1.38
23	°	°			1.46
24	°	°			1.53
25	°	°			1.61
26	°	°			1.69
27	°	°			1.77
28	°	°			1.85

TEMPERATURE

RAINFALL

SNOWFALL

Weather World

Follow Jerry Wofford on Twitter for updates during severe weather conditions.

Tulsa weather milestones of 2013 (as of Feb. 12)

Highest temperature: 70 on Jan. 11 (Record: 115 on Aug. 15, 1936)
Lowest temperature: 15 on Jan. 16 (Record: Minus-16 on Jan. 22, 1930)
Hottest month (average): 40.5 degrees in January (Record: 91.7 degrees on July 1980)
Coldest month (average): 40. 5 degrees in January (Record: 21.7 in January 1918)
Most snowfall (day): 0.1 of an inch on Feb. 12(Record: 13.2 inches on Feb. 1, 2011)
Most snowfall (month): 0.1 of an inch in February(Record: 22.5 inches in February 2011)
Most rainfall (day): 0.91 of an inch on Jan. 29 (Record: 9.27 inches on May 26-27, 1984)
Most rainfall (month): 1.54 of an inch in January (Record: 18.18 inches on September 1971)
Highest wind speed: 30 mph on Jan. 30
Previous day with any rain: Feb. 12
Previous day with 1 inch or more of rain: Oct. 17, 2012
Previous day with any snow: Feb. 12
Previous day with freezing temperatures: Feb. 12
Read regular updates on Oklahoma's unpredictable weather and learn more about meteorology from the Tulsa office of the National Weather Service.

>> Visit the main weather page
>> Send us your weather photos
>> Meet the forecasters

Contributors
Staff Writer Althea Peterson started writing for the Tulsa World in March 2007 after previous stops at the Norman Transcript in 2006 and the Oklahoma Gazette in 2005. She followed her older brother from rural Wisconsin (with a public school that never seemed to call snow days) to the University of Oklahoma, but did not follow his pursuit to study meteorology. However, she tries to find as many opportunities to report on the weather as possible.

Staff Writer Jerry Wofford came to the Tulsa World in 2010 from The Manhattan Mercury in Manhattan, Kan. Originally from western Arkansas and a graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Jerry has lived in Tornado Alley his entire life and is one of those people who goes outside when the sirens go off.

Subscribe to this blog

Temperature
High Temp:	(Example: 45)
Low Temp:	(Example: 45)
Temperature Date:	(Example: 1/1/2011)

Precipitation
Total:	(Example: '.01)
Month to date:	(Example: '.01)
Normal month to date:	(Example: '.01)

2/2013	1/2013	12/2012	11/2012	10/2012	9/2012
8/2012	7/2012	6/2012	5/2012	4/2012	3/2012
2/2012	1/2012	12/2011	11/2011	10/2011	9/2011
8/2011	7/2011	6/2011

Your bookmark will appear on your Profile page. Please give it a title, and short description so that visitors to your page will understand where the bookmark leads.
Bookmark Title :

Bookmark Text :