Monsoon 2022 continues to be active. Multiple outflows converged on the Valley of the Sun during the afternoon of June 26th, resulting in the formation of strong to severe thunderstorms. Officially, Phoenix Sky Harbor picked up 0.18" of rain, setting the record for the wettest June 26th on record. This was not a particularly hard record to break, considering this is only the 4th time rain has fallen on June 26th. The old record was 0.07" set in 1927.

Another, perhaps more interesting fact, is this is the 3rd day with measurable rain so far this month. Our of 127 years of weather records, this is only the 10th year that there have been three or more days of measurable rain in June. The record number of days is four, and with more rain in the forecast, we might just tie the record.

Monsoon 2022 officially started on June 15th and since then (through June 25th), Phoenix Sky Harbor has measured 0.14" of rain. This makes it the 10th wettest start to monsoon since records began in 1896. Average rain during this time is just 0.01".

Also of note, over the past 127 years (since 1896) measurable rain has only been recorded in 21 years during the June 15th through June 25th time period.

List of wettest monsoon starts (June 15th-25th) from 1896 through 2022:
1972: 1.64"
1965: 0.91"
1899: 0.61"
1967: 0.44"
2000: 0.30"
1925: 0.21"
1933: 0.21"
1984: 0.18"
2021: 0.17"
1930: 0.16"
1949: 0.14"
2022: 0.14"
1950: 0.10"
1918: 0.08"
1958: 0.05"
1934: 0.03"
1988: 0.02"
1898: 0.01"
1966: 0.01"
1986: 0.01"
2001: 0.01"
All other years: 0.00"

The first 100º+ day of the year in Phoenix is guaranteed to happen every year, and this year was no exception! At 2:12pm on May 7th, the temperature reached the 100º mark. If you don't like the heat, at least this year was well past the average of May 2nd, and the latest first 100º+ day since 2010!

Looking at the long-term record (since 1896), the latest first 100º day was back in 1913, when we held off until June 18th! The earliest on record was in 1988, when we had the pleasure of hitting the century mark on March 26th.

Phoenix Sky Harbor hit 90º for the first time this year around 1:18 pm on March 25th, but the thermometer did not stop there. It continued rising until reaching a high of 96º, which broke the record for the day of 93º set back in 1988.

A fun fact, this is the second warmest high temperature on record to be measured on the first 90º+ day. The hottest first 90º+ day comes in at 97º, which occurred in 1946 and 2019.

And if you were wondering, the average first 90º+ day is March 30th.

High pressure will build over Arizona later this week into the weekend, resulting in well above average high temperatures. The forecast high on Friday in Phoenix is currently 92º, which would make it the first time this year with a high of 90º+.

The average first 90º+ day is March 30th, with the earliest on record occurring on February 17th in 2016.

The good news if you don't like the heat, a slight chance of rain and cooler temperatures will move into the forecast at the start of next week!

Winter ended and spring officially started this year on March 20th at 8:33 am! So what are the changes that take place from the start of spring to the start of summer on June 21 at 2:13 am?

Over the next three months, the average high temperature in Phoenix will go from 79º to 106º, a 27º increase!

The average low temperature will start spring at 54º and warm to 79º by the end. Yes, the average high temperature at the start of spring becomes the average low temperature by the end of spring.

As for rain, spring is certainly not the wettest season, with on average only 0.60 inches of rain falling. The majority of that falls in late March and early April.

Bottom line, fasten your seatbelt and get ready for a big warming trend as summer is fast approaching!

This winter season (2021-2022), something happened that has not occurred since weather records began in 1896!

Measurable rain was recorded on Christmas Day, Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve, and New Year's Day! The old "record" was three of the four big holidays in the same season set in 1941, 1959, and 2016.

If you like rain, this was certainly a nice change!

Nothing beats fun weather facts, and here's an interesting one! Since Phoenix weather records began in 1896, measurable rain has never fallen on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve, and New Year's Day in the same season!

In fact, measurable rain has only been recorded on at least three of the "Big 4" three times.

This year (2021) it is possible we could break the record and have the first year with measurable rain on all four days! Phoenix already recorded a record-setting 1" of rain on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day managed to get another 0.01". There is a good chance of rain on New Year's Eve but the trick will be New Year's Day as rain chances will quickly come to an end around midnight. Can we keep the rain going just a few hours longer? Time will tell!

At the very least, this year will likely join the ranks and become the 4th time rain has fallen on at least three of the big holidays.