July was a relatively quiet month with only two daily temperature records. One station in Oakman, AL recorded a daily high temperature record and a daily low temperature record, but the station went into service in May of last year. July was warmer, and slightly drier than normal, but very close to average for the state of Alabama. The average temperature across the state was 1.2°F warmer than the 20th century average. Precipitation in Alabama was slightly below normal, with a recorded rainfall of 5.28 inches, in contrast to the average of 5.44 inches.

Although temperatures across the state were above normal, July brought varying levels of hot weather to different parts of the state. The northern portion of the state-maintained temperatures relatively close to normal. Meanwhile, moving southward towards the Gulf revealed a gradual intensification of warmer than normal conditions. Thanks to a persistent high-pressure system inducing hotter than normal conditions, the last week of July was a scorcher, with four stations recording 100°F. These four stations—Selma, Troy Municipal Airport, Vernon, and a station in Conecuh National Forest—were the warmest locations of the month. In contrast, most of July was relatively cool from about the 10th through the 24th. This cool snap was brought on by a deep trough over the area ushering in cooler than normal conditions. During this period, three stations recorded daily low temperatures below 60°F, with a DeSoto State Park station recording the coldest temperature of the month at 57°F on the 11th.

Unlike June, July was slightly drier than normal. However, similar to June, rainfall was very sporadic in nature. The plot below, displayed as a percentage of normal precipitation in July, demonstrates the sporadic nature of summer rainfall very well. The wettest location of the month was located at a station in Harvest, AL with an impressive total of 12.40 inches of rainfall, which was a July monthly record for that station. On the dry side of the spectrum, the Evergreen Middleton Field station recorded only 1.83 inches of precipitation, giving the station the title of driest location of the month.

From the agricultural perspective, the dryer weather across the state meant that conditions supported a lot of field work. Most crops were reported to be in good condition and progressing well. Early plantings of corn were starting to be harvested and most areas were finishing a second cutting of hay. The Northwestern counties were still in drought at the end of the month, but with rainfall amounts picking up, those areas were improving. We’ll know more about how those few weeks of dryness affected the corn yield after harvest.
Looking ahead into fall (September, October, November), the Climate Prediction Center (CPC) forecasts northwest Alabama having a 33-40% chance of experiencing above-normal seasonal average temperatures, while the rest of Alabama has a 40-50% chance of above-normal temperatures. For precipitation, the entire state is likely to experience equal chances of below, near, and above-normal precipitation. The following tables provide the normals for Alabama and the four major metropolitan areas, relative to the reference period of 1991-2020, for each fall month.

Monthly summaries are provided by Dr. Rob Junod, Lee Ellenburg and Dr. John Christy.