December

It seems every year is a momentous one for weather in Oklahoma, and 2024 was no exception, with two all-time records either tied or broken during the year. The National Weather Service (NWS) confirmed at least 152 tornadoes touched down in Oklahoma, surpassing the previous record of 149 set in 2019. This year’s total was bolstered by record-breaking monthly totals of 56 in April and 33 in November. Most of the tornadoes were of the weaker EF0 and EF1 variety, accounting for 34 and 71 events, respectively.

December was unusually warm across all of Oklahoma, and uncommonly wet across the northwestern third. A prolonged absence of Arctic air led to the state’s fourth warmest December since records began in 1895, and contributed to 2023’s rank as the 10th warmest calendar year. The month continued a string of Decembers with above normal temperatures in the last decade. The Decembers of 2019 and 2015 ranked as the 13th and sixth warmest across the state, respectively.

December provided a fitting end to Oklahoma’s tumultuous 2022 weather story. This final chapter came complete with a half-dozen tornadoes, the coldest December day in 32 years, and the finishing touches on an all-time Oklahoma rainfall record. The Oklahoma Mesonet site at Goodwell finished 2022 with 6.48 inches of rain, breaking the previous all-time lowest annual rainfall record for any location in Oklahoma of 6.53 inches from Regnier in 1956. Those data go back to the late 1880s.

In what could best be described as a climatological anomaly on steroids, Oklahoma soared to its warmest December on record, besting the previous mark by more than 5 degrees. It was a remarkable display of muscle by Mother Nature that saw the statewide average temperature finish more than 10 degrees above normal as measured by the Oklahoma Mesonet. For some perspective, the next nine warmest Decembers all reside within 2 degrees of each other. No other calendar month in Oklahoma has such a large spread between the top two marks. May has the next largest difference at 1.2 degrees.

A powerful winter storm pounded the state on 2020’s final day, a fitting epitaph to a tumultuous year—and a wintry December. The storm lasted into the first morning of 2021 and brought widespread totals of 2-6 inches of snow from southwestern into northeastern Oklahoma. Localized areas in central Oklahoma reported up to 10 inches of snow. The storm was the last in a series of four impactful winter systems that struck the state during December, and the fifth of the season. The month’s first storm dumped 10-15 inches of snow in far northwestern Oklahoma between Dec. 2-3.

Warm and mostly dry December weather dashed any hopes of walking in a winter wonderland, including dreams of a white Christmas. Very little in the way of wintry weather was seen during the month, save for a couple of inches of snow in the western Panhandle and a few bouts with freezing drizzle and fog. Christmas Day itself was the second warmest on record with a statewide average temperature of 57 degrees, topped only by 2016’s 57.6 degrees and far removed from 1983’s record cold of 4.7 degrees. Spring weather took up the slack for the dearth of winter excitement.