June is wrapping up with near normal temperatures for Iowa and rainfall above-normal for many parts of the state. Harry Hillaker, the state climatologist, says June started off cool but began to heat up towards the end of the month. He says 15 of the first 16 days in June averaged colder than usual, for an average of four-degrees below normal for the first half of the month.
Most of the rest of the month has been hotter than normal. Glenwood had the state’s hot spot for the month with of 99 degrees on June 23rd. As for rainfall, Hillaker says Iowa averaged 5.22 inches of rain, about a half-inch more than normal. Some areas got a lot more rain than others.
He says southeast Iowa was much wetter than usual as some areas saw ten-inches of rain, while parts of northern Iowa were drier than normal, with fewer than three-inches of rain for the month. Hillaker says parts of southern Iowa are still so wet, soybean farmers are continuing to hold off on planting.
July is traditionally Iowa’s hottest month of the year and Hillaker says it’ll likely end up about on target, according to the long-range forecast. The first week may be slightly cooler and less humid than normal but he’s betting on warmer, more humid air to move in soon enough.