AUGUST SAW A RIDGE AND VERY WARM CONDITIONS TO START THE MONTH. THEN
A FINAL BREAK IN THE SUMMER HEAT AS A TROUGH DEVELOPED ACROSS THE
REGION RESULTED IN RECORD COLD TEMPERATURES. THE END OF THE MONTH  
SAW THE RIDGE RETURN WITH RECORD HEAT. THROUGHOUT THE MONTH RAINFALL  
WAS LIMITED WITH EXCEPTIONAL DROUGHT...THE WORST DROUGHT CATEGORY  
DEPICTED BY ON THE U.S. DROUGHT MONITOR...EXPANDING ACROSS THE MUCH  
OF WESTERN AND NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA.  
  
FOR NORTH PLATTE...THE AVERAGE DAILY MEAN TEMPERATURE FOR AUGUST WAS  
73.4 DEGREES...WHICH WAS 1.3 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 72.1  
DEGREES. THE AVERAGE DAILY HIGH TEMPERATURE WAS 90.3 DEGREES AND WAS  
4.2 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 86.1 DEGREES. THE AVERAGE HIGH OF  
90.3 DEGREES FOR THE MONTH RANKS AS THE 17TH WARMEST FOR THE MONTH.  
THE AVERAGE DAILY LOW TEMPERATURE WAS 56.4 DEGREES...WHICH WAS 1.8  
DEGREES BELOW THE NORMAL OF 58.2 DEGREES. THE AVERAGE LOW OF 58.2  
DEGREES FOR THE MONTH RANKS 16TH COOLEST. FIVE DAILY TEMPERATURE  
RECORDS WERE SET DURING AUGUST IN NORTH PLATTE AND ARE SUMMARIZED  
BELOW:  
  
DATE      NEW/TIED      NEW/TIED           PREVIOUS  
         MAX RECORD    MIN RECORD        RECORD (YEAR)  
  
16                        47*              47 (1978,1969)  
17                        45*              45 (1890)  
28          102                           101 (1984)  
29          103                           101 (1970)  
30          102*                          102 (1990,1877)  
  
* DENOTES TIED RECORD  
  
FOR VALENTINE...THE AVERAGE DAILY MEAN TEMPERATURE FOR AUGUST WAS  
73.8 DEGREES...WHICH WAS 1.0 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 72.8  
DEGREES. THE AVERAGE DAILY HIGH TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 91.3  
DEGREES WHICH WAS 4.3 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 87.0 DEGREES. THE  
AVERAGE HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 91.3 DEGREES FOR THE MONTH WAS 4.3  
DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 87.0 DEGREES. THE AVERAGE DAILY LOW  
TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 56.2 DEGREES AND WAS 2.5 DEGREES BELOW  
THE NORMAL OF 58.7. FOUR TEMPERATURE RECORDS WERE TIED OR BROKEN  
DURING THE MONTH AT MILLER FIELD AND ARE SUMMARIZED BELOW:  
  
DATE   NEW/TIED    NEW/TIED     NEW/TIED        PREVIOUS  
      MAX RECORD  MIN RECORD  HI MIN RECORD   RECORD (YEAR)  
  
6                                 72*           72 (1934)  
17                    41                        46 (2002,1968)  
28       106                                   103 (1984)  
29       108**                                 104 (1948)  
  
* DENOTES TIED RECORD  
** TIED ALL TIME HIGH FOR THE MONTH  
PREVIOUS YEARS (DAY) WITH A HIGH OF 108  
1938 (2)  
1947 (9)  
1965 (13)  
1937 (15)  
  
PRECIPITATION FOR AUGUST AT LEE BIRD FIELD IN NORTH PLATTE TOTALED  
ONLY 1.09 INCHES WHICH WAS 1.20 INCHES BELOW THE NORMAL OF 2.29  
INCHES. NO DAILY PRECIPITATION RECORDS WERE SET FOR THE MONTH OF  
AUGUST AT NORTH PLATTE. OVER THE PAST 4 MONTHS...MAY...JUNE...JULY  
AND AUGUST HAVE RESULTED IN ONLY 3.39 INCHES. TYPICALLY THESE ARE  
THE 4 WETTEST MONTHS OF THE YEAR WITH 12.09 INCHES OF THE YEARLY  
20.23 INCHES. 2012 HAS RESULTED IN A DEFICIT FROM NORMAL OF 8.67  
INCHES AND RESULTED IN EXCEPTIONAL DROUGHT CONDITIONS.  
  
VALENTINE PRECIPITATION TOTALED 0.99 INCHES FOR AUGUST WHICH WAS  
1.19 INCHES BELOW THE NORMAL OF 2.18 INCHES. NO DAILY PRECIPITATION  
RECORDS WERE SET FOR THE MONTH OF AUGUST IN VALENTINE.  
MAY...JUNE...JULY AND AUGUST TYPICALLY RESULTS IN 12.08 INCHES OF  
PRECIPITATION. IN 2012...A TOTAL OF 3.48 INCHES WAS RECORDED IN THE  
FOUR MONTH PERIOD...WHICH WAS 8.60 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THIS RANKS  
AS THE DRIEST CONSECUTIVE MAY...JUNE...JULY AND AUGUST ON RECORD.  
  
OTHER NOTABLE PRECIPITATION AND TEMPERATURE RECORDS WERE SET  
ACROSS WESTERN AND NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA DURING THE MONTH OF JULY.  
  
AT BROKEN BOW...ONLY A TRACE OF PRECIPITATION WAS RECORDED...WHICH  
WAS 2.23 INCHES BELOW THE NORMAL OF 2.23 INCHES. FOR BROKEN  
BOW...THE MAY...JUNE...JULY AND AUGUST TOTAL WAS ONLY 1.22  
INCHES...EASILY BECOMING THE DRIEST MAY...JUNE...JULY AND AUGUST ON  
RECORD AT BROKEN BOW. TYPICALLY BROKEN BOW WILL RECORD 13.08 INCHES  
DURING THE 4 MONTH PERIOD.  
  
AT IMPERIAL...2012 PRECIPITATION FOR THE 4 MONTHS OF  
MAY...JUNE...JULY AND AUGUST TOTALED 5.00 INCHES...WHICH WAS 6.62  
INCHES BELOW THE NORMAL OF 11.62 INCHES.  
  
           NORTH PLATTE SUMMARY           VALENTINE SUMMARY  
         | AUG 12 | NORM | DIFF  |    | AUG 12 | NORM | DIFF  |  
AVG TEMP |  73.4  | 72.1 |  1.3  |    |  73.8  | 72.8 |  1.0  |  
AVG HIGH |  90.3  | 86.1 |  4.2  |    |  91.3  | 87.0 |  4.3  |  
AVG LOW  |  56.4  | 58.2 | -1.8  |    |  56.2  | 58.7 | -2.5  |  
PRECIP   |  1.09  | 2.29 | -1.20 |    |  0.99  | 2.18 | -1.19 |  
  
  
THE LATEST 30 DAY OUTLOOK FROM THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER FOR  
SEPTEMBER CALLS FOR ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES. PRECIPITATION CHANCES  
ARE EQUAL FOR ABOVE NORMAL...BELOW NORMAL...OR NEAR NORMAL  
PRECIPITATION FOR ALL OF WESTERN AND NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA.  
  
...NORTH PLATTE AND VALENTINE PRECIPITATION TOTALS FOR THE PAST 12  
MONTHS...  
  
                        PRECIPITATION             DEPARTURE  
  
MONTH                   LBF       VTN           LBF       VTN  
  
AUGUST 2011             1.99      3.12         -0.30      0.94  
SEPTEMBER 2011          0.98      1.09         -0.43     -0.55  
OCTOBER 2011            2.17      1.71          0.62      0.46  
NOVEMBER 2011           0.13      0.44         -0.51     -0.21  
DECEMBER 2011           0.32      0.20         -0.09     -0.17  
  
JANUARY 2012            0.12      0.19         -0.22     -0.07  
FEBRUARY 2012           1.23      2.27          0.73      1.79  
MARCH 2012              0.82      0.31         -0.23     -0.76  
APRIL 2012              3.68      2.99          1.41      0.77  
MAY 2012                0.74      0.69         -2.54     -2.44  
JUNE 2012               0.87      1.72         -2.55     -1.84  
JULY 2012               0.69      0.08         -2.38     -3.13  
AUGUST 2011             1.09      0.99         -1.20     -1.19  
  
TOTALS                 12.84     12.68         -7.39     -7.34