UNSEASONABLY WARM TEMPERATURES FROM EARLY SPRING CARRIED OVER INTO
MAY ACROSS WESTERN AND NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA. ADEQUATE AND TIMELY
PRECIPITATION WHICH OCCURRED DURING THE FIRST FOUR MONTHS OF THE  
YEAR BEGAN TO DRY UP IN MAY AS MANY LOCATIONS ACROSS WESTERN AND  
NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA HAD PRECIPITATION TOTALS WELL BELOW NORMAL.  
WITH BELOW NORMAL PRECIPITATION AND UNSEASONABLY WARM  
TEMPERATURES...MODERATE DROUGHT CONDITIONS HAVE SET IN ACROSS THE  
EASTERN NEBRASKA PANHANDLE AND PORTIONS OF HAYES AND FRONTIER  
COUNTIES. ABNORMALLY DRY CONDITIONS EXTENDED EAST OF THE  
PANHANDLE...ENCOMPASSING PORTIONS OF CHERRY...GRANT...ARTHUR...  
KEITH...PERKINS AND CHASE COUNTIES.  
  
FOR NORTH PLATTE...THE AVERAGE DAILY MEAN TEMPERATURE FOR MAY  
WAS 61.9 DEGREES...WHICH WAS 4.0 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 57.9  
DEGREES. THE AVERAGE DAILY HIGH TEMPERATURE WAS 78.1 DEGREES AND  
WAS 6.4 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 71.7 DEGREES. THE AVERAGE DAILY  
LOW TEMPERATURE WAS 45.6 DEGREES...WHICH WAS 1.5 DEGREES ABOVE THE  
NORMAL OF 44.1 DEGREES.  
  
THREE DAILY RECORD HIGHS WERE SET OR TIED DURING THE MONTH OF MAY IN  
NORTH PLATTE AND ARE SUMMARIZED BELOW:  
  
DATE                NEW RECORD              OLD RECORD AND YEAR  
  
10                      90                       90(1962)*  
22                      94                       93(2006)  
26                      97                       92(1930)  
  
* DENOTES TIED RECORD  
  
FOR VALENTINE...THE AVERAGE DAILY MEAN TEMPERATURE FOR MAY WAS 
59.3 DEGREES...WHICH WAS 1.7 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 57.6  
DEGREES. THE AVERAGE DAILY HIGH TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS  
74.0 DEGREES WHICH WAS 3.1 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 70.9  
DEGREES. THE AVERAGE DAILY LOW TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH WAS 44.5  
DEGREES AND WAS 0.2 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 44.3. ONE RECORD  
TEMPERATURE WAS SET FOR THE MONTH AT VALENTINE. ON MAY TENTH...THE  
HIGH WAS 93 DEGREES AT MILLER FIELD. THIS MARK BROKE THE RECORD OF  
92 DEGREES SET PREVIOUSLY IN 1961.  
  
PRECIPITATION FOR MAY AT LEE BIRD FIELD IN NORTH PLATTE TOTALED  
0.74 INCHES WHICH WAS 2.54 BELOW THE NORMAL OF 3.28 INCHES...MAKING  
MAY 2012 THE SEVENTH DRIEST ON RECORD. NO DAILY PRECIPITATION  
RECORDS WERE SET FOR THE MONTH OF MAY AT NORTH PLATTE.  
  
VALENTINE PRECIPITATION TOTALED 0.69 INCHES FOR MAY WHICH WAS 2.44  
BELOW THE NORMAL OF 3.13 INCHES...MAKING MAY 2012 THE NINTH DRIEST  
ON RECORD. NO DAILY PRECIPITATION RECORDS WERE SET FOR THE MONTH OF  
MAY IN VALENTINE.  
 
           NORTH PLATTE SUMMARY           VALENTINE SUMMARY  
         | MAY 12 | NORM | DIFF  |    | MAY 12 | NORM | DIFF  |  
AVG TEMP |  61.9  | 57.9 |  4.0  |    |  59.3  | 57.6 |  1.7  |  
AVG HIGH |  78.1  | 71.7 |  6.4  |    |  74.0  | 70.9 |  3.1  |  
AVG LOW  |  45.6  | 44.1 |  1.5  |    |  44.5  | 44.3 |  0.2  |  
PRECIP   |  0.74  | 3.28 | -2.54 |    |  0.69  | 3.13 | -2.44 |  
 
THE LATEST 30 DAY OUTLOOK FROM THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER FOR  
JUNE CALLS FOR ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES FOR ALL OF WESTERN AND  
NORTH CENTRAL NEBRASKA. THE PRECIPITATION FORECAST IS FOR EQUAL  
CHANCES FOR ABOVE...BELOW OR NEAR NORMAL PRECIPITATION.
  
...NORTH PLATTE AND VALENTINE PRECIPITATION TOTALS FOR THE PAST  
12 MONTHS...  
  
                        PRECIPITATION             DEPARTURE  
                        LBF       VTN           LBF       VTN  
  
MONTH  
  
JUNE 2011               4.17      3.56          1.00      0.55  
JULY 2011               3.45      3.08          0.28     -0.29  
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
     
TOTALS                 19.80     19.65         -0.28      0.02