5th warmest and 17th driest October
Most of October was an extension of the same type of weather we had in September: abnormally warm and very dry. Total precipitation for the month averaged 0.57" statewide, 0.85" below the 20th century average and good for the 17th driest October. Temperatures averaged 56.3F, 5.5F above the 20th century average and 5th warmest on record. It was the second straight top-5 warmest month.
Harvest issues and bad start for wheat
The dry weather accelerated harvest of soybean and corn. But the extremely dry conditions were also leading to high fire danger and there were numerous combine fires. One death was reported in Fillmore County when an elderly farmer couldn't escape a combine fire. Some farmers were taking afternoons off during the most extreme fire danger afternoons. Furthermore, moisture contents on soybean and corn were also abnormally low for many farmers this year at harvest. Warmer temperatures in the Panhandle affected sugar beet harvest. All in all, it was a faster harvest than usual but definitely not a stress-free harvest. The winter wheat crop also had later emergence than usual this year because of the very dry conditions. Simply put there was no soil water for the wheat to germinate and emerge.
Drought intensified but may have peaked in October 2024
At the beginning of October almost 50 percent of the state was in drought. But less than 15 percent was in severe drought and there was no extreme drought on the U.S. Drought Monitor. By the end of the month, almost 90 percent of the state was in drought and over 75 percent was in severe drought or worse. The culprit for drought intensification was a large ridge over the center of the North American continent which kept the storm track well north and cut off moisture return. By the middle of October the entire state was essentially in the lowest soil moisture percentile range. Wildfires became more frequent early in the month and were numerous in central and eastern sections of the state on the 13th and 17th of October.
By the 17th of October, no measurable rain had fallen anywhere in the state in three weeks, most areas hadn't seen a quarter inch in a day since late August and some parts of northeast Nebraska hadn't seen a drop of rain in over 50 days. That changed that evening when a cold front spawned some showers in parts of the Panhandle. The next day an upper level low in the southwest and associated dynamics helped produce widespread showers and thunderstorms in much of southwest Nebraska, with some areas picking up over an inch. Two days later that upper level low helped produce an area of rain and thunderstorms that moved through south central and southeastern Nebraska. Most areas south of the Platte had over a quarter inch and a few spots in Adams County picked up over 2". A more potent system brought more widespread and very welcome rain on the 30th to the southern half of the state, with parts of southeastern Nebraska picking up between 2-2.5".
Unfortunately most of the northern and western third of the state missed out on the better moisture later in the month and ended well below average yet again. Drought continued to get worse in these areas with extreme drought making an appearance in parts of northeast Nebraska and expansion of extreme drought was noted in the northern Panhandle. Almost all locations in Nebraska had a drier than average October and statewide it was the 17th driest on record. But no one had a record dry October (unlike September when most places did) and by the end of the month, soil moisture was starting to show improvement in the southern portion of the state. Thus, it is certainly possible that drought peaked in October. At least for the time being anyway.
Warm streak continues
October was well above average for temperature with all climate divisions running at least 5.0F above average. Only the Octobers of 1938, 1940, 1947, and 1963 were warmer and the abnormally warm temperatures were an important factor in the continued drought intensification during the month. All-time record temperatures were noted this month too.
Compressional warming ahead of a cold front on October 5th allowed temperatures in southeast Nebraska to shoot well into the 90's with 100F readings observed at both the Wilber Mesonet site and at Offutt AFB. Those are the latest such 100F readings on record for those areas and a first for the month of October in the Omaha area. Strong southerly flow ahead of a cold front helped keep minimum temperatures above 70F in the far southeast corner of the state on the 29th. These are the latest 70F readings for minimum temperatures ever experienced in the state by two weeks.
Temperature and Precipitation Roundup
Below are the temperature and precipitation extremes around the state in October:
Maximum Daily High Temperature: 100F, Wilber Mesonet
Minimum Daily High Temperature: 37F, Bushnell 15 S
Minimum Daily Low Temperature: 15F, Harrison 20 SSE
Maximum Daily Low Temperature: 72F, Falls City Brenner Field
Max Monthly Precipitation: 3.22", Barneston 0.12E
Snowfall: 0.0", All locations
Eric Hunt, University of Nebraska Extension