August 2012: A Blue Moon And Record Dry Weather For Portland & Seattle

If you only do things ‘once in a blue moon’ — then you should’ve gotten them done on the last day of August 2012!

Thanks to Ray W. who sent in this spectacular shot of the Blue Moon over Portland.

You’ve probably heard that a Blue Moon does not mean the moon’s actually blue (although in rare cases it could happen). In modern times, it means the second full moon in a month. And the way the calendar works, that can really only happen every 2-3 years. Here’s a great article on the folklore of a Blue Moon. Worth the read!

Record Dry August 2012 For Portland, Seattle
We never had more than a trace of rain in Portland during the month–making the month part of an elite group of years with just a trace. The driest years on record.

There’s never been an August in Portland without at least a ‘few drops’ of rain, like we had this year.

And in Seattle, really big news: the city had just a trace of rain, which is a new record. It has never had less than .01″ in August until now. And at SEA-TAC, there was no rain. Not even a drop. Another record!

Temperatures were hot during the first half of the month. Seattle had four 90-degree days and hit as hot as 94. 35% of the month saw highs 80 degrees or warmer in Seattle. And in Portland we had eight days of 90 or hotter (about 3 above average) and two of those days were triple digits: 102 on August 4th and 100 on August 16th. After the 17th, the heat fizzled. (See graphic) In Portland, 45% of the days had highs of 80 degrees and warmer.

My colleague on the PinPoint Weather Team, Sally Showman, came up with these facts — a graphic she put together on August 31. Thanks, Sally!