Colder and wetter weather puts a damper on Olympia into June. Here’s what to expect
Colder and wetter weather than usual afflicted the Olympia area in May in a pattern that will likely extend into June, forecasters say.
The average temperature in the Olympia area was 51.1 degrees last month, making it the 10th coldest May since 1948, according to data from the National Weather Service in Seattle. About 4.33 inches of rain soaked the city in May, which is the sixth highest ever recorded.
Reid Wolcott, the Warning Coordination Meteorologist at the NWS in Seattle, told The Olympian a La Niña weather pattern has contributed to recent conditions.
“It’s a pattern that’s persisted throughout the winter months,” Wolcott said. “It’s been gradually weakening through the spring, but La Niña does favor cooler and wetter conditions here in the Northwest.”
The pattern brought a lot of weak storms day after day, he said. This inhibited the chance for any sort of lengthy dry spell that would warm up the area, he added.
Wolcott said this pattern, which is caused by anomalous ocean temperatures near the equator, has occurred in the past two winters. Its effects vary across the country.
“We may be going into a third year of it and it’s really uncommon to have this many consecutive years.” Wolcott said. “Often times, it bounces around and it fluctuates in strength.”
Over the decades, May temperatures have averaged out to 53.9 degrees, per NWS data. Though it was colder than usual, residents were still spared the coldest average May temperature on record, which was 49.6 degrees in 1962.
Still, the data show May was the warmest month of the year so far. The coldest month so far in 2022 happened to be February at 39.2 degrees rather than January which averaged out to 41.5 degrees.
At 4.33 inches, rainfall in May more than doubled the average of 2.15 inches, according to the data. But the all-time high of 5.83 inches was recorded in 1948.
Though it was wetter than usual, May ranked as the second driest month of the year so far. March was drier at 3.07 inches and January was the wettest at 10.78 inches, the data show.
Wolcott said Olympia area has seen almost 10 inches more rain during this water year, which started Oct. 1. Normally, the area sees 45.69 inches by June 1 but so far it has reached 55.28 inches.
Looking ahead, Wolcott said June as a whole will likely be colder and wetter than usual. He said next week may bring slightly above normal temperatures, but it will later slip back to below average.
“It looks like at all points we’re going to be above normal precipitation,” Wolcott said. “It doesn’t look like we have any dryness coming for an extended period any time soon.”
With above normal precipitations in June, he said there may be a chance of thunderstorms even in lowland areas. He said typical summer weather likely won’t arrive until July.
“There’s a saying here in the Pacific Northwest, you know, ‘Summer starts on July 5.’” Wolcott said. “I think that may hold true this year.”
The average temperature in June is about 59 degrees, per NWS data. However, a record high was set in 2015 when the average temperature reached 65.1 degrees.
June rainfall averages 1.54 inches but have dropped as low as 0.05 inches in 1951. In 2021, residents contended with 3.3 inches of rain.
In the near term, residents can expect rain and showers Friday through Sunday. High temperatures over the weekend will peak in the low-to-mid 60s and lows will reach the mid-50s, according to the NWS forecast.
A preliminary forecast for Monday and Tuesday still lists slight chances of showers, but skies may be partly sunny by Tuesday. Highs are expected to reach 70 by mid-week.
