Quote:
Originally Posted by alex985
I think July/August is more prone to high pressure than June is.
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It's always high-pressure wrecking everything. There needs to be a way to kill it; maybe cloud-seeding, or a piercing laser that can tear holes through the cap.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nei
common pattern in the western half of the deep south. Houston has a similar lower July / August rainfall and relative peak in May & June
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston#Climate
Atlantic coast of the southeast has a clear summer peak
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savannah,_Georgia#Climate
My guess: a ridge builds in the middle of continent in summer deflecting storms. Southeast by the Atlantic isn't affected by it gets storms and instability from the Atlantic. Is the subtropical jet stream further south on the east coast? |
Maybe so. But would some form of high-pressure also be the explanation of the precipitation drops in tropical Gulf/Caribbean areas like Cancun? The rainfall patterns for that place resemble Houston IAH (wet Mays and Junes giving way to drier Julys and Augusts, with September and October picking back up); in fact, Cancun is drier than Houston IAH in July/August:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canc%C3%BAn#Climate
Another thing is that subtropical convection is able to prevail in coastal/eastern Texas, even with the ridge. While July/August are much drier than May in Houston IAH, at Houston Hobby (closer to the Gulf) for the same period, rainfall in July about matches that of May, and August exceeds it. Both July/August also get more rain-days than May. At Port Arthur, in far southeastern Texas, both July and August are wetter than May, with significatly more rain-days:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_of_Houston
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_A..._Texas#Climate
The ridge definitely kills precip in inland TX/LA. Look at how dry July/August is at these places:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shreveport,_Louisiana
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dallas#Climate
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Austin,_Texas#Climate
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_An...and_vegetation
You might be on to something with this; I go see if there is any link.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nei
Look at the PRISM webpage:
PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State U
and go from May to July. Wettest part of the south is east Texas / Louisiana and shifts east to the Atlantic coast by July |
A bit of a general map, but it is interesting to see that the summer precipitation peak shifts from the western Gulf in June, to the eastern Gulf in July, and the East Coast by August. Notice that coastal Texas picks up slack from August to September/October:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corpus..._Texas#Climate
That corresponds with a similar rainy peak in tropical Mexico. In October, the Eastern Pacific is still tropically active, and Texas being far west enough to see effects from tropical cyclones in that basin (i.e. Hurricane Patricia). October in Miami/South Florida, and the tropics is quite a wet month (but nothing compared to what is seen in summer).
Do keep in mind, though, I am talking more precip pattern peak than actual numbers received. While Port Arthur, TX, and New Orleans, LA have lower precip totals in July/August relative to June, the rainfall totals for July/August at both places about match, or even exceed, some places on the East Coast; it is just that rainfall for those months happen to be less comparatively to the June.
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