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Prepared by Florida Climate Center
The Florida State University
Tallahassee, FL

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December Key Points:

  • December was much warmer, with average temperatures well above normal across the state.
  • Rainfall totals for the month were below normal in most places.
  • A La Niña advisory remains in effect and is expected to continue through the winter (95% chance).
  • Abnormally dry conditions (D0) emerged across much of the Panhandle by the end of the month.

 

Average temperatures in December were well above normal across Florida. Following a colder than normal month of November, December was much warmer with average temperature departures ranging from +9.1 ̊F in Pensacola to +2.5 ̊F in Key West for the month (see Table 1 and Appendix 1 for select cities). Pensacola had its top warmest December on record, while the Gainesville, Orlando, and Tampa areas saw their second warmest Decembers on record. Several daily high maximum and high minimum temperature records were set throughout the month (see appendix 2).

Table 1.  December average temperatures and departures from normal ( ̊F) for selected cities.

Station Mean Temperature Departure from Normal
Pensacola 64.6 +9.1
Tallahassee 62.3 +7.9
Jacksonville 63.4 +6.7
Orlando 69.9 +6.6
Tampa 71.5 +6.6
Miami 74.5 +3.3
Key West 75.5 +2.5 

 

Rainfall totals in December were below normal throughout much of the state (Figure 1). Drier conditions closed out the year, with monthly departures from normal ranging from -0.40 inches in Orlando to -3.82 inches in Pensacola (Table 2 and Appendix 1). Rainfall totals in inland areas of the state, including Gainesville and Orlando, were near normal for the month.

Table 2. December precipitation totals and departures from normal (inches) for selected cities.

Station Total Rainfall Departure from Normal
Pensacola 1.58 -3.82
Tallahassee 1.39 -2.85
Jacksonville 1.61 -1.17
Orlando 2.08 -0.40
Tampa 0.59 -1.97
Miami 1.19 -1.25
Key West 1.01 -1.15 

 

Figure 1. A graphical depiction of the monthly rainfall departure from normal (inches) for December (courtesy of NOAA, NWS).

Figure 1.  A graphical depiction of the monthly rainfall departure from normal (inches) for December (courtesy of NOAA, NWS).

 

La Niña Advisory.

La Niña conditions, the cool phase of the ENSO climate pattern, continued in the tropical Pacific Ocean in December. Below-average subsurface temperatures (averaged from 180-100°W) strengthened significantly over the past month, and the sea surface temperature in the Niño-3.4 region of the tropical Pacific was about 0.9 °C cooler than the long-term (1991–2020) average. There is a 95% chance of La Niña conditions continuing through the Northern Hemisphere winter, and it is anticipated to transition to ENSO-neutral during the spring 2022 (~60% during April-June).

 

Hazardous Weather Events in December.

According to the Local Storm Reports issued by the local National Weather Service offices serving Florida, there were 46 individual local reports of hazardous weather events recorded across the state during the month of December (see Table 4 for a breakdown by event type). Tornadoes caused damage to homes in Starke and Freeport on the 8th, and another tornado report in Lee County on the 21st that led to one injury. On the 6th, dense fog in Quincy led to a collision that resulted in two fatalities; visibility was under one-quarter mile.

 

Table 4. Breakdown of storm reports submitted in Florida during the month of December (compiled from Iowa State University/Iowa Environmental Mesonet).

Report Type Number of Reports
Flash Flood 0
Flood 0
Heavy Rain 0
Dense Fog 1
Marine Thunderstorm Wind 9
Non-Thunderstorm Wind Gust 15
Non-Thunderstorm Wind Damage 3
Tornado/Waterspout/Funnel Cloud 3/1/0
Thunderstorm Wind Damage 4
Thunderstorm Wind Gust 9
Lightning 0
Wildfire 1

 

Drought-Related Impacts.

Through the month of December, abnormally dry conditions (D0) were present in parts of the Panhandle and had expanded to the entire Panhandle by end of the month. By December 28, about 22.6% of the state was experiencing abnormally dry conditions, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

As of December 31, the Lake Okeechobee water level was 15.52 ft. above sea level (Feet-NGVD29), which is above the average for this time of the year. The water level remained above average throughout the month. At the first of the month, the water level was around 15.8 ft. above sea level.

 

drought monitor

 

Agriculture-Related Impacts.

During the month of December, Florida pasture conditions remained mostly fair to good due to unseasonably warm weather. Cattle conditions also remained mostly good during the month, and sugarcane planting and harvest progressed well. Toward the end of the month, disease in the southern region of the state continued due to heavy fog. Many citrus fruits were harvested, and several vegetable crops came to market. For more information, consult the Crop Progress - State Stories reports, which are produced monthly December through March.

 

Appendix 1
Additional December departures from normal data for select Florida locations (Source: NWS).

Station Average Temperature (˚F) Departure from Normal (˚F) Total Rainfall (in.) Departure from Normal (in.)
Gainesville 64.5 +7.2 2.88 0.00
Sarasota 69.3 +4.1 0.92 -1.41
Melbourne 69.0 +2.8 3.39 +1.03
Fort Myers 72.6 +5.3 0.54 -1.36
West Palm Beach 72.3 +3.3 2.16 -1.32

 

Appendix 2
Select daily record high maximum temperatures broken during December (compiled from NOAA).

Location Date Record (˚F) Broken/Tied Last
Vero Beach 8 87 Broken 85 in 1948
Key West 8 87 Broken 85 in 2007
Orlando 8 85 Broken 84 in 2013
Plant City 11 87 Broken 86 in 1894
Orlando 11 85 Broken 84 in 2013
Gainesville 11 84 Broken 83 in 2001
Daytona Beach 11 84 Broken 83 in 1961
Vero Beach 11 87 Broken 86 in 1997
Key West 11 87 Broken 85 in 2007
Crestview 11 81 Broken 79 in 2007
Pensacola 11 80 Broken 77 in 2015
Tallahassee 11 81 Broken 80 in 2007
Clermont 12 86 Broken 83 in 2001
Deland 12 84 Broken 83 in 2001
Miles City 12 88 Broken 87 in 2000
Orlando 12 86 Broken 84 in 1986
Vero Beach 12 88 Broken 86 in 1986
Tampa 13 86 Broken 85 in 2015
Key West 13 87 Broken 85 in 2009
Venice 16 85 Broken 84 in 2019
Tampa 16 86 Broken 85 in 2001
Vero Beach 16 85 Broken 84 in 2015
Venice 17 85 Broken 84 in 1956
Key West 17 87 Broken 84 in 2016
Usher Tower 18 83 Broken 82 in 1967
Venice 18 87 Broken 85 in 2016
Key West 18 86 Broken 84 in 2016
Jacksonville Beach 19 83 Broken 81 in 2017
Venice 19 87 Broken 85 in 2016
Vero Beach 19 90 Broken 85 in 1990
Hialeah 20 89 Broken 86 in 1986
Clermont 21 87 Broken 84 in 2014
Pensacola 26 80 Broken 78 in 1987
Jacksonville Beach 27 81 Broken 76 in 2015
Gainesville 29 82 Broken 81 in 2019
Jacksonville Beach 30 84 Broken 82 in 2015
Crestview 30 83 Broken 79 in 1996
Pensacola 30 81 Broken 77 in 1996
Tallahassee 30 82 Broken 80 in 2015
Marianna 31 83 Broken 80 in 1951
Vero Beach 31 85 Broken 84 in 2015
Pensacola 31 79 Broken 77 in 1996
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