Source: Corey Davis, NC CLIMATE OFFICE, 4/9/20


We exited a warm winter and got a head-start on spring with above-normal temperatures in March. Dry weather returned to North Carolina last month, but the year-to-date remains wet, as well as warm.

A Warm Start to Spring
The past month was a warm one in North Carolina, as the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) reports a statewide average temperature of 56.1°F, ranking as our 5th-warmest March dating back to 1895.

Several sites hit 90 degrees during the final weekend of the month, and it was one of the earliest occurrences of such warmth in those areas. In New Bern, the 91°F reading on March 28 was the third-earliest that site has hit 90 or higher since 1949. Hamlet hit 90°F on that same Saturday -- the earliest 90-degree day there also based on records since 1949.

Our average afternoon highs were generally 3 to 5 degrees above normal, but even warmer overnight lows were the main drivers behind our high-ranked temperatures. Based on the average minimum temperatures, it was tied for the warmest March in the past 128 years at Hatteras, and the warmest dating back more than 50 years in Bayboro, Celo, North Wilkesboro, and Danbury.

While much of the state can typically expect a chance of below-freezing temperatures throughout the month of March, those cold nights were limited last month, even in western North Carolina.

For the full report, click here.