Source: Corey Davis, NC CLIMATE OFFICE, 7/7/20


June continued our late-spring cooler pattern with wet conditions in parts of the state. At the halfway point in 2020, we also check the year-to-date temperature and precipitation rankings.

Cool Temperatures and Cloudy Days
Our cool spring has spilled over into summer. The statewide average temperature last month was 73.3°F, ranking as our 50th-coolest June since 1895, according to data from the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI). In the past 20 years, only three Junes in North Carolina have been cooler -- in 2012, 2006, and 2003.

The coolest spots compared to normal were in the southern and central Coastal Plain. Sites such as Wilmington, Lumberton, and New Bern had average mean temperatures 2 degrees below normal.

Average maximum temperatures were up to 4 degrees below normal, while average minimum temperatures were generally near-normal to slightly above normal. That more limited daily temperature range, with cooler highs and warmer lows, is often the signature of a cloudy month, and June was no different.

The Wilmington Airport reported 176 hours -- or 24% of the month -- with mostly cloudy or overcast sky conditions. By that measure, it was the cloudiest June there since 1999, and had twice the number of mostly cloudy hours as June 2019.

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