Blistering summers, flooding rains, tornadoes, hail, and even the occasional snowstorm — we get all kinds of weather in San Antonio! So, how well do you know San Antonio’s weather history?
Test your knowledge by taking the quiz below ? before you read the rest of this article.
WARNING: Answers to questions below! If you don’t want to cheat, don’t read the rest of this article until you’re done with the quiz!! ?
Monthly Averages
? On average, San Antonio’s hottest month is August. The average temperature in August is 85.5? with an average high of 96.0? and an average low of 74.9?.
? San Antonio’s coldest month on average is January. The average temperature in January is 52.2?, with an average high of 63.3? and an average low of 41.0?.
? On average, San Antonio’s driest month is February, when the airport only receives an average of 1.74 inches of rainfall.
? San Antonio’s rainiest month on average is May. During this month, it’s normal to receive at least 4.40 inches of rainfall.
Temperature Extremes
? San Antonio’s hottest temperature ever recorded occurred on September 5, 2000, when the official airport thermometer reached 111?. Here’s a list of the hottest temperatures ever recorded in San Antonio:
RankTemperatureDateHottest111?9/5/20002nd110?8/28/20113rd109?9/4/20004th108?6/29/20135th108?8/19/19866th107?7/11/20227th107?7/13/20208th107?8/29/20119th107?6/15/199810th107?8/20/1909
? San Antonio’s coldest temperature ever recorded was 0? and it occurred on January 31, 1949. At that time, we had a snow pack on the ground as well as clear skies, which is the perfect recipe for very cold conditions. It would be difficult for us to have those conditions again, but we’ll see! Here’s a list of the coldest temperatures ever recorded in San Antonio:
RankTemperatureDateColdest0?1/31/19492nd4?2/12/18993rd5?1/30/19494th6?12/23/19895th6?2/2/19516th6?2/13/18997th6?1/8/18868th9?2/15/20219th9?12/30/198310th10?1/12/1962
Weather Extremes
? San Antonio’s snowiest winter occurred during the winter of 1984 to 1985, when the Alamo City saw 15.9 inches of snowfall!
? The driest calendar year in San Antonio was 1917 when only 10.11 inches of rain fell. NOTE: At the time of this article, only 9.51? of rain has fallen for 2022 so far.
? The wettest calendar year in San Antonio was 1973 when 52.28 inches of rain fell in San Antonio!
? The rainiest event in San Antonio’s history was the October floods of 1998. In just two days, from October 17-18, 14.42 inches of rain fell in San Antonio
? The strongest tornado in San Antonio’s history was an F4 tornado which occurred on April 28, 1953, when two tornadoes impacted Helotes and the Castle Hills area. Unfortunately, 3 people were killed. According to the National Weather Service:
“Two tornadoes hit the San Antonio area. The first moved east-northeastward from the San Geronimo area to Leon Springs. Two homes were destroyed and 17 others were badly damaged in an area about 6 miles north of Helotes. Homes were unroofed near Leon Springs, as the funnel dissipated. Two people were killed and damage was estimated at $100,000. Another tornado moved eastward from northwest of the San Antonio International Airport to north of Wetmore. One woman was killed as her home was completely swept away, 3 miles northeast of the airport. Five other members of her family were injured as the house was seen to “explode and scatter”. A car was carried 200 feet. Damage in this area was estimated at $75,000.” Adjusted for inflation, $75,000 is more than $840,000 today.
? The strongest cold front (24 hr. temp. drop) happened in December of 1990 when the temperature dropped from 80? to 23? just before Christmas!
? In 2009, San Antonio recorded 59 100-degree days, the most in the Alamo City’s history! 2022 came in a close second with 58 triple-digit days. Here’s a look at the top ten 100-degree day years:
RankNumber of 100? DaysYearMost5920092nd5820223rd5720114th4120135th3620206th3619987th3319488th3219519th31198010th292006
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