October - Summer's last gasp, winter's first blast Published Oct. 12, 2010 By Jim Robinson Meteorological Technician, 27th Special Operations Support Squadron CANNON AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. -- October continues the transition from the warm season into the cold season, and continues to feature some of the most pleasant weather conditions of the year here. By mid October, the typical summertime pattern of relatively frequent late day thunderstorms has little influence due to the diminishing influence of the sun. On the other hand, a typically autumnal pattern of increasing synoptic influence, characterized by about four or five strong cold fronts during the month, continues to strengthen. The strong cold fronts often feature temperature drops of 20 to 30 degrees Fahrenheit in a couple hours and wind speeds that approach 60 mph. The highest recorded wind gust in October is slightly more than 73 mph. The amount of potentially available sunlight decreases by 62 minutes from Oct. 1 to Oct. 31. Sunrise occurs later by 25 minutes as the month progresses, ranging from 6:47a.m. Oct. 1, to 7:12 a.m. by Oct. 31. Sunset gets earlier by 37 minutes through the month as well, ranging from 6:37 p.m. Oct. 1, to 6 p.m. by Oct. 31 31st. Thus, the region loses more potentially available sunlight in the evening than it does in the morning. The average temperature for the month is 59 degrees, ranging from 64 degrees on the first day of the month down to 53 degrees by month's end on Halloween. The average maximum temperature73 degrees, with the average daily maximum temperature ranging from 78 degrees at month's start to 67 degrees Oct. 31. The highest recorded monthly temperature is 98 degrees, which occurred Oct. 2, 1951. The lowest temperature recorded is 13 degrees Oct. 31, 1991. Daily record high temperatures are in the 90s in the first half of the month, but generally stay in the 80s during the second half of the month. Daily record low temperatures range from the mid 30s to the mid 20s in the first half of the month, but dip into the mid 20s to mid teens during the second half of the month. Cannon averages 1.4 inches of precipitation during October. This is less than the 1.8 inch average during September, but more than the 0.5 inch average of November. This is a manifestation of the diminishing influence of thunderstorms, which can dump copious amounts of rainfall in a short time, and the strengthening influence of frontal systems that are generally associated with lesser precipitation amounts. October averages two days with thunderstorms. Snowfall generally starts occurring in October. The month averages 0.4 inch of snowfall, with the highest recorded snowfall amount in October being 7.3 inches. During many Octobers, however, no measurable snowfall occurs. In summary, October is a transition month that often features highly changeable weather on a day-to-day basis. The cooling trend established in September continues and strengthens in October, with summer's last gasp and winter's first blast often occurring within a couple days of each other.