Dry Halloweens are not a slam dunk for the Pacific Northwest. During my trick-or-treating career from 1996-2007 (yes, I trick-or-treated my freshman year of high school… social graces have never been a strong suit of mine but getting free candy has!), 42% of the days saw measurable precipitation I feel bad for the Gen Z kids who trick-or-treated from 2008-2016, as all but one of those years (2011) featured measurable precipitation on Halloween in Seattle. I particularly remember Halloween 2015, which dropped 1.30″ of rain over Sea-Tac airport as a strong, slow-moving front dragged through the region. Most of this rain occurred in the morning and afternoon, but in the evening, a small but intense and slow-moving shower moved right over the Halloween party I was at. We weren’t trick-or-treating, but our long walk back to our car was extremely wet!
Image created with NOAA Weather and Climate Toolkit
The coronavirus may be the worst pandemic in 100 years, but I’d argue that this Halloween is the best in at least 95. Since 1900, we’ve had four other Halloweens with full moons; 1925, 1944, 1955, and 1974. The latter three all had measurable precipitation for many spots for the Pacific NW, but 1925 was dry and likely clear as well.
As of 9:17, Halloween’s been great, with a few trick-or-treaters and a nice community bonfire down at the neighborhood park. I won’t feel totally safe until the clock strikes midnight, though. Speaking of which, don’t forget to set your clocks back tonight!
We should have some more active weather beginning Tuesday, and confidence is increasing that we’ll transition to a cooler and wetter pattern beginning Friday that would allow snow to build up in the mountains. I’ll provide a post tomorrow with more details. Until then, Happy Halloween and be sure to enjoy the spectacular sunshine tomorrow!
Charlie
