Despite a record high for so early in the season — 97 on May 19 — DC finished the month 1.4 degrees cooler than normal, with an average temperature of 65.8 degrees. Rainfall was 1.09 inches below average, with 2.85 inches tallied.
It was the first cooler-than-average month since three consecutive from December to February, and the fourth drier-than-average month in a row for DC.
Instead of being dry across the board, there was some variance, thanks to a stretch of 10 straight days of rain that helped ease widespread and persistent drought.
Dulles finished May just a touch below average for rainfall, with 4.60 inches compared to a 4.72-inch norm. Baltimore ended a nine-month run of below-average precipitation, tallying 4.39 inches, or about half an inch above normal there. (The image above highlighting the extended dry streak for Baltimore can be found in the Climate Room.)
In DC, the year is running a little more than 4 inches below normal for precipitation.
