November 22: Heading for a Record High?
The record high for tomorrow, Thanksgiving, looks in jeopardy as the remarkable warm spell we’ve been in reaches its climax. The old record occurred on a day that no one alive at that time will forget. On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas and on that day a record high of 54 degrees was set at the NWS site near Negaunee.
On the weather map, a deep trough of low pressure was sitting over the western Plains (Image 1 above). This trough brought up warm, moist air from the Gulf of Mexico. There was rain early in the day at Dallas, but the showers moved out, leaving a warm almost humid day. The cavalcade of limousines carrying the Kennedy party drove through the streets of Dallas with their tops down, making the president a perfect target.
To the northeast, temperatures soared as the low-pressure area that developed out of the trough drove northeastward right through the heart of Upper Michigan (Image 2). As the low headed northeast and away from the U.P., cold air poured in. The high the next day only reached 32 degrees—the coldest of the season up to that point during a remarkably warm October and November.
In contrast to fall 1963, temperatures this fall were predominately below average through much of October, with one warm spell. Then the beginning of November was rather cold. Since then, it has been consistently warm. The mean temperature is now over 3 degrees above average for the month. The daily record high for the 22nd will likely be tied or set if there is enough sunshine during the mid-day into the afternoon. However, it still looks like once the cold air moves in Thursday night, temperatures will be near to below average through the end of the month.
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