1 October, 2001

Monthly Climate Summary - September - South Pole, Antarctica

Temperature:

Average temp............ -57.0°C / -70.6°F

Departure from normal... +2.5°C / +4.5°F

Maximum temp............ -33.8°C / -28.8°F on day 12

Minimum temp............ -73.2°C / -99.8°F on day 1

Wind:

Average wind speed.......... 13.4 mph or 11.6 knots

Prevailing wind direction... Grid North or 010 degrees

Maximum wind speed.......... 42 mph or 36 knots on day 11

Maximum wind direction...... Grid North

Average vectored wind....... 040 degrees at 9.0 knots

Station Pressure:

Average pressure........ 678.6 mbs or 20.039 in. Hg

Departure from normal... +3.0 mbs or +0.089 in. Hg

Highest pressure........ 699.0 mbs or 20.641 in. Hg on day 13 Lowest pressure......... 661.8 mbs or 19.543 in. Hg on day 30

Sky Cover:

Average cloud cover (8ths)... 05

Days clear................... 03

Days partly cloudy........... 16

Days cloudy.................. 11

Sunshine:

Sunrise on 22 September 2001

Average hours per day... 0.0

Percent of possible..... 0

Visibility... 6 days with a visibility of 1/4 mile or less.

Snowfall..... TRACE; average net change at snow stakes +0.606 inches.

Balloon flight data:

Number of soundings for the month... 30

Average height of sounding.......... 151.1 mbs or 14447 meters above msl Highest sounding.................... 8.8 mbs or 27944 meters above msl on the day 04/00Z sounding

Remarks:

00 soundings were missed.

09 soundings were terminated above 50 mbs.

00 soundings were terminated between 50 and 100 mbs.

21 soundings were terminated below 100 mbs.

**RECORDS**

Day 11 - The daily maximum temperature of -34.7°C / -30.5°F broke the previous daily record of -35.9°C / -32.6°F set in 1984.

- The daily peak wind speed of 36 knots / 42 mph broke

the previous daily record of 35 knots / 40 mph set in 1961.

Day 12 - The daily maximum temperature of -33.8°C / -28.8°F broke the previous daily record of -39.7°C / -39.5°F set in 1983.

PREPARED BY: Nathan Tift and Meghan Prentiss

Katie Wallet

Supervisor of Science

Spotsylvania County Schools