U.S. National Overview
March 2006

March:

• March temperatures were above average for the nation with no states much warmer or much cooler than their long-term means. For information on temperature records during the month, please go to NCDC's Extremes page.
• Precipitation was near average for the contiguous US with record dryness occurring along the East Coast. For more information on drought during March, please visit the U.S. Drought page.

• Indices used to determine the state of ENSO indicate the presence of a weak La Niña during the last few months. Sea Surface Temperatures were cooler than average across the eastern equatorial Pacific during March. To see the latest NOAA advisory and typical impacts of a La Niña or El Niño episode for the U.S., go to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center. For an in-depth analysis of the current conditions see NCDC's ENSO Monitoring page.

• March 2006 ranked as the 37th warmest March in the 1895 to present record, or near the long-term mean. The preliminary nationally averaged temperature was 44.0°F (6.7°C), which was 1.5°F (0.8°C) above the long-term mean.
• March 2006 had near average precipitation, nationally, ranking 47th driest.
• For the last 3 months temperature was much above average and ranked as the 5th warmest such period in the 1895 to present record. The preliminary nationally averaged temperature for January-March was 39.8°F (4.3°C) which was 3.8°F (2.1°C) above the long-term mean.
• January-March had near average precipitation, ranking 38th driest in the last 112 years.
• The April 2005-March 2006 temperature was much above average and ranked as the 4th warmest such period in the 1895 to present record. The preliminary nationally averaged temperature was 54.7°F (12.6°C) which was 1.9°F (1.1°C) above the long-term mean.
• Precipitation was near average for April-March, ranking 52nd driest for the last 12 months based on a record of 111 such periods.

• March 2006 temperatures ranked warmer than average for 23 states and colder than average for California. All other contiguous states were near average for the month.
• Alaska was colder than average for March, and for the first three months of 2006.
• March was record dry for 5 eastern states. Twelve other eastern states were much drier than average. Eighteen states were wetter than average including Utah which was much wetter than average.
  
• The 3-month period, January-March, was warmer than average for all contiguous US states except California and Florida. Twenty-eight states were much warmer than average and Oklahoma was record warm.
• January-March was record dry for 3 mid-Atlantic states and drier or much drier than average for 17 additional states. Ten states were wetter or much wetter than average.
• April 2005-March 2006 was warmer or much warmer than average for much of the nation, with record warmth for Vermont and only the Southeast remaining near average.
• The last 12 months had a mixed precipitation pattern across the country. There were 20 states that were wetter or much wetter than average, including 2 record wet states in New England, and there were 14 states across the southern and central US that were drier or much drier than average.

  
  See NCDC's Monthly Extremes web-page for weather and climate records for the month of March.