FORECAST: The record-breaking October heat continues!

PHOENIX – The valley is sizzling with the hottest start to October ever!

Our Excessive heat warning is valid until Monday at 8 p.m. for the greater Phoenix area as well as for central, western and southwestern Arizona.

So we stay in ABC15 weather action mode as a reminder to take steps to stay safe in these dangerously hot temperatures. Stay hydrated, limit time outside in the afternoon hours, and never leave children or pets in the car, no matter how quick the errand is.

This heat wave is breaking records and will continue with high temperatures in the Valley ranging from 107 to 110 degrees through at least early next week.

The average highs considered “normal” for this time of year are in the mid-90s, but Phoenix just marked the hottest day ever recorded in October! Sky Harbor reached 113 degrees Tuesday afternoon, breaking the daily and monthly record of 107 degrees.

This also set another new record for the last 110 degree day ever recorded in Phoenix. The previous record was September 19, 2010, but we broke that record well into October this year and there is still a chance we could hit 110 again this weekend.

Luckily our nights are getting longer so we aren't expecting lows of 90 degrees. Nighttime temperatures will dip into the low 80s across the valley, but even that is exceptionally warm for this time of year and new record-breaking low temperatures are still possible this weekend.

Phoenix just set a new record for warm low temperatures for the month of October. Sky Harbor dropped to 86 degrees just Wednesday morning, breaking the daily record of 83 degrees set in 1997 and the new record high temperature low for the month of 84 degrees that we just set Tuesday morning.

Temperatures will begin to drop during the week of October 7, but highs could still reach record-breaking levels for most of this week. We probably won't get out of triple digits until the week of October 14th.

With La Niña looming in the Pacific, it is likely that we will continue to experience warmer and drier than normal conditions through the fall and winter months.

Our drought has recently been made worse by the hot and dry monsoon season we just had.

Phoenix recorded just 0.74 inches of rain this monsoon, making it the seventh driest monsoon on record. Our 30-year average (which is considered our normal rainfall amount) is 2.43 inches. However, it is important to remember that this represents a decrease from the previous 30-year average of 2.71 inches (from 1981 to 2010) as the climate in our valley continues to become hotter and drier.

With an overall average temperature of 98.3 degrees, the 2024 monsoon was also the hottest monsoon ever recorded in Phoenix. That beats the previous record of 96.9 degrees that we set last year. All 25 hottest monsoon seasons have occurred in the last 25 years.

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Sky Harbor Official Rainfall So Far in 2024: 4.54 inches (-0.89 inches from average)

Monsoon 2024 Sky Harbor Official Rainfall: 0.74″ (-1.69″ from average)

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Daily rainfall reports from across the valley are available Here.

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PHOENIX IS GOING DRYER – LOWER PRECIPITATION AVERAGES NOW

Average monsoon rainfall in Phoenix (1981–2010): 2.71 inches of rain

NEW Phoenix average monsoon precipitation (1991-2020): 2.43 inches of rain

Average annual precipitation in Phoenix (1981–2010): 8:03 inches of rain

NEW Phoenix Average Annual Rainfall (1991-2020): 7.22 inches of rain

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