Why Long Island has seen an unusually rainy month - Newsday
If it feels like May has been more rainy than normal, you're probably onto something.
As of Wednesday, the National Weather Service recorded 3.9 inches of rain at MacArthur Airport in Ronkonkoma for May — 1.08 inches above the normal amount for the month, with 10 days of precipitation.
The average recorded rainfall on Long Island for May is 2.81 inches.
Joe Pollina, an NWS meteorologist, said the last time Long Island had a fully dry weekend was April 19-20.
"It has been relatively unsettled as of late," he said.
Other regions around the state are also experiencing excessive rainfall. According to the State Weather Risk Communication Center at the University at Albany, the last weekend the Capital Region went without at least a trace amount of precipitation was on Nov. 16 and 17, the Times Union reported.
But for Long Island, May's precipitation helped close a gap in our below-average annual rainfall, Pollina said.
Since Jan. 1, the weather service recorded 14.95 inches of rain; typically, we should have at least 18.33 inches by this time of year, experts said.
"We were more than 3 inches below normal earlier," Pollina said of total rainfall in April. "This is well-needed rainfall."
Despite the rainfall, May has had above-average temperatures of 2.4 degrees above normal, Pollina said.
A stretch of warm temperatures kicked off the month from May 2-3 with highs of 84 and 87 degrees respectively.
Pollina said that May 10-13 and May 15-18 also had above-normal to normal temperatures.
Due to recent precipitation, the service recorded below-average temperatures from May 19 through Memorial Day.
"A lot of people think we’re in spring, we should see temperatures in the 80s — but not on Long Island," Pollina said. "We don’t see 80-degree temps until June."
Manorhaven Beach Park in Port Washington on Wednesday. Credit: Rick Kopstein
As for the coming summer season, don’t be surprised if you need an umbrella.
The Climate Prediction Center forecasts Long Island has a 33% to 40% chance of above-average rainfall in June, July and August.
However, the service predicts dry, sunny weather after a stretch of rainy days at the end of May.
A 40% chance of showers is expected Wednesday afternoon with an 80% chance of precipitation Wednesday night into Thursday morning, forecasters said.
While Friday night may see a slight chance of rain, Saturday morning and afternoon have a 50% to 60% chance of showers.
Sunday, June 1, will be the first day of a stretch of dry weather, with a high of 70.
"It won’t be a total washout," Pollina said of the weekend weather forecast.
Maureen Mullarkey is a breaking news reporter at Newsday. She previously worked as a reporter for Patch, where she covered a range of Long Island stories on topics such as the Diocese of Rockville Centre bankruptcy and the Babylon School District abuse scandals.
