91AggieLawyer said:

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Why do people call a sunny day in the spring or fall "beautiful" but in the middle of summer in the high 90s or 100s, you say that and people would think you're an idiot?

The day looks the same. It just feels different.

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Summer days are only beautiful if you're on vacation

waitwhat? said:

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Some folks are missing what my point was in the OP. Check out this page: https://www.waterdatafortexas.org/reservoirs/statewide

Reservoir capacity hasn't changed in decades. People are comparing this summer to 2011 and saying "we got through that so we'll get through this" but we have 20% more population now than in 2011. That's millions more people using the water we haven't increased, and millions more people demanding electricity, which requires these reservoirs to generate electricity.

We're nearly matching the low lake levels of 2011 when power plants nearly needed to start going offline due to lack of water, but with 20% more people demanding electricity and water.

If we don't get a pretty solid amount of rain from the gulf soon (rain from the lakes only exacerbate the problem), we might be in trouble by this time next month.

I'm no expert in this area so hopefully I'm just over simplifying it and am wrong, and the worst thing that happens is dead plants.

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From your link


Trend level for % of reservoir capacity seems consistent with 2011 at this point. 2011 drought appears to have started a little earlier.

Where are going to get all that water to run thru the desalination plants??

ABATTBQ87 said:

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Temperatures recorded at DFW airport

July 1980 average high = 104.7"

• 31 days at or above 100f

July 2011 average high = 101.1

• 26 days at or above 100f

July 2022 average high = 101.5

• 13 days at or above 100f

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You ought to throw 1998 in there. I remember the summer was brutal that year in DFW.

Just see Texas temps every single time we have a strong La Nina.

At least that's what the local weatherman told me.

Deepin theHart80 said:

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Where are going to get all that water to run thru the desalination plants??

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I was told that the settled science indicates a rise in sea levels.

thejavelina said:

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Just wait until we have another drought like the 1950s. Six years of rainfall well below average (1951-57). Not going to be pretty when it happens again (and it will).

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Time for a book plug...

"The Time It Never Rained"
by Elmer Kelton

spider96 said:

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ABATTBQ87 said:

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Temperatures recorded at DFW airport

July 1980 average high = 104.7"

• 31 days at or above 100f

July 2011 average high = 101.1

• 26 days at or above 100f

July 2022 average high = 101.5

• 13 days at or above 100f

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You ought to throw 1998 in there. I remember the summer was brutal that year in DFW.

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July 1998 average high = 101.4

• 28 days at or above 100f

100 days through July 16th:

1980 - 29 days
2011 - 22 days
2022 - 21 days
1998 - 21 days

At this point in the summer, 1980 was ahead by a mile. That year had already seen a week's worth more 100 heat compared to this point in 2011. Consider, though, that 2011 ended up being hotter later into the summer than 1980.

Still, there were also higher summer temps in 1980 than compared in 2011. That year had three days of highs at 112, 113, and 113 -- the single hottest temp ever recorded at DFW Airport.


At the time of this writing, 2022 is on pace with both 2011 and 1998.
Now, if you're wondering how many 100 days those summers ended up with in total, let's take a look there, too.

A number of 100 days all summer long:

2011 - 71 total 100 days
1980 - 69 total 100 days
1998 - 56 total 100 days

https://www.wfaa.com/article/weather/texas-summer-2022-heat-high-temps-temperatures-compared-to-1980-2011/287-61be1f3a-1188-434a-8111-cb1135a5b2c8

In my lifetime we have experienced 4 summers of extreme heat 1980, 1998, 2011 and now 2022

years separating these events

1980 - 1998 = 18 years

1998 - 2011 = 13 years

2011 - 2022 = 11 years

what does this mean? We can bet on a severely hot summer once a decade

If anyone has historical data to include the heat wave of the 1950s and earlier events I would enjoy seeing that data

Slight correction, Texas did build the first new reservoir in 30 years (completed in 2021) up in Fannin county. Bois d'Arc Lake.


More are proposed.

ChemEAg08 said:

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Our society has become weak.

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I love this weather we are getting!! Soaking up the sun.

oklaunion said:

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I think Dallas had over 60 consecutive days over 100 the summer of '80. Plus it didn't rain until Hurricane Allen came into S. Tx.

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I remember it. I also remember the media just 5 years prior saying we might be going into an ice age. It's Mother Nature and at 4.7 billion years old I think she knows how this works.

Blame the infrastructure issues on both parties as they would rather spend our tax dollars on other crap. Remember the lottery was supposed to be used solely for education? Right….

waitwhat? said:

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Some folks are missing what my point was in the OP. Check out this page: https://www.waterdatafortexas.org/reservoirs/statewide

Reservoir capacity hasn't changed in decades. People are comparing this summer to 2011 and saying "we got through that so we'll get through this" but we have 20% more population now than in 2011. That's millions more people using the water we haven't increased, and millions more people demanding electricity, which requires these reservoirs to generate electricity.

We're nearly matching the low lake levels of 2011 when power plants nearly needed to start going offline due to lack of water, but with 20% more people demanding electricity and water.

If we don't get a pretty solid amount of rain from the gulf soon (rain from the lakes only exacerbate the problem), we might be in trouble by this time next month.

I'm no expert in this area so hopefully I'm just over simplifying it and am wrong, and the worst thing that happens is dead plants.

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Why don't we drill wells near the lakes and fill the lakes with ground water? Problem solved.

We had massive hill country flooding in October 1998 following that summer too

oklaunion said:

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I think Dallas had over 60 consecutive days over 100 the summer of '80. Plus it didn't rain until Hurricane Allen came into S. Tx.

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42 days in a row over 100, not 60

ABATTBQ87 said:

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spider96 said:

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ABATTBQ87 said:

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Temperatures recorded at DFW airport

July 1980 average high = 104.7"

• 31 days at or above 100f

July 2011 average high = 101.1

• 26 days at or above 100f

July 2022 average high = 101.5

• 13 days at or above 100f

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You ought to throw 1998 in there. I remember the summer was brutal that year in DFW.

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July 1998 average high = 101.4

• 28 days at or above 100f

100 days through July 16th:

1980 - 29 days
2011 - 22 days
2022 - 21 days
1998 - 21 days

At this point in the summer, 1980 was ahead by a mile. That year had already seen a week's worth more 100 heat compared to this point in 2011. Consider, though, that 2011 ended up being hotter later into the summer than 1980.

Still, there were also higher summer temps in 1980 than compared in 2011. That year had three days of highs at 112, 113, and 113 -- the single hottest temp ever recorded at DFW Airport.


At the time of this writing, 2022 is on pace with both 2011 and 1998.
Now, if you're wondering how many 100 days those summers ended up with in total, let's take a look there, too.

A number of 100 days all summer long:

2011 - 71 total 100 days
1980 - 69 total 100 days
1998 - 56 total 100 days

https://www.wfaa.com/article/weather/texas-summer-2022-heat-high-temps-temperatures-compared-to-1980-2011/287-61be1f3a-1188-434a-8111-cb1135a5b2c8

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El_duderino said:

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We had massive hill country flooding in October 1998 following that summer too

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Event Overview

On the weekend of October 17 to 18, 1998, a pair of hurricanes over the Eastern Pacific and a near stationary cold front led to disastrous flash flooding along the Guadalupe River and over the San Antonio metro area. When heavy rains began on the morning of October 17, mid to high-level moisture from the weakened remnants of Hurricane Madeline was crossing the Sierra Madre Occidental into central Texas. Meanwhile, low-level and mid-level moisture on the outer periphery of Hurricane Lester in the South of Acapulco was moving across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and up the western coast of the Gulf of Mexico toward south Texas.

A cold front was expected to provide the focusing mechanism for the heavy rains, but torrential rains began to develop along the Balcones Escarpment in the early morning hours on Saturday, October 17--well ahead of the cold front. Convection developed into a nearly stationary Mesoscale Convective System (MCS) which impacted communities along the Balcones Escarpment from San Antonio to Austin with almost continuous rainfall for up to 36 hours. By Saturday afternoon, homes along the Guadalupe River from Canyon Lake to Seguin were being washed off their foundations. Over 30 inches of rain was estimated over a small area south of San Marcos in 36 hours. As the storm complex inched slowly east and south, heavy rains of 5 to 15 inches covered downstream portions of southeast Texas and the Coastal Bend Saturday night into Sunday, right as the upstream flood waves were beginning to move into those areas. Especially hard hit among the downstream communities was the town of Cuero, which saw its downtown area inundated by diverted floodwaters that were over 2.5 miles away from the main Guadalupe River channel.

Predmid said:

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Slight correction, Texas did build the first new reservoir in 30 years (completed in 2021) up in Fannin county. Bois d'Arc Lake.


More are proposed.

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Lake Ralph Hall is being done now. Should be ready for filling in late 2024.

94chem said:

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ABATTBQ11 said:

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Matt Hooper said:

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Did the 1980's cease to be a thing? Record number of days over 100 degrees. I'm old enough to remember - sadly.

It's like history stopped if the past is inconsistent with the current drama narrative.

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I believe 2011 was hotter on the whole. A lot of cities set records for most consecutive days over 100 and most total days over 100. I know Wichita Falls had over 100 100* days. Probably the most brutal summer we've ever had.

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Wichita Falls could win the contest for ugliest, hottest, loneliest town. It's a place that could make a man proud to be from Midland or Fort Stockton. It makes Lubbock look like a destination vacation spot.

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My dad always said the same thing about Wichita Falls.

He also asked me what Admiral Perry said when he got to the North Pole? "Damn, I bet it's cold in Amarillo"!

The Brazos Kid said:

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It's about at the point you can wade across the Brazos and not get your shorts wet.

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But does she still run muddy like she's run all along?

G. hirsutum Ag said:

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For those in the panhandle they are in much worse shape this year compared to 2011.

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Disagree. We have had a little rain this year. We had zero in 2011.

Hottest day has been 108 so far this year. In 2011 it was 118.

It's a close second creeping up on 2011, but not as bad yet.

SunrayAg said:

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G. hirsutum Ag said:

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For those in the panhandle they are in much worse shape this year compared to 2011.

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Disagree. We have had a little rain this year. We had zero in 2011.

Hottest day has been 108 so far this year. In 2011 it was 118.

It's a close second creeping up on 2011, but not as bad yet.

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Key word yet. My place in hill country has missed the last 4 rain events by less than 3 miles. Its my getting real close to 2011 IMO at least at our place.

In 2011 through June I measured 3.67 inches of rain at my residence in Junction. Through June of this year I measured 3.25. Some places, as along the IH10 corridor going west have had a little more.

Irish 2.0 said:

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Maybe the heat will scare some of that 20% to GTFO and move back to CA

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And here's hoping that those exiting our great state posthaste trample Simone and Tench Coxe on their way out.

https://www.texastribune.org/2022/07/16/beto-orourke-donor-simone-tench-coxe/

Lake Conroe 94.7% full as of 07/21/22

Current drought conditions statewide less severe than 2011:

https://www.waterdatafortexas.org/drought/drought-monitor?period=2022-07-19&areaType=state&areaName=tx