Spokane had a slightly wetter-than-normal year, thanks to a late burst of precipitation during the last two months. And despite a scorching August, the yearly temperature came in a bit below normal.
The National Weather Service tells us the second half of 2022 was far more prolific for snow than the average year; 35 1/2" fell from the beginning of July until the end of December. The norm is about 21". Nearly all of that came down the last two month: 18 1/2" in November, another 17" in December, both well above normal.
Those wet two months helped to nudge the yearly precipitation total, which had been lagging for the first 10 months, to a little more than the average. The weather service recorded 17 3/4" of moisture for the year. The average is 16 1/2".
There was so much snow in part because temperatures were cooler-than-usual in the fall, enough to drop the overall annual temperature slightly below the average of 48.6 degrees. This even though Spokane recorded the hottest August on record, including four consecutive triple digit days in the early part of the month. The highest official temperature of the year was 102 degrees; the coldest was 10 below zero in late December.
