October Outlook: Most Of the Country Will See Above-Average Temperatures And Dry Weather

Who Can Expect Cool Temperatures In October?

October is here and with it comes shorter days and hopefully more crisp cool days and nights.

But with a La Nina pattern unfolding, warmth is expected for much of the country, keeping some lingering summer-like temperatures for some. Who will see the warmth and who will see more sweet fall relief?

Here’s a look at what to expect in October, according to the latest outlook issued this week by Atmospheric G2 and The Weather Company.

Temperature Highlights

-Temperature Boost For Eastern Half Of Country: Temperatures east of the Rockies got a boost, compared to past outlooks, but above-average temperatures are generally going to reign supreme across most of the country. The highest above-average temperatures are expected for the Northern Plains and Upper Midwest, where temperatures may be a bit more summery than autumnal.

-Florida Making The Rest Of Us Jealous: Personally, I wouldn’t mind a nice fall-ish cool down. While that isn’t the case for most of the country, the Florida Peninsula is going to be the only region basking in below-average temperatures!

(192-hours: Further beef up your forecast with our detailed, hour-by-hour breakdown for the next 8 days – only available on our Premium Pro experience.)

Precipitation Highlights

-Driest for the Southeast, Central Plains and Midwest: When it comes to precipitation, most of the country will not be so lucky. Below average precipitation stretches from California to Maine, with the bullseye of the driest air spreading from New Mexico to the Atlantic Coast and north to Wisconsin.

What October Highs Usually Look Like

South: Temperatures across the South are usually in the 70s and 80s for October. However, with the La Niña pattern unfolding, above average temperatures are expected across much of the South, they should be slightly above average. The exception is Florida, which should be below average.

-Northern Plains, Upper Midwest and Northeast: Much of the Northern Plains, Upper Midwest and Northeast are in the highest area above average. This region should be in the 50s and 60s and are expected to be significantly above average this month. Cities like Minneapolis, which usually sees some in October, is not looking like this is a possibility this year.

-West: The West usually sees high temperatures in the 50s and 60s across most of the region, with parts of the Four Corners Region, California and southern Nevada still seeing highs in the 70s, 80s and isolated 90s. Higher elevations in the Rockies are seeing averages in the 40s and 50s.

(15-min details: For even more granular weather data tracking in your area, view your 15-minute details forecast in our Premium Pro experience.)

Sara Tonks is a content meteorologist with weather.com and has a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from Georgia Tech in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences along with a master’s degree from Unity Environmental University in Marine Science.

Rob Shackelford is a meteorologist and climate scientist at weather.com. He received his undergraduate and master’s degree from the University of Georgia studying meteorology and experimenting with alternative hurricane forecasting tools.