PHOENIX — If the monsoon were to end right now, 2023 would be the worst year on record for monsoon rainfall.
So far, the Phoenix area has "officially" had only .13 inches of rain. That puts it far ahead of the next 9 driest monsoons on record. According to the National Weather Service, the current driest monsoon year on record is 1924 with .35 inches of rain.
“Seems like we just keep getting missed over and over again," said Matt Salerno with the National Weather Service. "And that's just been the case this monsoon season."
The National Weather Service said it's basically just bad luck. And after we started off with such a wet winter. Not to mention two years of monsoon that were pretty good.
“We benefited from having two great years in a row of a good monsoon," Salerno said. "But this is just kind of one of those down years.”
The National Weather Service also measures rainfall by sampling weather stations around the Phoenix area, even though the Sky Harbor station is the "official" weather for Phoenix.
According to the aggregate rainfall data, the Phoenix area has yet to break 1.5 inches of rain in any month in 2023. In the last five years, rainfall has broken 1.5 inches at least once a year.
The National Weather Service said it doesn't look good the at least the next few weeks of the monsoon. They're predicting hot and dry conditions to continue.
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