April 2020 saw relatively normal temperatures and precipitation across the U.S., the first slightly-cooler-than-average month since November 2019, according to scientists from NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information.
It was anything but an average month for severe weather: Hundreds of tornadoes raked the nation, including an outbreak of more than 140 tornadoes on April 12 and 13 that wrought a path of destruction from Texas to Maryland, killing more than 30 people. It was the deadliest tornado outbreak since April 2014.
Climate by the numbers: April 2020
The average April temperature across the contiguous U.S. was 50.9 degrees F (0.2 of a degree below average), which ranked in the middle third of the 126-year period of record. The month saw above-average warmth along the West Coast, Southwest and Gulf Coast. Florida had its sixth-warmest April on record.
The average precipitation for the month was 2.47 inches (0.05 of an inch below average), which ranked in the middle-third of the record. Record-breaking dryness was observed in parts of the Southwest and Mid-Mississippi Valley.
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