August 2024 Weather Forecast: It's Pretty Cool!

August 2024 Weather: It’s a Cool Forecast

August temperatures will be cooler than normal from the Great Lakes through the Upper Midwest, across the Plains through the Intermountain West, and over much of Arizona and western Washington state and near to above normal elsewhere.

 Rainfall will be below normal from Florida through the southern Gulf Coast states, from the western High Plains into the central Rockies, and in Alaska and Hawaii, and near to above normal elsewhere. 

It looks like a wonderful time to get those fall gardens planted! Learn more about planting a fall garden.

To the north, in Canada:

In Canada, temps will be below normal from Atlantic Canada through southern Quebec into southern Ontario and near to above normal elsewhere. Precipitation will be above normal from Atlantic Canada through southern Quebec, across southern British Columbia, and the northern Yukon, and near to below normal elsewhere.

Celebrate August Holidays

Colorado Day, August 1, celebrates the Rocky Mountain state’s admission into the union in 1876—hence its nickname, “Centennial State,” which alludes to our nation’s founding 100 years earlier. Folks enjoying outdoor activities there will encounter sunny and warm conditions, although there may be scattered late-day thunderstorms across the eastern plains.

On August 5, Canadians planning to celebrate their Civic Holiday outdoors will find conditions cool in southern Ontario, with added showers in Atlantic Canada, the Prairies, and the Northwest Territories. Sunshine and warmth will prevail in southern British Columbia.

National Aviation Day, August 19, commemorates the birth date in 1871 of Orville Wright, one-half of the famous Wright Brothers flight pioneering duo. Air travelers at this time will find typical afternoon showers and thunderstorms from the East Coast through the Appalachians, in the Deep South, from the Great Lakes through the Upper Midwest, across the Plains, and over parts of Alaska and Hawaii. A tropical storm may cause delays in Texas. Look for sunny and dry conditions for air travel across the Ohio Valley and the Heartland and from the Desert Southwest and Intermountain West to the Pacific Coast.

The adoption of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, which granted women the right to vote, is honored on August 26, Women’s Equality Day. Expect a hurricane threat in northern Florida at this time, while outdoor activities could be affected by an afternoon thunderstorm from the East Coast through the Appalachians, in the Deep South, from the eastern Great Lakes into the Upper Midwest, and in the northern Rockies. Sunny and dry conditions will be the rule from the Ohio Valley through the western Great Lakes, as well as from the Heartland and Plains through the southern Rockies and Desert Southwest, all the way out to the California coast. In Canada, expect passing showers from Atlantic Canada into southern Quebec, isolated afternoon thunderstorms from southern Ontario through the Prairies, and periods of rain from British Columbia into the Yukon.

Back to School Weather

Those heading back to school will find autumn temperatures in the United States below normal from the southern New England coast southward through Florida and westward across the Appalachians and Ohio Valley into the Great Lakes and near to above normal elsewhere. Precipitation will be above normal from the Appalachians and Ohio Valley through the Tennessee Valley, across the eastern Great Lakes and much of Texas, from western Oregon through California, and in Alaska and near to below normal elsewhere. 

In Canada, temps will be below normal in southern Quebec and the northern Northwest Territories and near to above normal elsewhere. Precipitation will be above normal from Atlantic Canada into southern Quebec, over eastern portions of southern British Columbia, and in the Yukon and Northwest Territories, and near to below normal elsewhere.

Hurricane Season Update

Hurricane season officially runs through November; see the hurricane names for the 2024 hurricane season. We expect above-normal activity. The best chances for a hurricane strike will be across the Southeast and Florida in late August and in the Deep South in early September. 

Tropical storm threats are foreseen in the Atlantic Corridor in late August, in Texas in late August and early September, from Atlantic Canada into southern Ontario in early September, and in Atlantic Canada in mid-October.

Find much MORE detail on our long-range weather predictions by region and by month in The Old Farmer’s Almanac.