Banff has recorded one of the hottest and driest summers on record.
According to Environment Canada, Banff has recorded the 13th driest summer since 1887 when records began to be kept. The driest was summer 2003.
In August, only 7.6 millimetres of rain fell, making it the third driest August on record. The driest was in 2001 when just 1.2 mm of rain fell and the second driest was in 1920 when the area received just 6.9 mm of rain.
Kirk Torneby, meteorologist with Environment Canada, said the 30-year average for August precipitation in Banff is 60.1 mm.
“It’s just become drier and drier through summer throughout Banff,” he said.
“It’s been dry everywhere across southern Alberta, in the mountains especially.”
It’s been an unusually hot summer, too, with the trend for July and August showing sustained and above average temperatures. The hottest summer day so far was July 7 when the mercury soared to 31.4 C.
“There was a really notable warm spell at the beginning of July, and it’s still been fairly warm throughout August,” said Torneby.
The hottest August day this year was Aug. 23 when the temperature hit 29.1 C.
That said, Environment Canada was calling for 30 and 31 C respectively on Tuesday (Aug. 29) and Wednesday (Aug. 30), with the last day of August dropping to 26. Those temperatures could not be confirmed by press time.
The hottest August day on record in Banff was 33.9 on Aug. 24, 1969.
Torneby said the 30-year mean average temperature for June, July and August is 13.6 C. Up until Aug. 28, the mean temperature this summer is 14.5 C.
“That’s significant when you’re looking at 100 and so years of data,” said Torneby.
“If you rank it up to date, it’s the fifth warmest summer on record for Banff,” he added, noting the warmest summer was in 1961 with a mean temperature of 15.4.
Scientific research reveals Alberta’s provincial mean annual temperature has increased by 1.4 C over the past 100 years, with much of that increase occurring since the 1970s from increases in winter and spring temperatures.
The trend is projected to continue over the next 50 to 100 years. Climate change is also expected to result in more extreme weather events throughout Alberta, including heavy rainfalls and very dry years which are predicted to become much more frequent.
