2002 was the 4th wettest year on record in the Twin Cities. The modern-era record begins in 1891. 2002 started dry and ended dry with very wet summer months. 38.45 inches of precipitation fell in the Twin Cities, 9.04 inches above the historical average. The wettest year on record is 40.15 inches, observed in 1911. Normal annual precipitation (1971-2000) for the Twin Cities is 29.41 inches. Some locations in the northern and western Twin Cities metropolitan area received over 40 inches of precipitation for the year. Listed below are the top ten annual precipitation totals for the Twin Cities plus statistics for 2002.

Historical data used for this narrative come from the downtown Minneapolis office of the U.S. Weather Bureau (1891-1938), and the Twin Cities International Airport (1938-present).

Top Ten Wettest Years for Minneapolis/St. Paul

Rank   Year    Amount
---------------------
1      1911     40.15 
2      1965     39.94 
3      1983     39.07 
4      2002     38.45
5      1968     37.93
6      1984     36.95
7      1892     36.72 
8      1991     36.69  
9      1986     36.62
10     1903     36.19

               2002 Monthly Data
           Total      Normal      Departure 
-----------------------------------------
January     .46        1.04         -.58
February    .36         .79         -.43
March      1.38        1.86         -.48
April      3.23        2.31         +.92
May        2.83        3.24         -.41
June       8.30        4.34        +3.96 
July       5.19        4.04        +1.15
August     8.30        4.05        +4.25
September  3.89        2.69        +1.20
October    4.21        2.11        +2.10      
November    .09        1.94        -1.85
December    .21        1.00         -.79
Annual    38.45       29.41        +9.04


values are in inches

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URL: http://climate.umn.edu/doc/journal/wetmsp2002.htm
Last modified: January 7, 2002