Here’s how much rain fell in San Antonio over the past week
It has been a long time since the Alamo City has seen heavy rain. For the most part, South Texas has been sweltering under a powerful heat dome since the second week of June, keeping precipitation near record low levels.
In fact, only 1.16 inches of rain fell in San Antonio between June 8 and September 8, the lowest ever recorded in that three-month time frame. Most of that fell as a result of Tropical Storm Harold in late August. Because of this, large parts of South Texas, including Bexar County, saw drought severity increase to “exceptional” status, the most severe possible condition, according to the U.S. Drought Mitigation Center.
Look at the totals
As we reached mid-September, the heat dome weakened, temperatures dropped into the 90s, and the skies opened enough to bring a little rain to South Texas. San Antonio International Airport has recorded 0.42 inches of rain since September 9.
The south side of San Antonio has seen more rain: Stinson Municipal Airport has recorded 0.85 inches since September 9. To the northwest, Boerne wasn’t so lucky, getting just 0.16 inches.
An H-E-B employee runs through the parking lot with a rain pancho to collect shopping carts as an impromptu downpour falls on Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2023. The brief rain shower was a remnant of Tropical Storm Harold that made landfall on the South Texas coast on Tuesday. .
Kin Man Hui/San Antonio Express-NewsMany other parts of South Texas saw much more rain. In Fredericksburg, 1.20 inches of rain was recorded last week. Hondo recorded 1.66 inches. Going up Interstate 35, San Marcos received 1.48 inches of rain.
These totals aren’t nearly enough to overcome the drought, but they’re a good start. San Antonio’s rainfall remains more than 8 inches below average for this time of year. If the Alamo City could erase this deficit in one fell swoop, it would mean devastating floods. The best scenario is to reduce the rainfall deficit little by little, month after month.
Sunday forecast
Rain chances are weak for Sunday. An isolated afternoon shower or quick storm cannot be ruled out, but most of this activity will stay south of San Antonio. The city only receives 10 to 20 percent rainfall, meaning most of us will stay completely dry.
High temperatures on Sunday are expected to reach the low 90s across much of South Texas, which is a few degrees above average for this time of year.
Axial weatherAlthough the weather will be very warm, Sunday looks like a great day to spend some time outside. Temperatures will start out very comfortably in the low 70s on Sunday morning, which is cooler than they have been most mornings recently. Temperatures will rise to the mid 80s by noon and reach the low 90s by late afternoon.
The high temperature in San Antonio is expected to reach 93 degrees, which is slightly above the climate average of 90 degrees but well below the daily record for this date: 98 degrees. Similar conditions are expected along I-35 in New Braunfels and San Marcos, but temperatures will be slightly cooler in the Hill Country. High temperatures in Fredericksburg and Kerrville will be in the upper 80s.
Expanded forecasts
Overall, a calm weather pattern is shaping up for next week. High pressure will become centrally located over South Texas, bringing above-average temperatures. Maximum temperatures will likely range between 93 and 96 degrees in San Antonio, about 4 to 7 degrees above average for this time of year.
Light winds will come from the south at about 10 mph each day. Skies will remain mostly sunny, and rain chances will be low. By midweek, scattered showers will be possible, especially east of San Antonio toward the Texas Gulf Coast. However, these chances are low and most spots will remain dry throughout the week.
