March didnβt simply break the heat records in Tucson. It shattered them, according to the National Weather Service.
March 2017 was the warmest on record in both average and high temperatures. The average of 67.8 degrees was more than a full degree higher than the previous record of 66.7 degrees in March 2004.
High temperature records were set on March 13 (91 degrees); March 20 (94 degrees) and March 21 (92 degrees).
The average high for the month of 83.2 degrees was 9.1 degrees above the normal of 74.1 degrees.
It was 90 degrees or warmer on nine days in March.
It was also dry. The rainfall total at Tucson International Airport was 0.21 inches. Normal is 0.73 inches, making it the 43rd driest March on record.
A little rain fell on the last weekend in March and temperatures moderated into the normal range.
Things warm up later this week with a high of 91 expected Thursday and again Friday.
The climate prediction for the next three months calls for higher-than-normal temperatures and equal chances of above-or-below-normal rainfall, said meteorologist Ken Drozd of the Tucson office of the NWS.
Normal highs for April range from 78 at the beginning of the month to 86 at monthβs end.
Rainfall is generally sparse in the next three months, with normal totals of 0.31 inches in April, 0.23 inches in May and 0.20 inches in June.
