Eclipses, earthquakes and northern lights: Looking back at Philadelphia 2024's out-of-this-world moments

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PHILADELPHIA – From earthquakes to eclipses and droughts, 2024 will bring a wide range of experiences not typically experienced in the Philadelphia region.

You may not remember, but last winter was very wet. In fact, this was the wettest part of 2024.

January

January was the fourth wettest on record in Philadelphia, with just under 6 inches of rainfall. The first measurable snowfall of the season was also in January, and we also had the snowiest day of the season that month.

4.6 inches fell in Philadelphia on January 19. Take a look at all the people skating down the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art that day.

January was also the snowiest month. We had four days with measurable snow.

We also had freezing rain that month that resulted in a layer of ice on cars in Philadelphia.

A snow day in Delaware County means kids sledding

Children in Delaware County take advantage of snow day to ski all day long.

February

There have only been two days with measurable snowfall in February.

February 17 was the last snowfall of 2024 with 2.6 inches in Philadelphia.

Overall, February was a mild month. It was the 15th warmest February in Philadelphia.

He walks

March 2024 was the ninth warmest March on record in Philadelphia. The wettest day in the city was March 23. Philadelphia received more than three inches that day.

In total, we saw seven inches, making March the second wettest on record.

April: Mike Jerick's Earthquake Moment goes viral with new song

FOX 29's Mike Gerick was speaking to Philadelphia residents after last week's earthquake, and now one of those moments is gaining some attention on social media.

In early April, the FOX 29 newsroom felt the quake. It happened during the Good Day After Show, and FOX 29 immediately jumped into hours of breaking news coverage.

The 4.8-magnitude quake was felt in an area stretching from New England to Virginia, and was caused by a crack in the rocks in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, a remnant of the Appalachian Mountains when they formed.

We are still getting aftershocks from the April earthquake, but they are very weak. Weak enough that most don't feel where it's going.

A few days after the earthquake, we were able to see a solar eclipse.

About 90% of our sun was gone, and it appeared darker than usual in Philadelphia during that period.

We've been covering the eclipse all day long on FOX 29, including the lead-up and time of the eclipse.

At the end of the month, we had our first day in the 90s. This helped make April the 18th warmest month in Philadelphia on record.

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Even though it was only one day in the 90s, May ranked as the 18th warmest month. Overall, May was a quiet month weather-wise.

Clear skies helped people in the Lehigh Valley see the northern lights. This was the first of many times the northern lights appeared in our area.

We see the northern lights because of the sun. The Sun is always sending charged energy into space. Some of this energy seeps into the Earth around the North and South Poles on a daily basis, causing the Northern Lights and Southern Lights.

When a larger-than-normal blast of that charged energy leaves the Sun, it causes the northern lights to reach further south than usual, like on May 10.

Cathy Orr takes a closer look at the science of the northern lights.

June

The first of many hot days of the year occurred in June when the temperature reached 98 degrees on two days that month. After nine days in the 90s, June 2024 ended up being Philadelphia's fourth-warmest June on record.

June was also the time we had our first hurricane of the year.

A tornado appeared in Mercer County and flipped cars in the post office parking lot. This tornado had winds of 80 mph and came in at EF-0.

It was one of only two hurricanes in 2024 that crossed southeastern Pennsylvania, South Jersey and Delaware.

This is a stark contrast to the past few years. Earlier this decade, there was a significant increase in the number of tornadoes in the Delaware Valley. Just last year, we had dozens of hurricanes.

And along the shore, places like Ocean City had water similar to what you'd see in the Caribbean in late June. Dry weather, windy weather and phytoplankton helped make this happen.

July

July was hot again. We had 14 days in the 90s, including another 98 day high. This resulted in the 12th warmest July on record in Philadelphia.

August

We had seven more days in the 90s in August, bringing 2024's total to 32 days. This is very close to the average for Philly, where it is a 30-day average.

While August was the last month we saw high precipitation levels in the 90s, it was also the last time we exceeded average precipitation.

Flash flooding occurred in parts of southeastern Pennsylvania that month, including Chester County.

That same storm also spawned an EF-1 tornado just across the Pennsylvania state line, in New Castle County. Here's a look at the damage caused by wind gusts that peaked at 95 mph.

Considering Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, D.C. New Jersey and New Jersey each had one tornado in 2024. Pennsylvania had 31 tornadoes, with most tornadoes occurring in western Pennsylvania, around the Pittsburgh area. There were no Pennsylvania tornadoes in the Delaware Valley in August.

September

We used to have two days in the 90s every September, but this year we didn't have any.

September was also dry, the eighth driest in Philadelphia, to be exact.

October

We had our driest October on record in Philadelphia in 2024, and these drought conditions are leading to wildfires, especially on windy days.

Here's the latest look at drought conditions.

October was also warm, ranking as the 11th warmest October on record in Philadelphia.

Also in October, many people in the Delaware Valley saw the northern lights on October 10, including people in Philadelphia. Here's a look at it at the Istiklal Mall in the Old City.

And along with the northern lights, that comet is also out of this world in 2024. People across the Delaware Valley spotted the comet and its dust tail in October and sent photos to FOX 29.

November

November started off warm. We had highs in the 80s in November. This is very rare. There have only been seven other Novembers in Philadelphia that hit highs in the 80s.

Wildfires and dry weather continued until the beginning of November. There was a major fire on Neversink Mountain in the Redding skyline and more fires throughout New Jersey, including the town of Evesham in Burlington County.

Then, finally, on November 10, Philadelphia received more than just a drizzle, when 0.16 inches of rain fell, ending Philadelphia's longest stretch without measurable rain. The dry stretch began on September 29 and lasted 42 days.

Later in the month, areas in southeastern Pennsylvania, Delaware and South Jersey got their first snowflakes of the season. But the snow was wet, so it didn't stick to the ground in most locations. Some Philadelphia suburbs got a small coating of snow, but parts of the Poconos got inches of snow.

Despite the cold ending, we ended up having the fifth warmest November on record.

December

2024 will be the warmest year on record in Philadelphia.

Looking at records dating back to the 1800s, the six warmest years in Philadelphia all occurred in the past 12 years: 2024, 2012, 2023, 2016, 2021 and 2022.

Winter 2024-25

When the FOX 29 Weather Service compiled this year's winter weather forecast, it focused largely on the historically warm and dry start to the fall. They looked at all winters that also had a dry fall and a warm fall, and the data showed a clear trend: below-average snowfall in the following winters.

There's more to predicting winter than weather trends. Learn about other factors affecting this year's winter weather forecast: See their forecasts.

2025

We still have chances of seeing the Northern Lights in 2025.

This is because the Sun is still at its peak in its active phase. This is the period of few years in which the Sun sends out more of these large bursts of energy more often.

In a few years, the sun will be in its quiescent phase, and we will have little to no opportunities to see the northern lights over the Delaware Valley.

So, keep looking forward to 2025.

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