Climate Summary
May weather often brings much warmer temperatures and the first hints of that summer humidity from time to time, and this past week was no exception. In fact, Ohio has added about 200 growing degree day heating units over the last two weeks, helping those crops that have been planted emerge from the ground. However, the weather pattern so far in May has limited the average suitable fieldwork days across the Buckeye State to just 1-3 days per week. With systems moving in every couple of days, the ground has remained fairly saturated despite warmer temperatures. Precipitation for the last seven days varied considerably across Ohio (Figure 1). Many counties in the east and far southwest only saw 0.25-0.5 inch, while pockets of 2-4 inches occurred in places near Findlay and Zaneville. Severe weather was prevalent as well, with reports of baseball sized hail (2.5 inches in diameter) in Highland County. For the latest up-to-date conditions, seasonal outlooks, and monthly climate summaries, please visit the State Climate Office of Ohio.
Figure 1: Total precipitation (inches) over the last seven days, ending at 2 pm EDT Monday May 19, 2025. Figure courtesty of the Ohio River Forecast Center in Wilmington, Ohio.
Weather Forecast
Although we started the week off with another beautiful Monday, our next weather maker will make its presense known for much of the upcoming week. Periods of showers and a few storms are likely for Tuesday through Thursday. Temperatures will fall as well, with mostly 60s for highs on Tuesday, followed by 50s on Wednesday and Thursday. These temperatures will be about 15 degrees below average for this time of year. Much of Ohio will see 0.5-1 inch of rain over the next seven days, but locally heavier amounts are possible where thunderstorms occur. A few lingering showers are possible on Friday, with drier and warmer temperatures expected for the weekend. The National Weather Service is currently forecasting 0.5-1 inch of rain for the bulk of Ohio, with 1-2” possible in northeast and southwest Ohio (Figure 2).
Figure 2). Precipitation forecast from the National Weather Service for 8pm May 19 - 26, 2025.
The 8-14 day outlook from the Climate Prediction Center and the 16-Day Rainfall Outlook from NOAA/NWS/Ohio River Forecast Center show strong probabilities toward of cooler than normal temperatures with near normal precipitation (Figure 3). Climate averages include a high-temperature range of 74-78°F, a low-temperature range of 52-57°F, and weekly total precipitation of 0.90-1.15 inches.
Figure 3) Climate Prediction Center 6-10 Day Outlook valid for May 27 – June 2, 2025, for left) temperatures and right) precipitation. Colors represent the probability of below, normal, or above normal conditions.