2008 was a very wet year with 7 out of 12 months recording above normal precipitation. There were five 24-hour rainfall records broken during the year. A total of 44.24 inches of liquid was measured, ranking the year in third place behind 2003 with 46.44" and 2004 with 46.10".
Temperature-wise, 2008 was normal with an average mean of 48.4 degrees versus a normal average of 48.5 degrees. There were six months that were warmer than normal and six months that were cooler than normal.
Breaking down the details month by month;

January= The month was divided in half in regards to temperatures, with the first 15 days running much warmer than normal and the last 16 running colder than normal. However, as a whole, the month came in with a mean of 4 degrees below normal. The high temperature for the month reached 65 degrees on Jan 8th and the low fell to only 6 degrees on the 21st of the month.
Precipitation was rather sparse with only 1.55" total as compared to a normal for the month of 2.03" Only 1.4 inches of snow fell the entire month and that was extremely low compared to an average for January of 10.2"

February= A record 24-hour rainstorm on the 1st of the month (1.81") set the tone for the rest of the month causing February to be a record setting month with abundant precipitation falling on 18 out of 29 days, setting a new monthly record of 5.04". The average is 2.00".
There was lightning with thunder around 7am on the 5th.
There was some minor river flooding in the area on the 7th as the Susquehanna crested slightly above flood stage at 16.58'.
Snowfall was slightly above normal with 12.5" compared to an average of 10.5"
Temperatures this month were normal.

March= Another monthly precipitation record was set for the second straight month as the floodgates opened up right from the beginning. The highlight of the rainy month was the enormous amount of liquid (3.85") that fell over a five day period from the 4th thru the 8th. Amazing as it might sound, there was no serious flooding. The skies opened again on the 19th when a record-setting 1.45" soaked Towanda. When all precipitation was totaled, the month saw the most rain ever recorded since records were started in Towanda with the rain gauge filled to 7.55".
Snowfall was much below normal with 0.9" falling compared to a normal of 9.1"
Temperatures were a bit colder than average at one degree below the average mean.

April= Spring arrived in all its glory as the month went into the books an amazing five degrees warmer than normal. April began with thermometers near 70 degrees and only went up from there into the 80's on the 18th and 19th. Several other days were close to 80. There was a 12 day stretch of warmth beginning on April 16th and lasting thru the 27th that recorded consecutive above normal averages. For the month as a whole, twenty out of thirty days experienced above normal temperatures.
April precipitation was below normal at 1.88" while the normal average is 3.08"

May= The highlight of this month was the abrupt end to Spring as temperatures cooled off to the tune of three degrees below the average mean for the month. 22 out of 31 days were below normal in the temperature category. Frost was reported in the area on the 13th and 14th and as late as the 29th.
Precipitation added up to 2.71" for May which was below the average of 3.43".

June= The temperature yoyo continued as June began warm and ended warmer. 22 out of 30 days were warmer than average with six days this month reaching at least 90 or above. The final tally came in at four degrees above the average mean temperature for June.
June was another busy month for the rain gauge as once again Towanda saw above normal precipitation. 4.82" was recorded over the 30-day period, which was higher than the average of 3.58"
A severe thunderstorm crossed the county on the 8th causing considerable wind damage with lots of tree limbs down causing power outages, especially in the Sayre/Athens area. Another storm on the 16th did more wind damage with the hardest hit areas being near Canton, LeRoy, and Franklindale.

July= Above normal rainfall continued for the second month in a row as the gauge collected 5.69" versus a normal average of 3.58". Heavy rain on the 16th (1.56") and the 23rd (1.87") accounted for a large portion of the month's total.
Temperatures averaged slightly above normal with the monthly mean being 72 degrees versus the normal average of 71.

August= The month saw nothing newsworthy in the weather category. Temperatures cooled down to just below the average mean for the month by one degree with the final number being 66" compared to an average mean of 67.
Precipitation was quite a bit lower versus the previous two months as the total for the month ended up at only 2.28" compared to a normal monthly average of 3.23".

September= The highlight of this month was all the fog with 14 out of 30 mornings being blanketed with the low clouds.
Mother Nature opened up the faucet again this month causing above normal precipitation for the 5th time out of the past nine months. When the month closed, 5.04" was measured when a normal month only averages 3.37'. Remnants of Tropical Storm Hannah on September 6th and Hurricane Ike on the 12th contributed a large portion of the month's total rainfall.
Thermometers were busy during September recording plenty of above normal readings (21 out of 30 days) and when the final tally was put in the books, the monthly mean was three degrees above the normal mean of 60 degrees.

October= Temperatures cooled down considerably during October bringing the month mean down to one degree below the normal average for the month. The area's first widespread frost occurred on the morning of the 4th. There were snow flurries reported in the elevations on the 22nd of the month. A heavy wet snow on the mountaintops left 4" to 6" on the ground. Nothing accumulated in the valley locations.
After adding up all precipitation for October, the area again saw above normal amounts to the tune of 3.09" versus a monthly normal average of 2.88".

November= The cooler than normal thermometer readings continued for the second consecutive month as the final tally reported a monthly average mean of 39 degrees as compared to the normal average of 40.
The skies delivered less precipitation than normal this month as the gauge collected a total 1.47" compared to an average 2.33". There was 1.5 inches of snow during November with an inch on the 17th and ½ inch on the 21st.

December= The final month of the year continued with the wet trend as another above normal total of 3.37" was recorded. The normal average for December is 2.33".
Snowfall was above normal with the ruler measuring just under 11 inches at 10.9". December's normal average snowfall is 8".
Temperatures for December averaged below normal. The monthly mean went into the books at 31 degrees compared to an average mean of 32.