The rainfall from December 9th thru the 11th, was due to a series of weather systems moving through the area. To make the sequence of storm systems more apparent, we have broken that storm discussion up into days.

December 9th:
Only light rainfall occurred on December 9th, as the final remnants of the storm system that moved through the area on December 8th exited the region. (To view the storm data from the December 7th and 8th storm system, click HERE.)Light rainfall occurred at 2pm, leading to 0.01in. of rainfall, with another 0.01in. of rain being recorded just before midnight, as the cut-off low near Northern Baja worked its way closer to the area. The daily total was 0.02in..

December 10th:
On December 10th, the cut-off low that was over Northern Baja moved up to the Northwest and through the southern portion of the state, leading to rainfall throughout the day for the valley. The first area of light to moderate showers, associated with the cut-off low itself, moved through the area from just before midnight on December 9th, through about 11:30am on December 10th, leading to a rain total for this period of 0.13in.. The second area of showers moved through the area from 4:30pm to midnight, with our location receiving 0.54in. of rainfall, making the December 10th daily total 0.67in.. The heaviest area of showers moved through the area around 8:00pm, making the max rain rate for the storm 0.84in/hr, occurring at 8:05pm.

December 11th:
The cut-off continued to affect the area during the early morning hours of December 11th, with our location receiving 0.12in. of rainfall from midnight to 3:00am, when the rainfall stopped. By mid morning, the cut-off low that brought the rainfall to the area was rapidly moving off to the east, and by 6am was entering New Mexico. However, a second and colder system was heading toward the state from the Northwest. This storm system moved through the area during the late afternoon and evening hours on December 11th, with light rainfall beginning around 3:45pm and lasting until around 9:45pm. During this time period, we recorded 0.05in. of rain. This system brought the entire area much cooler weather, with the high temperature reaching only 50.8°F. As a result, the snow level lowered to around 5,000 feet. No snow was seen on the face of the Superstition Mountains, mainly due to the very moist ground, which likely kept any snow that fell from accumulating. However, Four Peaks, had quite a bit of snow, and you can view a photo we took of the mountain below this discussion. The daily rain total on December 11th was 0.17in..

With a rain total of 0.02in. on December 9th, 0.67in. on December 10th and 0.18in. on December 11th, the overall storm total at our location was 0.87in., making the monthly rain fall total a remarkable 2.80in.!!

Below are rain totals reported to us by the public. Weather Bus.com thanks you for your reports!

1. Al, in NW Gold Canyon, reported 0.11in. of rain on December 10th at 7:25am, with very light rain through the night and continuing at the time of the report. On December 11th, at 8:04am, he reported 0.78in, with off an on rain for most of the day into the night, making the storm total for the December 10th and 11th 0.89in.. On December 12th, at 7:46am, an additional 0.07in. of rainfall was noted.
2. Ken, in Gilbert near the Freestone Park, reported 0.03in. of rain at 8:30am on December 10th. On December 11th at 8:30am, he reported several heavy showers overnight leading to 0.33in. of rainfall. On December 12th at 8:30am, he reported a 24 hour rain total of 0.22in..
3. Steve, in Chandler, reported a storm total of 0.90in., from December 7th to December 10th at 9:00am.
4. Mike, in Gold Canyon, reported a storm total of 2.19in. as of December 10th at noon.
5. Robert, in western Gold Canyon, reported a storm total from December 10th thru 11th of 0.80in., as of 1:10pm on December 11th.
6. Paul near Sleep Hollow & Del Monte, reported a storm total of 1.10in.. This total is from December 10th to the time of report on December 12th.

(The above rain totals were reported to us by the public. The accuracy of these reports is unknown.)

We thank you again for your reports! If it rained at your location, let us know by using the menu toward the top of the page (Public Reports --> Rain Reports). Your report will be added to this page.

With very moist surface conditions from all the rainfall, light winds and cooler air working in behind the storm system on December 11th, a large area of dense fog formed in portions of the valley. Looking at the visible satellite image below, taken on December 12th at 10:15am, you can see the large area of fog, as well as the snow in the high country.