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Oppressively dry, yet at other times soaking wet. Steamy on some days, but cool, with thunderstorms, lightning and even hail thrown in on more than one occasion.

The summer season has been all that and more.

While Labor Day unofficially closes out the summer as vacations end and students head back into the classroom, the season doesn't officially end until Sept. 22, when autumn arrives.

But what a summer it has been for weather, with even small tornadoes and water spouts verified to have hit Southeastern Massachusetts, including Swansea, and Rhode Island.

A few storms in the Attleboro area led to lightning strikes on homes and barns, blew down numerous trees and limbs, and flooded streets. During one June storm, hail fell like snow in nearby Pawtucket, requiring that city to call out its snowplows. Hail also hit the area nine days later during a storm that dropped more than 1.5 inches of rain.

"It has been very active in terms of severe weather," said meteorologist Hayden Frank with the National Weather Service in Taunton. "The main reason is we have had an upper level trough that has pretty much been over the Northeast all of the summer.

"A lot of times you see it retreat farther north. It dipped farther south than we normally see."

That trough is basically the jet stream, Frank explained.

"We have seen more thunderstorms than usual," Frank said. "You have a real hot surface at the ground and a lot of cooler above ground," which he explained leads to atmospheric instability and strong thunderstorms.

After a hot first half of summer, with five heat waves - at least three straight days of 90-degree weather - August was relatively cool. Just one day, the first of the month, hit 90.

"It has obviously been below normal in terms of temperature this month," Hayden said.

As for rainfall, June and July were showing near drought conditions until the end of July saw a deluge.

August has been wet as well, with just about every day having at least some measurable rain. But only one day saw heavy rainfall, more than an inch the middle of the month. However, Wrentham was swamped with 5.5 inches from that fast-moving storm, forcing the closure of main roads and even a downtown business.

The Blue Hill Meteorological Observatory south of Boston - the nation's oldest continuously operated weather observatory - has recorded 34 days of thunderstorms this year, two short of the record set in 1943, Hayden said. Some more local weather information from the Attleboro Water Department:

July weather was erratic, wrapping up as one of the hottest Julys. The daily average high was 88 degrees, compared with a typical 82 degrees.

Only four other years in the 69 years the water department has been keeping records had higher daily average highs. Also that month, the summer season's fourth heat wave and third of the month ran seven days, including three consecutive days of 96 degrees. Only five other heat waves have been longer. There were 16 days when the thermometer hit 90 degrees or higher - only one other year had more, with 17.

For most of July, there was less than an inch of rain. The tail end of the month certainly made up for that, with 3.33 inches landing during a two-day storm, and another inch-plus hitting over two days a day later. The total was 5.89 inches, far above the 50-year average of 3.3 inches for July. It was the wettest July in 12 years and just shy of being in the top 10.

June's weather was warm and rainy, with an average daily high temperature of 84 degrees, which compares to a normal 78 degrees. Only four other years were warmer. During the season's first heat wave, the highest temp was 101 degrees, reached on two consecutive days, and the highest temps on the books in June. There were 10 days when the thermometer hit 90 degrees, good for a two-way tie for third-hottest June.