IS WINTER OVER WITH?
Overheard in the weather office today:
Bob: "Scott, I'm canceling winter. It's over with, and I'm happy about that."
Scott: "Nope. I think we have one more 6-12" storm ahead of us. We're not clear until mid-April. And you're an idiot."
Ok, so there's a little embellishing in that re-enactment. Obviously I don't have the authority to cancel a season. But everyone has to admit that 50+ degrees with sun in your face feels great. And we may qualify for the palest city in America right now (just in time for St. Pats!)
So as I often do, I went over to our bookshelf and pulled out my copy of Northeast Snowstorms. If you're a winter buff, or a weather buff, this book is a MUST read. I wanted to see how many big late-season storms made the big list of the 32 selected storms.
The two that stick out: April 5-7, 1982 and the April Fool's Day storm of March 31-April 1 1997. It is interesting to note that both of these storms occurred during El Nino years, particularly strong ones in fact. Now, both of these happened at the beginning of the El Nino's, but its still an interesting correlation nonetheless.
April 1982:
-Postponed opening day of MLB season in many cities.
-Heavy thundersnow events recorded in NYC
-followed by one of the coldest airmasses on record for April
-Rochester reported 7" of snow, NYC 12"+, some spots 20"+
-NAO underwent transition from positive to negative
March/April 1997:
-Greatest spring snowstorm on record for many areas.
-36h before the storm models had little indication for the severity of the storm
-models quickly jumped on board and resolved for big snow
-22" of snow in Boston (an April record)
-unlike most wintertime storms, no cold surface high was affecting the NE corner of the nation prior to the storm.
-hardest hit areas were southern Catskills and eastern Mass.
So I stand corrected. I guess we can't mail it in after all!
But I don't go down without a fight. Check out these stats to see our odds of anything notable:
The most recent snowy March we had was in 2001 with 41.4". Most of it fell early in the month with a few good doses of snow. The last snowy April to qualify in the top 10 was in 1979 with 20.2" falling.
Oh and just for the record, Scott didn't call me an idiot, at least not this time around! :-)
ReplyDeleteHaha, that's a pretty fun exchange. We better listen to Scott though, he is the boss. I have mixed feelings on another 6-12. On one hand, it would be nice to get our snowfall total for the season up into the high 90's or even 100". Plus, the overall drama of a surprise foot of snow after all this warmth would be exciting. On the other hand, I think we can all agree that this weather is really getting us in the mood for spring.
ReplyDeleteBut I think that Scott might be right on this one. I wouldn't be surprised if this is merely another in a long list of cruel teases by mother nature this winter, and we get one more dose of cold and snow. The cold air has been stacking up nicely in the Arctic, it only seems fair that it will make one more run at the lower 48.
I heard that springtime snow is good for farmer's fields, as the meltwater holds more nutrients than it would if it fell as rain. Is that true?
ReplyDeleteWhile I'm not a farmer I can see how that would be possible. Meltwater occurs much more slowly than a hard rain would, stirring things up a lot less as well. Honestly, I (we) have no idea.
ReplyDeleteHere's an article from the Farmer's Almanac about snow cover and gardens.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.farmersalmanac.com/blog/2010/02/18/is-all-this-snow-good-for-your-garden/
Spring snow is REALLY BAD for golf. Enough!!!
ReplyDeleteWhy do men love golf so much? Is it really that exciting? It's like a cliche or stereotype that if you're a professional male, you have to play golf. Lame.
ReplyDeleteScott,
ReplyDeleteI live in Batavia along the Tonowanda Creek. It's prone to flood out here whenever we get a big snow melt combined with a rainstorm in the spring.
Does it look like we'll have enough rain to overflow creek banks this weekend?
Why do women love shoes so much? Are they really that exciting? It's like a cliche or stereotype that if you're a woman you have to love shoes. Lame.
ReplyDeleteFlooding is possible this weekend with the expectation of over 1" of rain. Most of the snow has melted but ground water levels are high. I'd expect some minor flooding in your area.
ReplyDeleteI can probably guarantee another heavy snowfall by simply putting my snow blower away for the season.....I think I will keep it ready for a few more weeks just in case.
ReplyDeleteTouche, NY123, touche.
ReplyDeleteGood idea, Winter isn't dead yet. Late March will be different than what we're seeing now, I promise you that.
ReplyDeleteMy grandma was a farmer's wife and she always told me that when it snowed in April, the grass came back better and greener in the spring :)
ReplyDeleteThe theory that I heard is that when the snow falls, because it's obviously larger than a rain drop, it collects nutrients from the air on its trip from the cloud to the surface. Thus, the water within the snow has more nutrients which, when melted, supply the soil. It seems to make sense.
ReplyDelete