Random interesting weather notes of late:
- Burlington, Vermont broke its all-time February high temperature record this past Thursday. Then hit 70º on Saturday to break it again, this time 15 degrees over the daily record for February 25.
- The ratio of record daily highs in the U.S. to record lows so far this year: 4,982 to 42 (and counting, and getting higher). February records are being broken all over the country, including Milwaukee where it hit 70º for the first time ever in February.
- It's not just the U.S., either. Toronto, Ontario broke its all-time February record with 63º this past Thursday. Temperature anomalies in the Arctic have been off the charts much of the winter, and the ice coverage in the Arctic seas has been shrinking with remarkable speed.
- McAllen, Texas was 101º on Thursday, the earliest triple-digit temperature on record. Galveston, Texas has set an incredible 31 record daily highs since November 1 last year.
- In Miami, through Friday they had 54 days since the beginning of winter (December 1) that hit 80º, and it has not dropped below 50º all winter. Neither one of those has ever happened before.
- A multi-phase tornado outbreak happened close by January 21-22, the worst January outbreak in years. Severe storms in February have been nudged north: parts of Michigan were under rare watches on Friday and there were a slew of warnings for wind and hail. On Saturday, violent winds hit Massachusetts; if surveys show the damage came from a tornado, it would be the first February tornado in the state's history.
- California has been hit with intense Pacific storms and copious rains this winter, all but ending the drought in the Golden State. Higher mountain ranges are buried in snow. This kind of west coast weather is rarely seen outside of El Nino winters, and this is not one of those.
- Columbus has set only one record high this February (80º on Friday) but the month as a whole (through Saturday) is only .1º off the record of 57.9º set in 1957 - the numbers the next two days will determine if we break that or not. We still have two days to go in meteorological winter, so we'll see if this one goes into the books as the warmest winter ever. Both December and January were well above average, and just glancing at the data without actually running the numbers, it looks like we'll be competing with 1948-49, 1949-50, 1956-57, and 1973-74 for that...um..."title".
- Trees are blooming early here and elsewhere. Washington DC's famed cherry trees are in bloom at the earliest time ever. Pollen counts in our own area are up. Scientists who track such things have put out a map showing the early onset of spring as seen in nature.
Spring leaf index anomaly (National Phenology Network)
This is just a sampling of this crazy winter as remarkable anecdotes continue to pour in. There may be more to come since all indications are spring will continue warm, at least here in the South. While many are probably finding it rather pleasant to have an early end to winter, and few were complaining about our 80-degree Friday, I've mentioned on the air several times that something about that is a bit unsettling. Pollen season will be early and drawn out, certain insects are likely to be out sooner than normal and will have a longer season.
Especially of concern to climatologists and meteorologists is the shrinking arctic ice cap, and the normally bitter cold temperatures there that have all but disappeared for long stretches. Something is clearly amiss this winter, and in light of the earth's changing climate, many are wondering if this may turn out to be a trend that's accelerating faster than anyone thought.
Oh, and don't be too surprised if winter attempts a last-ditch comeback or two. A freeze is certainly possible into early April, given the right setup, changing climate or no. I'll point out that of the 4 warm winters I listed above, three of them wound up with a colder March than February (1974 was the one exception).
Kurt Schmitz, Senior Meteorologist
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