Thursday, February 12, 2004
It's the week of the year for big snows...
Jason Samenow @ 10:34 PM
This week of February is prime time for crippling snowstorms in the DC Area. Let's check out the record books...
(Storm ending on): (amt) -- (rank)
February 12, 1983: 16.6" -- 6th
February 13, 1899: 20.5" -- 2nd
February 16, 1958: 14.5" -- 7th
February 17, 2003: 16.7" -- 5th
February 19, 1979: 18.7" -- 3rd
So 5 of the top seven snowstorms that have occurred since records began in the late 1800s happened THIS WEEK. What this means is that climatologically, if we're going to get nailed, our best bet is right now. So what's the prognosis?
Close, but no cigar (for frosty the snowman)... The setup for the southern storm this weekend resembles setups for the storms of 1979 and 1983 in a lot of ways. But believe it or not, the problem is too much cold air. The cold air mass moving in Sunday is going to suppress the storm to the south and east. If the cold air mass were just a little weaker, and displaced a bit to the west, we'd be rushing to the grocery store.
For snow lovers, the even more depressing news is that after this week all signs point towards a warming trend. Could we get shut out of snow entirely for the month? [not a forecast, just positing a possibility--feel free to react]
(Storm ending on): (amt) -- (rank)
February 12, 1983: 16.6" -- 6th
February 13, 1899: 20.5" -- 2nd
February 16, 1958: 14.5" -- 7th
February 17, 2003: 16.7" -- 5th
February 19, 1979: 18.7" -- 3rd
So 5 of the top seven snowstorms that have occurred since records began in the late 1800s happened THIS WEEK. What this means is that climatologically, if we're going to get nailed, our best bet is right now. So what's the prognosis?
Close, but no cigar (for frosty the snowman)... The setup for the southern storm this weekend resembles setups for the storms of 1979 and 1983 in a lot of ways. But believe it or not, the problem is too much cold air. The cold air mass moving in Sunday is going to suppress the storm to the south and east. If the cold air mass were just a little weaker, and displaced a bit to the west, we'd be rushing to the grocery store.
For snow lovers, the even more depressing news is that after this week all signs point towards a warming trend. Could we get shut out of snow entirely for the month? [not a forecast, just positing a possibility--feel free to react]
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