Climatological Report (Seasonal) Issued by NWS Portland, ME
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CXUS51 KGYX 051010
CLSCON
PWMCLSCON 000
TTAA00 GYX 031657
CLIMATE REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAY ME
0510 AM EST SUN MAR 05 2023
...................................
...THE CONCORD NH CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE WINTER SEASON, FROM
12/1/2022 TO 2/28/2023...
CLIMATE NORMAL PERIOD: 1991 TO 2020
CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD: 1868 TO 2023
WEATHER OBSERVED NORMAL DEPART LAST YEAR`S
VALUE DATE(S) VALUE FROM VALUE DATE(S)
NORMAL
................................................................
TEMPERATURE (F)
RECORD
HIGH 74 02/21/2018
LOW -37 02/16/1943
HIGHEST 56 12/30 60 -4 64 02/23
LOWEST -15 02/04 -15 0 -10 01/22
AVG. MAXIMUM 38.7 34.5 4.2 36.1
AVG. MINIMUM 20.3 15.7 4.6 15.7
MEAN 29.5 25.1 4.4 25.9
DAYS MAX >= 90 0 0.0 0.0 0
DAYS MAX <= 32 19 37.7 -18.7 37
DAYS MIN <= 32 85 85.3 -0.3 82
DAYS MIN <= 0 3 11.7 -8.7 11
PRECIPITATION (INCHES)
RECORD
MAXIMUM 16.68 2008
MINIMUM 3.14 1980
TOTALS 11.29 9.25 2.04 10.55
DAILY AVG. 0.12 0.10 0.02 0.12
DAYS >= .01 39 33.2 5.8 35
DAYS >= .10 24 19.6 4.4 21
DAYS >= .50 7 6.5 0.5 8
DAYS >= 1.00 2 1.9 0.1 3
GREATEST
24 HR. TOTAL 1.81 12/22 TO 12/23
SNOWFALL (INCHES)
RECORDS
TOTAL 102.0 2008
TOTALS 43.4 48.3 -4.9 36.3
SINCE 7/1 44.1 51.6 -7.5 36.7
SNOWDEPTH AVG. 5
DAYS >= TRACE 33 22.0 11.0 9
DAYS >= 1.0 13 11.9 1.1 3
GREATEST
SNOW DEPTH 17 01/24
24 HR TOTAL 14.5 01/22 TO 01/23
DEGREE DAYS
HEATING TOTAL 3166 3590 -424 3501
SINCE 7/1 4460 5064 -604 4715
COOLING TOTAL 0 0 0 0
SINCE 1/1 0 0 0 0
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WIND (MPH)
AVERAGE WIND SPEED 8.1
HIGHEST WIND SPEED/DIRECTION 36/340 DATE 02/03
HIGHEST GUST SPEED/DIRECTION 51/180 DATE 12/23
SKY COVER
AVERAGE SKY COVER 0.52
AVERAGE RH (PERCENT) 70
WEATHER CONDITIONS. NUMBER OF DAYS WITH
THUNDERSTORM 1 HEAVY RAIN 1
RAIN 9 LIGHT RAIN 21
FREEZING RAIN 0 LT FREEZING RAIN 5
HEAVY SNOW 3 SNOW 8
LIGHT SNOW 33 FOG 44
FOG W/VIS <= 1/4 MILE 12 HAZE 12
- INDICATES NEGATIVE NUMBERS.
R INDICATES RECORD WAS SET OR TIED.
MM INDICATES DATA IS MISSING.
T INDICATES TRACE AMOUNT.
&&
THE WINTER OF 2022-2023 WILL GO DOWN AS TIED FOR THE SECOND WARMEST
WINTERS ON RECORD IN THE CONCORD AREA. DESPITE SOME SIZABLE SNOW
EVENTS, MILD TEMPERATURES INHIBITED A DEEP AND PERSISTENT SNOWPACK.
LA NINA CONDITIONS WERE PRESENT FOR THE THIRD WINTER IN ROW WITH
CONDITIONS TRANSITIONING TOWARDS ENSO NEUTRAL TOWARDS THE END OF
FEBRUARY. THIS LA NINA ALONG WITH PERSISTENT TROPICAL CONVECTION
OVER INDONESIA LED TO A PATTERN DOMINATED BY A TROUGH OVER THE
WESTERN US AS WELL AS AN ACTIVE PACIFIC STORM TRACK AIMED AT
CALIFORNIA. THE DOMINATE THROUGH IN THE WEST LED TO A PERSISTENT AND
STRONG SOUTHEAST RIDGE THAT OFTEN PUSHED NORTH INTO NEW ENGLAND. THE
ACTIVE STORM TRACK INTO CALIFORNIA ACTED TO FLOOD THE CONUS WITH
MILD PACIFIC AIR AND THE STRONG SOUTHEAST RIDGE ACTED PUSH MILD AIR
NORTHWARDS INTO NEW ENGLAND.
A STRONG COLD FRONT CROSSED NEW ENGLAND TO START THE WINTER SEASON
FOLLOWED BY BRIEF HIGH PRESSURE. A RELATIVELY ACTIVE PATTERN
FOLLOWED AND LASTED THROUGH THE SOLSTICE. LOW PRESSURE SYSTEMS
DURING THIS PERIOD HAD A TENDENCY TO TRACK TO THE WEST OF THE AREA
LEADING TO MOSTLY RAIN EVENTS FOLLOWED BY COLD AIR INTRUSIONS BEHIND
THE SYSTEMS. ONE SYSTEM MANAGED TO HAVE A SECONDARY LOW FORM IN THE
GULF OF MAINE ON THE 16TH THAT ALLOWED FOR JUST ENOUGH COLD AIR FOR
THE CONCORD AREA TO SEE THEIR FIRST APPRECIABLE SNOWFALL WHEN 3.6
INCHES OF HEAVY WET SNOW FELL. THE MOST SIGNIFICANT SYSTEM TO IMPACT
THE AREA IN DECEMBER CAME ON THE 23RD WHEN A RAPIDLY DEEPENING MID
LATITUDE CYCLONE TRACKED ACROSS THE GREAT LAKES INTO QUEBEC. THIS
SYSTEM BROUGHT HEAVY RAIN, POWERFUL ONSHORE WINDS GUSTING TO 65 MPH,
AND SIGNIFICANT COASTAL FLOODING. A SHOT OF COLD AIR CAME BEHIND
THIS SYSTEM FOR CHRISTMAS, ALTHOUGH THIS COLD WAS SHORT LIVED AS
TEMPERATURES CLIMBED WELL ABOVE NORMAL TO END DECEMBER AND LASTED
THROUGH THE FIRST THREE WEEKS OF JANUARY. DURING THIS STRETCH OF
ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES THERE WERE A COUPLE OF LIGHT SNOW EVENTS
AS WELL AS SOME MIXED PRECIPITATION AND RAIN EVENTS. THUS, THE
CONCORD AREA STRUGGLED TO DEVELOP AND MAINTAIN MUCH IN THE WAY OF A
SNOWPACK. THERE WAS A PATTERN CHANGE GOING INTO THE THIRD WEEK OF
JANUARY WHEN A RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE PUSHED INTO THE WEST COAST
THAT SHIFTED A TROUGH FURTHER EAST INTO THE CENTRAL CONUS THAT
SUPPRESSED THE DOMINANT SOUTHEAST RIDGE.
THIS PATTERN CHANGE LEAD TO A STORM TRACK DIRECTED TOWARDS NEW
ENGLAND WITH LOW PRESSURE SYSTEMS PASSING TO THE SOUTH OF CONCORD
PUTTING THE AREA ON THE COLD AND SNOWY SIDE OF THE SYSTEMS. ONE
SYSTEM BROUGHT 14.6 INCHES OF SNOW ON THE 22ND AND 23RD THAT DROPPED
THE GREATEST SNOWFALL OF THE SEASON. A HEAVY RAIN EVENT QUICKLY
FOLLOWED ON THE 25TH INTO THE 26TH MELTING A SUBSTANTIAL AMOUNT OF
THE FRESH SNOWPACK. TEMPERATURES THEN TRENDED ABOVE NORMAL THROUGH
THE END OF JANUARY, ALTHOUGH THIS WAS INTERRUPTED BY A SIGNIFICANT
BUT SHORT LIVED ARCTIC AIR OUTBREAK ON FEBRUARY 3RD AND 4TH. THIS
ARCTIC AIRMASS BROUGHT LOWS INTO THE MINUS TEENS AND WITH GUSTY
WINDS THE WIND CHILL DROPPED TO 43 DEGREES BELOW ZERO ON FEBRUARY
3RD. TEMPERATURES QUICKLY RETURNED TO WELL ABOVE NORMAL AND REMAINED
THERE THROUGH THE BALANCE OF FEBRUARY WITH LITTLE IN THE WAY OF SNOW
BRINGING THE SNOWPACK DOWN TO 4 INCHES BY FEBRUARY 20TH. A PATTERN
CHANGE CAME AFOOT DURING THE FINAL WEEK OF WINTER AS HIGH LATITUDE
BLOCKING DEVELOPED OVER THE NORTH ATLANTIC AND THEN RETROGRADED
WESTWARD INTO GREENLAND AS THE NAO DIPPED INTO NEGATIVE TERRITORY.
THE ACTIVE STORM TRACK CONTINUED INTO THE WEST COAST, ALTHOUGH THE
HIGH LATITUDE BLOCKING HELP TO SUPPRESS THE STORM TRACK SOUTHWARD
BRING SOME LIGHT TO MODERATE SNOW EVENTS AS WELL AS BELOW NORMAL
TEMPERATURES TO CLOSE OUT THE WINTER SEASON. BEFORE THIS LAST MINUTE
RETURN TO WINTER WEATHER, THE CONCORD AREA WAS IN THE RUNNING TO
EXPERIENCE THE WARMEST WINTER ON RECORD. HOWEVER, THE BELOW NORMAL
TEMPERATURES WERE LOW ENOUGH FOR THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE TO DECREASE
BELOW THE WARMEST WINTER ON RECORD VALUE.
THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE WINTER SEASON WAS 29.5, WHICH WAS
4.5 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL AND TIED FOR THE SECOND WARMEST. THE WARMEST
WINTER ON RECORD WAS THE 2015-16 WINTER WHEN THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE
WAS 30.9 DEGREES. THE COLDEST WAS 15.7 DEGREES IN 1976-77.
THE FOLLOWING TABLE LISTS THE WARMEST WINTERS ON RECORD AT CONCORD.
WARMEST AVERAGE TEMPERATURE IN WINTER (SINCE 1941)...
RANK TEMP SEASON
1 30.9 2015-16
2 29.5 2022-23
29.5 2001-02
4 29.0 2011-12
5 28.7 2016-17
28.7 1997-98
7 28.0 1952-53
8 27.9 1948-49
9 27.6 2019-20
10 27.2 1959-60
A TOTAL OF 11.21 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION FELL, WHICH WAS 2.08 INCHES ABOVE
NORMAL. THE HEAVIEST PRECIPITATION FELL ON JANUARY 22ND INTO THE 23RD FOR
A TOTAL OF 1.22 INCHES. THE WETTEST WINTER ON RECORD WAS IN 2007-08 WHEN 16.68
INCHES FELL. THE DRIEST WAS 3.14 INCHES IN 1979-80.
A TOTAL OF 43.4 INCHES OF SNOW FELL, WHICH WAS 4.9 INCHES BELOW
NORMAL. THE LEAST SNOWIEST WINTER ON RECORD WAS IN 2012 WHEN ONLY
13.8 INCHES WAS MEASURED. THE SNOWIEST WAS 100.5 INCHES IN 2008.
$$