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000
CXUS51 KGYX 051230
CLSAUG

PWMCLSAUG 000
TTAA00 GYX 031657

CLIMATE REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAY ME
0730 AM EST SUN MAR 05 2023

...................................

...THE AUGUSTA CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE WINTER SEASON, FROM
12/1/2022 TO 2/28/2023...

CLIMATE NORMAL PERIOD: 1991 TO 2020
CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD: 1948 TO 2023

WEATHER         OBSERVED          NORMAL  DEPART   LAST YEAR`S
                VALUE   DATE(S)   VALUE   FROM     VALUE DATE(S)
                                          NORMAL
................................................................
TEMPERATURE (F)
RECORD
 HIGH             67   12/06/2001
 LOW             -23   02/02/1962
HIGHEST           56   02/16         56       0       64  02/23
LOWEST           -17   02/04         -9      -8      -13  01/27
AVG. MAXIMUM    36.5               31.8     4.7     33.9
AVG. MINIMUM    21.5               15.4     6.1     16.0
MEAN            29.0               23.6     5.4     24.9
DAYS MAX >= 90     0                0.0     0.0        0
DAYS MAX <= 32    34               48.1   -14.1       41
DAYS MIN <= 32    80               84.8    -4.8       84
DAYS MIN <= 0      3                9.4    -6.4       10

PRECIPITATION (INCHES)
RECORD
 MAXIMUM       17.78   1974
 MINIMUM        3.23   1980
TOTALS         10.14               8.38    1.76     6.34
DAILY AVG.      0.11               0.09    0.02     0.07
DAYS >= .01       36               31.9     4.1       33
DAYS >= .10       23               18.0     5.0       16
DAYS >= .50        4                5.0    -1.0        2
DAYS >= 1.00       4                1.7     2.3        0
GREATEST
 24 HR. TOTAL   2.16


DEGREE DAYS
HEATING TOTAL   3212               3723    -511     3394
 SINCE 7/1      4390               5218    -828     4571
COOLING TOTAL      0                  0       0        0
 SINCE 1/1         0                  0       0        0
................................................................

WIND (MPH)
AVERAGE WIND SPEED              7.6
HIGHEST WIND SPEED/DIRECTION    37/140    DATE  12/23
HIGHEST GUST SPEED/DIRECTION    56/130    DATE  12/23

SKY COVER
AVERAGE SKY COVER        0.52

AVERAGE RH (PERCENT)     68

WEATHER CONDITIONS. NUMBER OF DAYS WITH
THUNDERSTORM              1     HEAVY RAIN                 2
RAIN                      4     LIGHT RAIN                14
FREEZING RAIN             2     LT FREEZING RAIN           6
HEAVY SNOW                3     SNOW                      10
LIGHT SNOW               32     FOG                       43
FOG W/VIS <= 1/4 MILE    13     HAZE                      15

-  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 THE WARMEST WINTER ON
RECORD IN THE AUGUSTA 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 TROUGH
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 AUGUSTA AREA TO SEE THEIR FIRST APPRECIABLE SNOWFALL. 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 56 MPH. 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. 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 AUGUSTA PUTTING THE AREA ON THE COLD AND SNOWY SIDE OF THE
SYSTEMS. A HEAVY RAIN EVENT QUICKLY FOLLOWED ON THE 25TH INTO THE
26TH. 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 WITH BITTERLY COLD
WINDCHILLS. TEMPERATURES QUICKLY RETURNED TO WELL ABOVE NORMAL AND
REMAINED THERE THROUGH THE BALANCE OF FEBRUARY WITH LITTLE IN THE
WAY OF SNOW. 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.

THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE WINTER SEASON WAS 29.0, WHICH WAS
5.4 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL AND THE WARMEST ON RECORD. THE PRIOR
WARMEST WINTER ON RECORD WAS THE 2001-02 WINTER WHEN THE AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE WAS 28.7 DEGREES. THE COLDEST WAS 17.3 DEGREES IN 1958-
59. THE FOLLOWING TABLE LISTS THE WARMEST WINTERS ON RECORD AT
AUGUSTA.

WARMEST AVERAGE TEMPERATURE IN WINTER (SINCE 1948)...
RANK  TEMP SEASON
1     29.0 2022-23
2     28.7 2001-02
3     28.4 2015-16
4     26.7 2020-01
5     26.6 1952-53
6     26.5 2011-12
7     26.3 2019-20
8     26.2 1997-98
9     26.0 2009-10
      26.0 1998-99


A TOTAL OF 10.14 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION FELL, WHICH WAS 1.76 INCHES
ABOVE NORMAL. THE HEAVIEST PRECIPITATION FELL ON DECEMBER 23RD FOR A
TOTAL OF 2.16 INCHES. THE WETTEST WINTER ON RECORD WAS IN
1973-74 WHEN 17.78 INCHES FELL. THE DRIEST WAS 3.23 INCHES IN 1979-80.

$$