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000
CXUS51 KCAR 061755
CLSCAR

CLIMATE REPORT...PRELIMINARY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CARIBOU ME
336 PM EST THU MAR 04 2021

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

...THE CARIBOU ME CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR THE SEASON, FROM
12/1/2020 TO 2/28/2021...

CLIMATE NORMAL PERIOD: 1981 TO 2010
CLIMATE RECORD PERIOD: 1939 TO 2021

WEATHER         OBSERVED          NORMAL  DEPART   LAST YEAR`S
                VALUE   DATE(S)   VALUE   FROM     VALUE DATE(S)
                                          NORMAL
................................................................
TEMPERATURE (F)
RECORD
 HIGH             60   12/01/2020
 LOW             -41   02/01/1955
HIGHEST           60*  12/01         MM      MM       49  12/10
LOWEST           -15   02/10         MM      MM      -24  02/15
AVG. MAXIMUM    28.4               23.2     5.2     27.1
AVG. MINIMUM    13.0                5.1     7.9      8.6
MEAN            20.7               14.2     6.5     17.8
DAYS MAX >= 90     0                0.0     0.0       MM
DAYS MAX <= 32    64               68.7    -4.7       MM
DAYS MIN <= 32    86               87.7    -1.7       MM
DAYS MIN <= 0     16               34.6   -18.6       MM

PRECIPITATION (INCHES)
RECORD
 MAXIMUM       12.62   2008
 MINIMUM        2.38   1944
TOTALS          8.03               8.19   -0.16     8.49
DAILY AVG.      0.09               0.09   -0.00     0.09
DAYS >= .01       51               40.5    10.5       MM
DAYS >= .10       18               19.1    -1.1       MM
DAYS >= .50        5                5.1    -0.1       MM
DAYS >= 1.00       0                0.9    -0.9       MM
GREATEST
 24 HR. TOTAL   1.23                                1.17  01/11 TO 01/12

SNOWFALL (INCHES)
RECORDS
 TOTAL         128.7   2008
TOTALS          77.3               70.3     7.0     82.4
SINCE 7/1       85.4               82.5     2.9       MM
SNOWDEPTH AVG.    10                                  MM
DAYS >= 1.0       18               17.5     0.5       MM
GREATEST
 SNOW DEPTH       23   02/28                          MM  02/29
 24 HR TOTAL      MM                                  MM

DEGREE DAYS
HEATING TOTAL   3958               4576    -618     4267
 SINCE 7/1      5535               6720   -1185       MM
COOLING TOTAL      0                  0       0        0
 SINCE 1/1         0                  0       0       MM
................................................................

WIND (MPH)
AVERAGE WIND SPEED              7.2
HIGHEST WIND SPEED/DIRECTION    30/250    DATE  02/06
HIGHEST GUST SPEED/DIRECTION    45/010    DATE  12/06

SKY COVER
POSSIBLE SUNSHINE (PERCENT)   MM
AVERAGE SKY COVER           0.67
NUMBER OF DAYS FAIR           20
NUMBER OF DAYS PC             20
NUMBER OF DAYS CLOUDY         50

AVERAGE RH (PERCENT)     72

WEATHER CONDITIONS. NUMBER OF DAYS WITH
THUNDERSTORM              0     MIXED PRECIP               0
HEAVY RAIN                1     RAIN                       3
LIGHT RAIN                7     FREEZING RAIN              3
LT FREEZING RAIN          6     HAIL                       0
HEAVY SNOW                6     SNOW                       6
LIGHT SNOW               64     SLEET                      2
FOG                      45     FOG W/VIS <= 1/4 MILE      5
HAZE                     12

-  INDICATES NEGATIVE NUMBERS.
*  INDICATES RECORD WAS SET OR TIED.
MM INDICATES DATA IS MISSING.
T  INDICATES TRACE AMOUNT.

&&

...2020/21 WINTER CLIMATE NARRATIVE FOR NORTHERN/EASTERN MAINE...

METEOROLOGICAL WINTER (DECEMBER - FEBRUARY) OF 2020/21 ACROSS
NORTHERN/EASTERN MAINE WAS GENERALLY MUCH WARMER THEN AVERAGE WITH
SLIGHTLY LESS THAN AVERAGE LIQUID EQUIVALENT PRECIPITATION AND BELOW
TO NEAR NORMAL SNOWFALL.

TEMPERATURES AVERAGED FROM +5 DEGREES F OVER DOWNEAST AREAS UPWARDS
TO +7 DEGREES ACROSS THE FAR NORTH WITH DECEMBER AND JANUARY BEING
THE MAIN CONTRIBUTORS TO THE WARM DEPARTURES. AT CARIBOU (BANGOR)
THE AVERAGE SEASONAL TEMPERATURE OF 20.7 (25.9) FINISHED AS 3RD
(4TH) WARMEST BEHIND WARMEST SEASONAL AVERAGE OF 21.6 (29.4) SET IN
2015/16 (1936/37). HOULTON`S AVERAGE OF 21.8 NEARLY TIED IT WARMEST
WINTER SEASON SET IN 2109/10 AND MILLINOCKET`S AVERAGE OF 23.3
FINISHED SECOND WARMEST BEHIND 23.5 SET IN 2001/02.

METEOROLOGICAL WINTER OPENED ON DECEMBER 1ST WITH RECORD HIGH TEMPS
WHICH RESULTED IN CARIBOU ESTABLISHING ITS WARMEST AND FIRST 60
DEGREE HIGH TEMPERATURE RECORDED DURING THIS PERIOD. AFTER A COOL
DOWN AND SOME SNOWFALL ACROSS MOSTLY NORTHERN PORTIONS OF THE REGION
LATER IN THE MONTH, ANOTHER MASSIVE THAW ACCOMPANIED BY RAIN, WIND,
AND FOG RESULTED IN RECORD HIGH TEMPS ON CHRISTMAS DAY AND EARLY ON
THE 26TH, MELTING MOST OF THE SNOW THAT ACCUMULATED ACROSS THE
NORTH. RATHER THAN EXTREME EPISODES OF WARMTH, JANUARY FEATURED
STEADY ABOVE AVERAGE HIGH TEMPS AND WELL ABOVE AVERAGE LOW TEMPS DUE
TO A RELATIVE LACK OF ARCTIC AIR AND PERSISTENT CLOUDY SKIES OVER
THE REGION. COLDER, BUT STILL SOMEWHAT ABOVE AVERAGE TEMPERATURES
RETURNED FOR FEBRUARY, BUT OVERALL, THERE WAS NO LENGTHY BITTERLY
COLD ARCTIC WEATHER SPELLS ACROSS THE REGION THIS METEOROLOGICAL
WINTER. MINIMUM LOW TEMPERATURES ACROSS THE REGION GENERALLY RANGED
FROM MINUS SINGLE DIGITS OVER DOWNEAST AREAS TO -10S ACROSS
NORTHEAST AND EAST CENTRAL AREAS TO -20S OVER COLDER NORTHWEST
VALLEY AREAS.

LIQUID EQUIVALENT PRECIPITATION FOR THE SEASON RANGED FROM AS LOW 75
PERCENT DOWNEAST UPWARDS TO 110 PERCENT OF AVERAGE ACROSS PARTS OF
THE NORTH AND CENTRAL MAINE HIGHLANDS. SNOWFALL RANGED FROM 60
PERCENT OVER DOWNEAST AREAS UPWARDS TO 115 PERCENT OF AVERAGE ACROSS
PARTS OF THE NORTH AND CENTRAL MAINE HIGHLANDS. DECEMBER FEATURED
LITTLE SNOWFALL OVER DOWNEAST AREAS WHERE IT WAS OFTEN TOO WARM FOR
SNOW DURING PRECIPITATION EVENTS, WHERE JANUARY WAS CLIMATOLOGICALLY
THE DRIEST AND LEAST SNOWIEST MONTH ACROSS THE REGION AS A WHOLE.
FEBRUARY WITH MORE FREQUENT EVENTS BROUGHT MUCH MORE SNOWFALL TO THE
REGION COMPARED TO THE PRIOR TWO MONTHS. MOST SNOW EVENTS THIS
WINTER WERE OF THE LIGHT TO MODERATE VARIETY WITH 10+ INCH EVENTS
COMPARATIVELY RARE THIS SEASON AND MOSTLY CONFINED TO THE NORTHWEST
AND CENTRAL MAINE HIGHLANDS.

AVERAGE SNOWDEPTH WHICH GENERALLY WAS ONLY 50 TO 70 PERCENT OF
AVERAGE ACROSS THE REGION CAPTURED THESE MONTHLY SNOWFALL TRENDS. AT
CARIBOU (BANGOR), THE SEASONAL AVERAGE SNOWDEPTH OF 9.9 (3.4) INCHES
WAS 4.1 (2.9) INCHES BELOW THE LONG TERM AVERAGES OF 14.0 (6.3)
INCHES. THIS WAS THE 15TH LOWEST SEASONAL AVERAGE SNOWDEPTH OF
RECORD AT BANGOR. DECEMBER THAWS AND MILD, DRY CONDITIONS OF JANUARY
RESULTED IN A DELAY OF THE SKIING AND SNOWMOBILE SEASON EVEN ACROSS
THE NORTH. IN FACT, AT CARIBOU, SNOW DEPTH JUST BEGAN TO REACH 10
INCHES (CONSIDERED TO BE A MINIMUM SAFE SNOW DEPTH ON TRAILS FOR
SNOW MOBILERS) AGAIN AFTER THE CHRISTMAS THAW TOWARD THE END OF
JANUARY, WITH MORE FREQUENT SNOWFALLS IN FEBRUARY BRINGING MAXIMUM
DAILY SNOWDEPTHS CLOSER TO SEASONAL NORMS BY THE CLOSE OF THE MONTH
WITH CARIBOU (BANGOR) REACHING A MAX DEPTH OF 23 (12) INCHES ON
FEBRUARY 28TH (23RD).

THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER`S METEOROLOGICAL SPRING (MARCH-MAY)
OUTLOOK FOR THE REGION IS CALLING FOR SLIGHTLY GREATER THAN NORMAL
ODDS OF ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES AND ABOVE AVERAGE PRECIPITATION.
AVERAGE TEMPERATURES ACROSS THE NORTH (INTERIOR DOWNEAST) BEGIN IN
EARLY MARCH WITH LOWS OF LOWER TO MID TEENS (LOWER 20S TO UPPER 30S)
AND HIGHS OF LOWER 30S (UPPER 30S) AND FINISH IN LATE MAY WITH LOWS
OF MID 40S (AROUND 50) TO HIGHS OF MID TO UPPER 60S (AROUND 70).
AVERAGE PRECIPITATION (SNOWFALL) RANGES FROM 8.00 (30.0) INCHES
ACROSS THE FAR NORTH TO 10.00 (15.0) INCHES ALONG THE DOWNEAST COAST.

$$

VJN/CB