Snow vs. Temperature Records

Recently, we noted the remarkable number of high temperature records set over a large area of the U.S. Meanwhile, Tim Lambert at Deltoid was pointing out the pimping of the snow records being set, particularly in the Pacific Northwest, by the Drudge-amplified deniosphere ("Denialists scraping the bottom of the barrel").

Here's a map from the latest edition of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture's Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin that puts the whole thing nicely in perspective. Note that the number of high temperature records (432) not only exceeds the number of snow records (428) by a little, but it also completely annihilates the low temperature records (a measly 37). Furthermore, the week shown ends on Dec. 27, but more high temperature records were set further to the northeast on the following day.

For more analysis on this subject, see "Shoveling Out From a Snow Job".

Image (click to enlarge): Daily Weather Records, Dec. 21-27, 2008, from Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture