Saturday, March 17, 2012

It's a Fourpeat Fivepeat for Chicago: Over 80° for 4th 5th Consecutive Day


March 18, 7 PM CDT Update: It's yet another early spring record crushed at Chicago, as the high of 81° made it the 5th consecutive day of 80°+ temperatures. The previous high of 74°, originally set in 1903, had only been tied before in 1918 and 1969, but it was surpassed by 7°.

The graph above, from the National Weather Service, shows how far beyond the previous warmest Marches this month has been to date.

5 PM CDT Update: The high temperature was 82° at Chicago, smashing the old record for March 17 of 74° originally set in 1894 and tied in 2009. Rockford also hit 82°, easily beating the old record of 75° in 2009.

The National Weather Service reports that this breaks a century-plus record by over a month for the earliest string of 4 consecutive days with 80° temperatures or higher:
CHICAGO SET A NEW RECORD FOR MOST NUMBER OF 80 DEGREE DAYS IN A  
MARCH WITH 4.

MARCH 17 WAS THE 4TH CONSECUTIVE DAY ABOVE 80...WHICH BROKE THE
PREVIOUS RECORD FOR EARLIEST IN THE SEASON TO HAVE 4 CONSECUTIVE 80
DEGREE DAYS. PREVIOUSLY THE EARLIEST CHICAGO HAS EVER SEEN 4
CONSECUTIVE 80 DEGREE DAYS WAS BACK ON APRIL 15-18 1896.
Original post:
After hitting 80° or higher for a record-breaking 3 consecutive days, Chicago has reached that temperature again this afternoon. For the last 2 hours, the temperature has been at least 81°. The regional weather map (click to enlarge) for 3 pm CDT from the College of DuPage shows 80° or higher temperatures throughout most of central and northern Illinois, southern Wisconsin, and Iowa.

Friday, March 16, 2012

Preliminary Data Lift March Heat Records to Nearly 19 Times Cold Records

Image (click to enlarge):
Monthly ratio of daily high temperature to low temperature records set in the U.S. for January 2011 through March 15, 2012, seasonal ratio for summer and fall 2011, winter 2011-2012, and annual ratio for 2012 and 2011;
CapitalClimate chart from NOAA/NCDC data, background image © Kevin Ambrose (www.weatherbook.com). Includes historical daily observations archived in NCDC's Cooperative Summary of the Day data set and preliminary reports from Cooperative Observers and First Order National Weather Service stations. All stations have a Period of Record of at least 30 years.


The surge of early spring heat records reached over 400 yesterday alone in preliminary reports from the National Climatic Data Center. This includes 68 official National Weather Service locations out of 290 possible records. In other words, over 23% of all official reporting locations in the entire U.S. set new daily records for March 15. This brings the total number of new heat records for the month so far to 1757, which is 18.7 times the number of cold records. Including the number of ties, the total number of record high temperatures for March to date is nearly 2300. For the year to date, the ratio of heat records to cold records is over 14 to 1.

Here are the NWS locations reporting records yesterday:
                                                                 Period of 
Location Record Old record record
AL HUNTSVILLE INTL AP 85 80 3/15/1984 53
AL MUSCLE SHOALS AP 85 81 3/15/1977 71
AR HARRISON BOONE CO AP 79 75 3/15/1983 54
FL CRESTVIEW BOB SIKES AP 87 83 3/15/1978 46
GA MACON MIDDLE GA AP 87 86 3/15/1977 67
GA COLUMBUS METO AP 86 83 3/15/1989 64
GA AUGUSTA BUSH FLD AP 86 85 3/15/1989 67
GA ATHENS BEN EPPS AP 85 82 3/15/1977 67
GA ATLANTA HARTSFIELD AP 82 81 3/15/1973 82
IA BURLINGTON AP 81 77 3/15/1995 108
IA DES MOINES AP 81 77 3/15/2003 67
IA OTTUMWA INDUSTRIAL AP 80 73 3/15/1995 64
IA CEDAR RAPIDS AP 79 76 3/15/1995 58
IA WATERLOO MUNICIPAL AP 79 70 3/15/1995 63
IA DUBUQUE WSO AP 78 70 3/15/1995 61
IA MASON CITY MUNI AP 74 71 3/15/2003 64
IL SPRINGFIELD LINCOLN AP 83 79 3/15/1995 111
IL ROCKFORD AP 82 73 3/15/1995 61
IL QUINCY RGNL AP 81 73 3/15/1995 63
IL CHICAGO OHARE AP 81 74 3/15/1995 65
IL PEORIA INTERNATIONAL AP 81 77 3/15/1935 117
IL MOLINE WSO AP 81 77 3/15/1995 68
IN SOUTH BEND AP 81 76 3/15/1935 115
IN FORT WAYNE AP 81 75 3/15/1995 68
IN INDIANAPOLIS INTL AP 80 77 3/15/1977 67
KY LOUISVILLE INTL AP 83 81 3/15/1977 64
MI JACKSON COUNTY AP 80 76 3/15/1990 63
MI LANSING CAPITAL CY AP 78 77 3/15/1990 59
MN ROCHESTER INTL AP 74 67 3/15/2003 96
MN ST CLOUD MUNI AP 65 61 3/15/2003 72
MN ALEXANDRIA CHANDLER FLD 63 60 3/15/1995 71
MN PARK RAPIDS 2 S 60 59 3/15/1995 112
MO COLUMBIA RGNL AP 81 76 3/15/1995 42
MO ST LOUIS LAMBERT INTL AIRPOR 81 80 3/15/1945 70
MO JOPLIN REGIONAL AIRPORT 81 80 3/15/1983 64
MO VICHY ROLLA NATIONAL AP 80 75 3/15/1995 64
MO ST JOSEPH ROSECRANS MEM 78 74 3/15/1966 50
MS TUPELO RGNL AP 84 83 3/15/1984 49
MT MILES CITY AP 74 72 3/15/1992 75
MT HAVRE AP ASOS 70 69 3/15/1995 51
MT GLASGOW INTL AP 70 64 3/15/1992 65
ND THEODORE ROOSEVELT AP 71 68 3/15/1995 63
ND WILLISTON SLOULIN FLD 68 67 3/15/1996 116
ND MINOT INTL AP 64 60 3/15/1966 63
ND JAMESTOWN MUNI AP 63 54 3/15/1995 63
ND FARGO HECTOR INTL AP 62 57 3/15/2003 70
ND GRAND FORKS INTL AP 59 52 3/15/2003 63
NE NORTH PLATTE RGNL AP 79 76 3/15/2003 64
NE GRAND ISLAND CTR NE AP 79 78 3/15/1966 111
NE SCOTTSBLUFF AP 75 74 3/15/1999 119
OK GAGE AP 85 80 3/15/2003 71
OK BARTLESVILLE MUNICIPAL AP 84 82 3/15/1977 85
OK PONCA CITY MUNI AP 81 79 3/15/2003 65
SD SIOUX FALLS AP 75 73 3/15/1935 80
TN NASHVILLE ASOS 82 81 3/15/1984 64
TN CROSSVILLE AP 80 77 3/15/1984 57
TX AMARILLO WSO AP 84 79 3/15/1961 67
TX DALHART FAA AP 81 78 3/15/1999 63
VA NORFOLK INTL AP 87 84 3/15/1973 66
VA RICHMOND INTL AP 86 82 3/15/2007 91
VA WASHGTN DULLES INTL AP 84 82 3/15/1990 49
VA WASHINGTON REAGAN AP 82 81 3/15/1990 75
WI MADISON DANE CO AP 82 69 3/15/1995 64
WI MILWAUKEE MITCHELL AP 72 67 3/15/1990 64
WI LA CROSSE MUNI AP 71 68 3/15/1995 64
WI EAU CLAIRE C V R AP 69 66 3/15/2010 62
WI WAUSAU FAA AP 68 65 3/15/1995 70
WY CHEYENNE WSFO AP 66 65 3/15/2003 97

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Chicago Smashes Record by 7°, First-Ever Consecutive 80°+ Days in March

March 16, 5 PM CDT Update: The preliminary daily climate report indicates that the high temperature at Chicago was 82° shortly before 3 pm. This is the earliest date that the temperature has reached 82° at Chicago. The previous earliest was on the 27th in 1945.

March 16, 4 PM CDT Update: The Chicago temperature is at 81° for the third consecutive day.

March 16, 3 PM CDT Update: With a temperature of 80° at the current hour, Chicago has again broken the record with an unprecedented third consecutive 80° day. The previous record for March 16 was 78° in 1945.

March 16, 2 PM CDT Update: With a temperature of 79° at the current hour, Chicago is within striking distance of an unprecedented third consecutive 80° day.

March 16, AM Update: The National Weather Service has confirmed this morning the report published here last night and provided some additional background data:
THE HIGH TEMPERATURE AT CHICAGO-O'HARE CLIMBED TO 81 DEGREES ON  
MARCH 14TH AND 15TH. THIS IS THE EARLIEST BACK TO BACK 80 DEGREE
DAYS TO HAVE EVER BEEN RECORDED IN CHICAGO. THE PREVIOUS RECORD
WAS SET JUST A COUPLE YEARS BACK ON APRIL 1ST AND 2ND 2010 WHEN
THE HIGH TEMPERATURES WERE 83 AND 81 RESPECTIVELY. PRIOR TO 2010
THE EARLIEST BACK TO BACK 80 DEGREE DAYS IN CHICAGO WERE APRIL 5TH
AND 6TH 1929.
Original post:
After hitting 81° yesterday for the third-earliest 80°+ temperature at Chicago, the high reached 81° again today. This broke the old record for the date by the huge margin of 7°, and it was the first time in 142 years of climate history that 80°+ temperatures were recorded on consecutive days. Prior to this year, the only dates in March with record temperatures of 80° or higher were:
Day   Temp/Year
3 80/1974
12 81/1990
23 80/1907
27 82/1945
29 88/1986
31 87/1981
The 82° at Rockford smashed the record for March 15 set in 1995 by 9°. Rockford climate history began in 1893.

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Chicago Hits Record High of 81°, Only Second Occurrence Earlier Than March 27 in 142-Year History

Today's high of 81° at Chicago smashed the old record of 77° for March 14, set in 1995. The only other occurrence of 81° earlier than March 27 was on March 12, 1990. This is only the 11th time that 80° or higher temperatures have been recorded on any date in March. Today's high was an incredible 35° above normal, and the daily average was 27° above average. The monthly average through yesterday was already 9.7° above normal, and today's readings will raise that above 11°. Climate records at Chicago began in 1871.

This is the second consecutive day with temperatures of 70° or higher at Chicago. The latest forecast calls for temperatures to reach above 70° on each of the next 7 days. If this occurs, it would tie the record of 9 days with 70°+ temperatures in March, set in 1945.

The National Weather Service has summarized the occurrences of 70° and 80° temperatures in March at Chicago and Rockford:
..70 DEGREES OR GREATER  
YEAR AND NUMBER OF TIMES IN THAT MARCH.
FOR BOTH LOCATIONS THERE WERE NUMEROUS MARCHS THAT HAD 1 TO 4 DAYS
OF OCCURRANCE.

...CHICAGO
1945 - 9 DAYS

1907 AND 1910 - 6 DAYS

1938...1963...1986...1995 AND 1998 - EACH HAD 5 DAYS

...ROCKFORD
1910 - 11 DAYS

1945 - 7 DAYS

1907 AND 1938 - 6 DAYS

1918...1946...1963 AND 1986 - EACH HAD 5 DAYS

ON AVERAGE THERE ARE 2 DAYS IN MARCH IN CHICAGO AND 3 DAYS ON
ROCKFORD WHEN THE TEMERATURE REACHES 70 DEGREES OR GREATER.

..80 DEGREES OR GREATER
YEAR AND NUMBER OF TIMES IN THAT MARCH. A
RARE EVENT.

...CHICAGO
1986 - TWICE

1895...1907...1910...1945...1974...1978...1981...1990...AND
2012 (SO FAR) - ONCE EACH.


...ROCKFORD
1907...1939 AND 1986 - TWICE EACH

1928...1943...1981...1986...1998 AND 2007 - ONCE EACH

THE ALL TIME MARCH HIGH AT CHICAGO WAS 88 DEGREES ON MARCH 29 1986.
THE ALL TIME MARCH HIGH AT ROCKFORD WAS 85 DEGREES ON MARCH 29 1986.

Winter Heat Records Crush Cold Records by 6 to 1;
2012 to Date Approaches [Update: Reaches] 12 to 1

Image (click to enlarge):
Monthly ratio of daily high temperature to low temperature records set in the U.S. for January 2011 through March 13, 2012, seasonal ratio for summer and fall 2011, winter 2011-2012, and annual ratio for 2012 and 2011;
CapitalClimate chart from NOAA/NCDC data, background image © Kevin Ambrose (www.weatherbook.com). Includes historical daily observations archived in NCDC's Cooperative Summary of the Day data set and preliminary reports from Cooperative Observers and First Order National Weather Service stations. All stations have a Period of Record of at least 30 years.


Midnight Update: An additional 189 heat records were broken today, vs. only 1 cold record. This raises the March-to-date ratio to 11.4 to 1 and the yearly ratio to 12 to 1.

Original post:
Aided by an incredible ratio of 22 to 1 for January (29 to 1 in the contiguous 48 states), U.S. new daily high temperature records smashed cold records for the winter 2011-12 by a ratio of 6 to 1. As March approaches its midpoint, a surge of early spring heat has raised the monthly ratio to date to nearly 10 to 1. After 10 weeks, or about the 20% point, the year 2012 to date stands at a cozy 11.5 to 1.

Among the 184 high temperature records set or tied yesterday (March 13) are the 46 official National Weather Service reporting locations listed below. The biggest margin was at Bismarck, North Dakota, where the temperature of 71° broke the old record from 1995 by 14°. In all, 7 records were broken by 10° or more. The oldest record, dating back to 1911 at Watertown, South Dakota, was broken by 6°. Seven other records were broken in climate histories of over 100 years.
                                          Period of 
Location Record Old record record
IA SIOUX CITY AP 81 71 3/13/2007 67
IA MASON CITY MUNI AP 69 66 3/13/1996 64
KS GOODLAND RENNER FLD 78 77 3/13/2007 105
KS RUSSELL 1 E 85 80 3/13/1997 65
KS TOPEKA ASOS 82 78 3/13/2007 64
KS CONCORDIA ASOS 82 76 3/13/1971 50
MA WORCESTER 69 68 3/13/1990 63
ME BANGOR AP 56 55 3/13/2006 67
ME AUGUSTA FAA AP 62 53 3/13/2006 63
MN MINNEAPOLIS/ST PAUL 67 66 3/13/2007 121
MN ROCHESTER INTL AP 66 63 3/13/1990 96
MN INTERNATIONAL FALLS 55 54 3/13/1995 81
MN ST CLOUD MUNI AP 62 61 3/13/1973 72
MN ALEXANDRIA 62 54 3/13/1973 71
MO ST LOUIS INTL AIRPORT 83 79 3/13/2007 70
MO JOPLIN REGIONAL AP 83 80 3/13/2002 64
MO ST JOSEPH 82 78 3/13/1971 49
MO COLUMBIA RGNL AP 81 77 3/13/2007 42
MO KANSAS CITY INTL AP 80 76 3/13/2007 39
MT MILES CITY AP 75 70 3/13/1994 75
MT GLASGOW INTL AP 69 62 3/13/1981 65
MT HAVRE AP ASOS 69 63 3/13/1972 51
ND WILLISTON SLOULIN FLD 72 62 3/13/1914 116
ND FARGO HECTOR INTL AP 63 56 3/13/1945 70
ND BISMARCK MUNI AP 71 57 3/13/1995 66
ND THEODORE ROOSEVELT AP 75 65 3/13/1966 63
ND MINOT INTL AP 68 56 3/13/2007 63
ND JAMESTOWN MUNI AP 63 54 3/13/1961 63
ND GRAND FORKS INTL AP 59 46 3/13/1995 63
NE VALENTINE MILLER AP 81 74 3/13/2003 64
NE OMAHA EPPLEY AIRFIELD 81 80 3/13/2007 64
NE NORFOLK AP 80 73 3/13/2007 64
NE NORTH PLATTE RGNL AP 78 77 3/13/2007 64
NE LINCOLN AP 83 80 3/13/2007 59
NH CONCORD ASOS 71 69 3/13/1990 91
NY WATERTOWN AP 62 60 3/13/2007 62
OK PONCA CITY MUNI AP 84 83 3/13/1971 65
SD HURON AP 79 72 3/13/1945 130
SD ABERDEEN RGNL AP 71 70 3/13/1914 116
SD WATERTOWN RGNL AP 70 64 3/13/1911 116
SD SIOUX FALLS AP 79 69 3/13/1996 80
SD PIERRE RGNL AP 82 72 3/13/1971 78
SD RAPID CITY REG AP 75 74 3/13/2003 64
VT SAINT JOHNSBURY 64 63 3/13/1995 118
VT BURLINGTON WSO AP 67 62 3/13/1946 105
VT MONTPELIER AP 64 59 3/13/1995 63

Earliest 1" Hail in Massachusetts by Over 1 Month

Near and after midnight last night, there were 12 reports of ¾" hail or larger in Worcester, Hampshire, and Middlesex counties in Massachusetts. The largest were 1" measured at Westminster and 1.25" at Littleton. According to the National Climatic Data Center, of the 287 reports of 1" hail or larger in Massacusetts since official records began in 1950, there had never been any previous reports as early as March. The earliest report was on 04/19/1969 in Norfolk County. In fact, of the 825 reports of ¾" hail or larger in the state, none had occurred in March either. The earliest was on 04/06/1982 in Nantucket County. The storm reports, from the National Weather Service:
..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..

1157 PM HAIL TEMPLETON 42.56N 72.07W
03/13/2012 M0.88 INCH WORCESTER MA HAM RADIO

1215 AM HAIL WESTMINSTER 42.55N 71.90W
03/14/2012 M1.00 INCH WORCESTER MA LAW ENFORCEMENT

HAIL COVERED THE ROAD

1222 AM HAIL GRANBY 42.26N 72.53W
03/14/2012 M0.75 INCH HAMPSHIRE MA BROADCAST MEDIA

1228 AM HAIL GRANBY 42.26N 72.52W
03/14/2012 M0.88 INCH HAMPSHIRE MA HAM RADIO

1235 AM HAIL LEOMINSTER 42.52N 71.76W
03/14/2012 M0.88 INCH WORCESTER MA GENERAL PUBLIC

1242 AM HAIL GROTON 42.61N 71.57W
03/14/2012 M0.75 INCH MIDDLESEX MA BROADCAST MEDIA

1243 AM HAIL LUNENBURG 42.59N 71.73W
03/14/2012 M0.88 INCH WORCESTER MA HAM RADIO

1248 AM HAIL SHIRLEY 42.54N 71.65W
03/14/2012 M1.00 INCH MIDDLESEX MA HAM RADIO

1255 AM HAIL LITTLETON 42.54N 71.47W
03/14/2012 M0.75 INCH MIDDLESEX MA AMATEUR RADIO

1257 AM HAIL LITTLETON 42.54N 71.51W
03/14/2012 M1.25 INCH MIDDLESEX MA HAM RADIO

0120 AM HAIL WILMINGTON 42.55N 71.17W
03/14/2012 M0.88 INCH MIDDLESEX MA HAM RADIO

0131 AM HAIL NORTH READING 42.58N 71.08W
03/14/2012 M0.75 INCH MIDDLESEX MA HAM RADIO

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Southeast Michigan Tornado is Earliest So Far North


The National Weather Service reports that an EF-1 tornado on Sunday, March 12, was the earliest so far north in southeastern Michigan since records began in 1950. The tornado southeast of Coleman in Midland County was only the 10th tornado to occur before April 1 in the 17 counties covered by the NWS Detroit office. It was the first to occur north of highway I-69 and is tied with the March 12, 1976 Lenawee County tornado as the earliest in the region. The tornado had a track length of 5.1 miles and a maximum width of 125 yards. The storm report:
..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..

0643 PM TORNADO 3 SSE COLEMAN 43.71N 84.57W
03/12/2012 EF1 MIDLAND MI EMERGENCY MNGR

EF1 TORNADO WITH WINDS ESTIMATED TO 90 MPH STARTED NEAR
WEINERT AND LEWIS ROADS WHERE A GARAGE WAS DESTOYED. THE
TORNADO MOVED NORTHEST DAMAGING 3 MORE POLE BARNS AND
UPROOTING TREES...ESPECIALLY AROUND ALAMANDO AND MANDO
ROADS AND NEAR THE END OF THE TORNADO PATH AT M-18 AND
SHAFFER ROAD. THE TORNADO PATH WAS 5.1 MILES WITH A
MAXIMUM WIDTH OF 125 YARDS. THE TORNADO ENDED AT 648 PM
EDT.
Image (click to enlarge): Tornado damage near Coleman, Michigan, on March 12, 2012, from NWS

Seasonal Outlook

Latest seasonal forecast: Click here.


Latest 3-month temperature outlook from Climate Prediction Center/NWS/NOAA.