"Huge Snowfall Shuts Down D.C. Area"

Floral St. in Washington, Feb. 19, 1979. Click image to enlarge. (Photo © Washington Post, via WeatherBook.com.)

The greatest snowstorm in more than half [a] century left the Washington area smothered under at most two feet of snow yesterday -- a magnificent white menace that virtually imprisoned the city and sent road crews battling to reopen streets for this morning's commuters. [Washington Post, page A1, Feb. 20, 1979]

Today is the anniversary of the second-largest Washington snowstorm of the 20th Century. Now known as Presidents' Day I, following the Presidents' Day II storm of 2003, the storm was originally known as the Washington's Birthday storm.

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Bucket O' Bookmarks: BudBurst

Citizen scientists sought

Gardeners, for years you've been relying on data from meteorologists to plan your activities; now you have a chance to repay the favor by helping climate research. The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR) has announced that, starting today, Project BudBurst is soliciting data on the timing of leafing and flowering of native tree and flower species throughout the U.S.

Cinquefoil wildflowers in Colorado. (Photo by Carlye Calvin, ©UCAR.)

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Today in Weather History: Feb. 14 vs. Jan. 14

As we noted last month, January 14, statistically speaking, is virtually allergic to snow. That's not the case for today's date, however. The February 14 daily snowfall record of 4.9" in 1885, while far from the overall February daily record of 16.4" in the blizzard of Feb. 11, 1983, is still quite respectable. In the modern era, the record snowfall for the 14th at National Airport is a bit lower, 3.5" in 1970.

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Local Lecture: Meet a Met

Following last month's presentation by Paul Kocin, former Weather Channel winter expert, the local chapter of the American Meteorological Society is hosting another operational forecaster for its February meeting next week. Ken Reeves, expert senior meteorologist and director of forecasting operations at AccuWeather, Inc., will be speaking on the subject, "Accuracy vs. Value: How Our Forecasts are Used." Reeves hosted an online chat at the Mother Ship last August on severe weather in the Midwest.

The meeting is a week from tonight, the 20th, beginning at 6:45 p.m. at the Environmental Protection Agency office, 1310 L St., NW. There is no charge to attend, but because of federal government security requirements, you must RSVP no later than the close of business tomorrow. RSVP information and directions are available on the DC-AMS Web site.

Political Science: Debate 2008

With voters going to the polls for the presidential primaries in all three local jurisdictions tomorrow, some citizens might be concerned that very little attention has been given to where the candidates stand on scientific issues. Physics Today, the magazine of the College Park-based American Institute of Physics, has been questioning presidential candidates since 1976 on their positions regarding science. This year, they have collected candidate stands on science education, teaching evolution, nuclear weapons, science investment, energy policy, and climate change from Democrats Clinton and Obama, as well as Republicans Huckabee, McCain, and Paul.

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Climate Corner: Acting Locally

100-year flood plain, from Maryland Department of the Environment. Click on image to enlarge.

A working group of the Maryland Commission on Climate Change met today in Reisterstown, as reported by AP (via Baltimore's WJZ-TV), to work on its recommendations for the state's response to global warming. Gov. O'Malley established the Commission via executive order last April to "undertake an assessment of climate change impacts, calculate Maryland's carbon footprint, and investigate climate change dynamics." In addition, the group is to make recommendations for reducing the state's greenhouse gas emissions and mitigating the effects of climate change on the state, with particular emphasis on coastal hazards.

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El Niño Update: La Niña Strengthens

Pacific Ocean sea surface temperature deviations from average, courtesy the Climate Prediction Center. Click on image to enlarge.




The National Weather Service's Climate Prediction Center released the latest monthly El Niño update today. If you're happy with the winter so far, then to the extent it's been influenced by sea surface temperatures (SSTs) in the equatorial Pacific, you can expect more of the same.

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