Friday, December 4, 2009

Record Heat on East Coast

For other record temperature posts, see:
Record Heat
Record Cold


Daily high temperature records were set from Maine to Florida on December 3:
A RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 63 DEGREES WAS SET AT BANGOR ME YESTERDAY.   
THIS BREAKS THE PREVIOUS RECORD OF 60 SET IN 1932.

A RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 68 DEGREES WAS SET AT THE PORTLAND
JETPORT TODAY. THIS SHATTERS THE OLD RECORD OF 55 DEGREES SET IN
1986.

THE 68 DEGREE READING WAS THE 4TH WARMEST EVER RECORDED AT THE
PORTLAND JETPORT IN THE MONTH OF DECEMBER. HERE IS A LIST OF THE
WARMEST DECEMBER TEMPERATURES AT THE JETPORT...

RANK TEMPERATURE DATE

1 71 DEGREES DECEMBER 6, 2001
71 DEGREES DECEMBER 7, 1998
3 69 DEGREES DECEMBER 4, 1982
4 68 DEGREES DECEMBER 3, 2009 <===
5 66 DEGREES DECEMBER 1, 2001
66 DEGREES DECEMBER 23, 1990
7 65 DEGREES DECEMBER 4, 1998
8 64 DEGREES DECEMBER 12, 1979
9 62 DEGREES DECEMBER 1, 1962
10 61 DEGREES DECEMBER 1, 2006
61 DEGREES DECEMBER 2, 1998

A RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 65 DEGREES WAS SET AT CONCORD NH
TODAY. THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD OF 60 SET IN 1932.

THE HIGH TEMPERATURE AT THE BURLINGTON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT IN
SOUTH BURLINGTON VERMONT WAS 59 DEGREES THIS AFTERNOON. THIS
BREAKS THE OLD RECORD OF 56 DEGREES SET ON THIS DATE IN 1982.

THE HIGH TEMPERATURE AT KNAPP STATE AIRPORT IN MONTPELIER VERMONT
WAS 59 DEGREES THIS AFTERNOON. THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD OF 52
DEGREES SET ON THIS DATE IN 1982.

THE HIGH TEMPERATURE AT THE FAIRBANKS MUSEUM IN SAINT JOHNSBURY
VERMONT WAS 54 DEGREES THIS AFTERNOON. THIS TIES THE RECORD
PREVIOUSLY SET ON THIS DATE IN 1970.

THE TEMPERATURE PEAKED AT 69 DEGREES AT LOGAN AIRPORT IN EAST BOSTON
MA AT 206 PM.

THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD OF 65 DEGREES DATING BACK TO 1932. THE
NORMAL HIGH FOR DECEMBER 3RD IN BOSTON MA IS 46 DEGREES.

THE TEMPERATURE PEAKED AT 67 DEGREES AT THE BLUE HILL OBSERVATORY
IN MILTON MA AT 1 PM.

THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD OF 61 DEGREES SET IN 1950 AND 1932. THE
NORMAL HIGH FOR DECEMBER 3RD IN MILTON MA IS 43 DEGREES.

A RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 64 DEGREES WAS SET AT BRIDGEPORT CT
TODAY. THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD OF 61 SET IN 1998.

ON THURSDAY...DECEMBER 3...2009...THE TEMPERATURE REACHED 62 DEGREES
AT ALBANY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AT 1051 AM EST. THIS SETS A NEW
RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURE FOR THE DATE. THE PREVIOUS RECORD HIGH
TEMPERATURE WAS 58 DEGREES...SET IN 1998.

A RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 68 DEGREES WAS SET AT WILMINGTON DE TODAY.
THIS TIES THE OLD RECORD OF 68 SET IN 1998.

A RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 66 DEGREES WAS SET AT WALLOPS ISLAND
VA TODAY. THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD OF 64 SET IN 1991.

THE MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE TODAY AT FORT LAUDERDALE INTERNATIONAL
AIRPORT REACHED 89 DEGREES AT 1:40 PM EST. THIS BREAKS THE RECORD
HIGH TEMPERATURE FOR DECEMBER 3RD...PREVIOUSLY 87 DEGREES SET IN
1921. THIS ALSO IS JUST ONE DEGREE SHY OF TYING THE ALL TIME RECORD
HIGH TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH OF DECEMBER...WHICH IS 90 DEGREES SET
ON DECEMBER 8, 1919.

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Record November Rainfall in Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia


Update: The National Climatic Data Center also reports that all-time November daily precipitation records were set on the 10th through the 12th from the remnants of Tropical Storm Ida:
               Amount  Previous record Date
Virginia
Lynchburg 2.81" 2.54" Nov. 29, 1934
Danville 2.67" 2.58" Nov. 9, 1962
Norfolk 4.90" 3.31" Nov. 21, 1952
Richmond 3.51" 3.00" Nov. 24, 1959
North Carolina
New Bern 3.99" 3.57" Nov. 22, 2006
Elizabeth City 4.33" 3.54" Nov. 2, 1969
South Carolina
N. Myrtle Beach 3.63" 3.33" Nov. 21, 2005
Georgia
Columbus 5.44" 4.15" Nov. 25, 1992
Atlanta 4.05" 3.98" Nov. 12, 1935
Original post:
November rainfall smashed monthly records by a wide margin in central and southeastern Virginia, according to the National Weather Service:
A RECORD MONTHLY MAXIMUM RAINFALL OF 9.20 INCHES WAS SET AT NORFOLK
VA IN NOVEMBER 2009. THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD OF 7.01 SET IN 1951.

A RECORD MONTHLY MAXIMUM RAINFALL OF 9.60 INCHES WAS SET AT RICHMOND
VA IN NOVEMBER 2009. THIS BREAKS THE OLD RECORD OF 7.64 SET IN 1959.

Image (click to enlarge): Virginia precipitation departure from average in November 2009, from NWS

Colbert Challenges Copenhagen Climate Change Conference, Considers CRU Crack

Stephen Colbert interviews Prof. Dan Esty of Yale on the upcoming Copenhagen Climate Conference, and discusses the email hack at the Climate Research Unit (CRU) of the University of East Anglia:

The Colbert ReportMon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Something Is Melting in Denmark - Dan Esty
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full EpisodesPolitical HumorU.S. Speedskating

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

More Winter Weather Outlooks

See here for other seasonal forecasts, including the current winter energy forecast.

Bob Ryan and his colleagues Veronica Johnson, Tom Kierein, and Chuck Bell at WRC-TV, Channel 4, give their 2009-2010 winter outlooks for Washington, DC. Bob's forecast: colder and snowier than average.

View more news videos at: http://www.nbcwashington.com/video.




Howard Bernstein, Kim Martucci, and Topper Shutt at WUSA-9 are predicting near-average temperatures and above-average snowfall.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Toronto Sets November Snow Record

Toronto finished November 2009 without as much as a trace of snow. That's the first time in 70 years of official records that there has not been any snow in November. Unofficial records indicate that this may have broken a 162-year record. Average snowfall in Toronto for the month is 8 cm. (3.2").

Light snow was observed this morning from 3 to 5 am at Toronto's Pearson Airport.

Image (click to enlarge): Ski slope at Dagmar Ski Resort east of Toronto on November 30, from CTV

Syracuse Shatters Snowless Streak

Dec. 3 Update: The total December snowfall through 5 pm today is a trace. The forecast calls for a 40% or lower chance of snow showers through Tuesday (the 8th).

PM Update: Today's precipitation through 5 pm is 0.01" with a trace of snow. The next chance of snow showers is Thursday night into Friday, with increasing chances on Saturday.

Original post:
Here's a record that will be hard to break: Monday was the 279th consecutive day without an inch or more of snow in Syracuse, NY. The last time 1" fell was February 24. The old record was 276 days from February 28th through November 30, 1946. The third place record is 273 days from March 23 through December 21, 1998.

Average snowfall in Syracuse is 11.1" in November; the lowest amount was a trace in 1966 and 1998. This year's total of 0.6" is the fifth lowest since 1950. Records in Syracuse go back to 1902.

The latest forecast calls for snow showers with accumulations around an inch on Tuesday.

Monday, November 30, 2009

AMS Responds to Service-of-Denial Climate Hack

The American Meteorological Society (AMS) has issued a statement in response to the recent deniosphere blog storm over the theft and distribution of emails and documents from the Climate Research Unit (CRU) of the University of East Anglia. The AMS reaffirms its commitment to its Statement on Climate Change, originally drafted in late 2006:
It was developed following a rigorous procedure that included drafting and review by experts in the field, comments by the membership, and careful review by the AMS Council prior to approval as a statement of the Society. The statement is based on a robust body of research reported in the peer-reviewed literature.
The AMS also points out that the artificial controversy generated by the out-of-context quoting of selected emails carries virtually no weight in light of the existing body of climate science:
For climate change research, the body of research in the literature is very large and the dependence on any one set of research results to the comprehensive understanding of the climate system is very, very small. Even if some of the charges of improper behavior in this particular case turn out to be true — which is not yet clearly the case — the impact on the science of climate change would be very limited.
The University of East Anglia updated its statement on the issue on Saturday.

The Economist has an analysis of the hack in its Nov. 26 edition: Mail-strom

Dr. Jeff Masters of Weather Underground relates the hack to the mud-slinging industry in his blog: The Manufactured Doubt industry and the hacked email controversy

Image: From The Economist

Seasonal Outlook

Latest seasonal forecast: Click here.


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