Hello and happy Tuesday everyone – we’re one day closer to the big feast – YUM! Can you believe it’s already the end of November? Holiday decorations are being erected all over the place, Christmas music is beginning to trickle onto local radio stations and local TV commercials are flooding the air waves with Black Friday specials…. YIKES!!! I know may have travel plans this week, but to be honest it doesn’t look all that bad. November is a special month because the temperature difference from north to south (Meteorologists refer to this as “Baroclinicity”) is quite extreme and generally, the stronger/tighter the temperature gradient, the more intense the storm system can be. Again, November can feature noteworthy and memorable storms, we just haven’t had such this year. The only potential travel trouble spots this year will be in the Upper Midwest/Great Lakes and in the Northwest. The image below shows the threats Wednesday night – early Thursday morning near Minnesota and Wisconsin:
Pacific Northwest threats on Thursday include more rain along the coast and some light accumulations in the higher elevations of the Cascades and Olympics. A parade of storms has been battering the west all month long and this just in… The Cascade Mountains (Located near Portland, OR and Seattle WA) are experiencing the snowiest November on Record and we’ve still got a few days left of the month. Whistler Mountain in British Columbia, CA (where the 2010 Winter Olympic skiing events will be held in February) also is experiencing the snowiest November on record. To date, the Whistler Blackcomb Ski Resort has seen 207″ of snow this season!
Hope you enjoy the Thanksgiving graphics, we’ll keep them coming, so keep coming back, ok!
Enjoy the rest of your Tuesday!
Meteorologist Todd Nelson – Weather Nation LLC
It’s hard to imagine living in a time where all you had was a shelter and blankets to keep you warm in winter. I’m not talking about Florida or Arizona “winters” … we’re talking about the real deal: heavy snow, frigid winds and sub-zero temperatures. Let’s go back to 1620… when the Pilgrims arrived to the shores of Massachusetts.
The Pilgrims were at the mercy of Mother Nature–chugging along in the small, 180 ton ship known as the Mayflower. The weather dictated where they landed. On November 19, 1620, the Pilgrims approached Monomoy Point, MA, but the shallow waters proved to be much to dangerous. They took a northward path. South winds picked up which allowed them to complete their journey safely. On a clear day, the Pilgrims arrived to Provincetown Harbor on November 21, 1620 after 65 days at sea. However, the Pilgrims were not oblivious to what Winter is like in this new land. William Bradford said it best:
“Being thus passed the vast ocean, and a sea of troubles before in their preparation,
they had now no friends to welcome them or inns to entertain or refresh their weather-
beaten bodies; no houses or much less towns to repair to…And for now it was Winter,
and they that know the winters of that country know them to be sharp and violent, and
subject to cruel and fierce storms, dangerous to travel to known places, much more to
search and unknown coast.”
Experts have deemed the winter of 1620 and 1621 as mild, but there were reports of harsh weather. An early December storm brought in snow and very cold air. Bradford described the ground as covered with snow and frozen. Six inch snow depths were reported as well. In mid December, another Arctic blast seemed to take over the area as the Pilgrims exploration party continued their venture around the Cape Cod Bay. From the descriptions, it sounded like an ice storm–Bradford described their coats as being “glazed” with ice. Winds then shifted and south flow allowed temperatures to ease. Nonetheless a mix of rain and snow impacted the area on that mid-December day.
However, records indicate that the Pilgrims were pretty lucky that season. Thomas Dudley of Massachusetts Bay wrote the following: “a calm winter, such as was never seen here since.” December ended mildly. January was moderate. Some sleet and snow was reported in early February, but mild weather returned before Spring began early. Pretty fortunate, hm?
Let’s not forget, however, that Winter was the dreaded enemy of these explorers. Many of them would not survive long at all-mainly due to disease. There is no official record of the next winters, but it’s no secret that it was difficult. Again, I have a hard time envisioning myself in a little shack with a blanket trying to get through a night of blustery, snowy weather… but some made it. And thus, Thanksgiving was born.
Susie Martin
WeatherNation Meteorologist
AK Temperatures Today
We all know Alaska can get cold. That’s no secret! Did you know that today, and for the past couple of days, Alaska has recorded the coldest global temperatures? A frigid air mass has been parked on top of Alaska for the past few days and it has resulted in record cold. Bettles Airport reported a temperature of -45.4° which was actually colder than any temperature coming out of Antarctica. The coldest temperature in Antartica today (up to this point) is -44° in Vostok–still no match for Bettles. Thursday morning, Alaska reported new record low temperatures:
Bettles: -47° (previous record: -46° in 1993)
Tanana: -45° (previous record: -42° in 1948)
King Salmon: -12° (previous record: -11° in 1989)
While the cold will ease up a bit this weekend, Alaska will still be frigid until the beginning of next week. Meanwhile, back in the “mainland,” November has been extremely mild. We haven’t seen any of those signature Arctic air masses rolling into the northern tier of the country (excluding Alaska, of course). The jet stream has persistently staying to the north of the U.S., which hasn’t allowed colder air to dive down south. In fact, you may recall that “cut-off low” that impacted the Midwest and Northeast. Cut-off lows occur when the jet stream retreats north. The jet stream is a conveyor belt for storm systems–it’s how they travel from west to east. Sometimes, however, storm systems are left behind and lose their ability to move rapidly since the jet stream leaves them behind. This allows for a storm to remain over the same area for days. They tend to meander around a particular region resulting in prolonged periods of rain and dreary weather.
Nonetheless, mild weather continued today. November temperatures have perpetually been running 10° – 20° above the average for a lot of the country.
U.S. Highs Today
U.S. Average Temperatures Today
Don’t worry. We will eventually get those arctic air masses. For now, just enjoy this mild weather for what it’s worth.
Susie Martin
WeatherNation Meteorologist
Southern Texas received a good soaking rain this morning and despite areas of flooding, the downpours were a welcomed sight. The parched landscape of south Texas has been enduring one of the worst droughts in recent years. Corpus Christi’s rainfall deficit exceeds 16 inches for the year. Rainfall amounts have been between 4-10 inches along the Texas coastal bend. This is truly like liquid sunshine! The heaviest rain has moved east but the area still has another shot at rain later today as a cold front passes.
Checking out the latest drought monitor from the National Weather Service, areas of exceptional drought still exist (highest drought level category) but the real estate that is considered to be in a drought has substantially shrunk since the summer. San Antonio, for example, has caught up on their rainfall and is now only 2 inches below normal for the year.
July to November comparison of the drought conditions in Texas. Notice that the exceptional drought conditions have dramatically decreased.
Heavy snow and high wind can be expected this weekend from the Cascades to the Northern Rockies. Below is the current snow depth across the country. Normally, there is at least SOME snow east of the Rockies by now. The unusually mild November has resulted in plain old rain events for the Midwest and Northeast. However, a reality check arrives next week as temperatures plummet into the 30′s and the snowflakes begin to fly just in time for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Thanksgiving Forecast:
Enjoy the weekend!
Kristin Clark
WeatherNation Meteorologist
Imagine for a moment that you live in a place where the sun never rises above the horizon. No sunlight for days…65 days to be exact. In addition to no sunlight, the mercury in neighborhood thermometers fails to rise above 0°F from January though February. This cold, dark place does exist. Anyone want to take a trip to Barrow, Alaska? Barrow is the northern most city in the United States and is known for being one of the coldest places on Earth. The coldest temperature ever recorded in Barrow was -56°F on February 2, 1924. Brr! Those that call Barrow, Alaska home are one hearty bunch!
Barrow, Alaska. Jessica K Robertson (vog.sgsu@nostreborj), U.S. Geological Survey
Anyways, today happens to be a big day in Barrow because it’s the last sunrise and sunset. The sun rose at 12:48 PM and set at 1:36 PM. The sun hung low in the horizon for a whopping 12 minutes! As the winter solstice draws near (December 21) the sun will begin to appear at it’s farthest point south of the Earth’s equator. The Arctic Circle, including Barrow, tilts away from the sun so far that the sunrise/sunset occur below the horizon. This is due to the Earth’s 23° tilt on it’s axis and yearly orbit around the sun.
The sun will eventually re-appear January 23. But during those 65 days of no sunlight, the atmosphere will cool considerably. One would probably expect the coldest month to be January. However, because there is a lag in time between the cooling of the ground and the air that is in contact with the ground, the coldest month is February. The January average temperature in Barrow is -13.7°F and in February it is -16°F. Pretty cool (or should I say cold?) stuff.
Kristin Clark
WeatherNation Meteorologist
