NOUS41 KLWX 031111 PNSLWX PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BALTIMORE MD/WASHINGTON DC 600 AM EST MON MAR 3 2003 ...THE WINTER OF 2002/2003... THE WINTER OF 2002-03 WAS A SOLID SHOT FROM OLD MAN WINTER. IT WAS COLD AND SNOWY...AND WEATHER RELATED PROBLEMS SEEMED COMMONPLACE THROUGH MUCH OF THE SEASON. TO SEE HOW THIS WINTER RELATED TO OTHER WINTERS IN OUR PAST...A TRIP THROUGH OUR WEATHER RECORDS IS NECESSARY. OFFICIAL DAILY WEATHER RECORDS FOR WASHINGTON AND BALTIMORE DATE BACK TO SHORTLY AFTER THE CIVIL WAR IN THE 1870S. FIRST...IN WASHINGTON... IN TERMS OF TEMPERATURE...THIS SEASON WAS COLDER THAN AVERAGE. IT WAS NOT THE COLDEST WINTER EVER...BUT IT SEEMED LIKE IT AT TIMES. THAT WAS MAINLY BECAUSE IT WAS SO MUCH COLDER THAN THE WINTERS OF OUR RECENT PAST. THE LAST WINTER SEASONS THAT WERE THIS COLD WERE THE BACK TO BACK WINTERS OF 1976-77 AND 1977-78...A QUARTER CENTURY AGO. THROUGH RECENT MEMORY...OUT OF THE PREVIOUS FIVE WINTER SEASONS...FOUR OF THE FIVE RANK IN THE TOP 20 WARMEST. AFTER THAT WARM SPELL...IT IS EASY TO SEE HOW HAVING A WINTER THAT WAS COLDER THAN NORMAL SEEMED DOWNRIGHT FRIGID. FOR THOSE WHO LIKE MILD WEATHER IN THE WINTER...THERE WERE ONLY FIVE DAYS THE ENTIRE WINTER THAT WERE 55 DEGREES OR WARMER. COMPARE THAT WITH THE NEARLY THIRTY THAT WE HAD LAST WINTER. IN FACT...THE FIVE MILD DAYS THAT WE HAD WAS ONLY ONE SHY OF THE RECORD. THE LEAST AMOUNT OF 55 DEGREE DAYS ON RECORD WAS FOUR...SET ALMOST 100 YEARS AGO IN THE WINTER OF 1904-05. FURTHERMORE...THERE WERE THIRTEEN NIGHTS THAT FELL INTO THE TEENS AT REAGAN NATIONAL AIRPORT THIS WINTER. COMPARE THAT WITH ZERO NIGHTS IN THE TEENS LAST WINTER. STATISTICALLY THE WINTER OF 2002-03 WAS TIED FOR THE TWENTY-FIFTH COLDEST ON RECORD. SNOWFALL AND PRECIPITATION WAS WHERE THIS WINTER REALLY MADE ITS MARK. AFTER A PROLONGED DROUGHT...AN ACTIVE EL NINO FUELED WEATHER PATTERN HELPED TO FEED MOISTURE INTO THE ATMOSPHERE WHICH RESULTED IN 12.31 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION THIS WINTER. THAT WAS ENOUGH FOR THE 16TH WETTEST WINTER ON RECORD. AND AGAIN...THIS WAS EXTREME COMPARED WITH RECENT HISTORY. OUR MORE THAN TWELVE INCHES WAS FOUR TIMES THE PRECIPITATION FROM LAST WINTER AND DOUBLE WHAT WE HAD TWO YEARS AGO. IT IS EASY TO SEE...WITH THE EL NINO ENHANCED PRECIPITATION AND COLD CANADIAN AIR IN PLACE MUCH OF THE SEASON...WHY SNOW CAME BACK IN FORCE THIS WINTER. THERE WERE 19 DAYS WITH SNOW THIS WINTER. THAT WAS THE GREATEST NUMBER OF SNOW DAYS IN ALMOST SEVENTY YEARS. IT ALL BEGAN WITH A MODERATE SIX INCH SNOW STORM ON DECEMBER 5TH. THAT WAS FOLLOWED BY A FEW MINOR EVENTS IN DECEMBER AND JANUARY...THE BIGGEST BEING A THREE INCH EVENT ON JANUARY 5TH AND 6TH. THEN IN FEBRUARY...THE SNOW MACHINE REALLY BEGAN TO WORK. ANOTHER MODERATE SIX INCH EVENT ON THE 6TH AND 7TH TURNED OUT TO BE A PRELUDE TO OUR FIRST MAJOR SNOW STORM IN SEVEN YEARS. SNOW BEGAN ON THE 15TH AND CONTINUED OFF AND ON UNTIL THE 18TH. THE 16.7 INCHES THAT FELL PUT IT ON PAR WITH THE JANUARY 1996 BLIZZARD AND RANKED IT AS THE FIFTH GREATEST SNOW ON RECORD. INTERESTINGLY...IT HAPPENED ON THE TWENTY FOURTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE AREAS THIRD GREATEST SNOWFALL...THE MASSIVE PRESIDENTS DAY STORM OF 1979. WITH ALL OF THESE SNOW EVENTS...PLUS A FIVE INCH EVENT THAT LASTED FROM FEBRUARY 26TH-28TH...THE NUMBER OF DAYS WITH SNOW COVER ENDED UP COMPRISING NEARLY A THIRD OF THE WINTER. THERE WERE 28 DAYS WITH SNOW COVER THIS WINTER...THE MOST IN MORE THAN FORTY YEARS...SINCE 1960. IN ADDITION TO ALL THE SNOW....THERE WAS A MAJOR RAINFALL EVENT SHORTLY AFTER THE PRESIDENTS DAY SNOWSTORM. A PROLIFIC WEEKEND RAIN STORM LASTED FROM FEBRUARY 21ST THROUGH THE 23RD AND DUMPED TWO AND A HALF INCHES OF RAIN IN JUST 24 HOURS. THAT MARKS NATIONAL AIRPORT/S GREATEST 24 HOUR PRECIPITATION EVENT IN THREE AND A HALF YEARS...SINCE SEPTEMBER 1999. ALL IN ALL...THE WINTER OF 2002-03 WAS A COLD...SNOWY AND DAMP WINTER THAT WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR SOME TIME TO COME. ALSO...FOR BALTIMORE... IN TERMS OF TEMPERATURE...THIS SEASON WAS VERY COLD. IT WAS NOT THE COLDEST WINTER EVER...BUT IT SEEMED LIKE IT AT TIMES. THAT WAS MAINLY BECAUSE IT WAS SO MUCH COLDER THAN THE WINTERS OF OUR RECENT PAST. THE LAST WINTER SEASONS THAT WERE THIS COLD WERE THE BACK TO BACK WINTERS OF 1976-77 AND 1977-78...A QUARTER CENTURY AGO. WHEN COMPARED WITH LAST YEARS WINTER...THE TWO ARE NEARLY THE EXTREMES OF BALTIMORE/S WINTER POSSIBILITIES. THIS WINTER WAS OUR EIGHTH COLDEST...WHILE LAST WINTER WAS THE NINTH WARMEST. AFTER LAST WINTER...IT IS EASY TO SEE HOW HAVING A WINTER THAT WAS COLDER THAN NORMAL SEEMED EVEN MORE FRIGID. FOR THOSE WHO LIKE MILD WEATHER IN THE WINTER...THERE WERE ONLY FOUR DAYS THE ENTIRE WINTER THAT WERE 55 DEGREES OR WARMER. COMPARE THAT WITH THE TWENTY-SEVEN THAT WE HAD LAST WINTER. IN FACT...IT WAS THE LEAST AMOUNT WE HAVE HAD IN NEARLY SEVENTY YEARS...SINCE THE WINTER OF 1935-36. FURTHERMORE...THERE WERE THIRTY NIGHTS THAT FELL INTO THE TEENS AT BWI AIRPORT THIS WINTER...AND THREE THAT FELL INTO THE SINGLE DIGITS. COMPARE THAT WITH SIX AND ZERO RESPECTIVELY LAST WINTER. SNOWFALL AND PRECIPITATION WAS WHERE THIS WINTER REALLY MADE ITS MARK. AFTER A PROLONGED DROUGHT...AN ACTIVE EL NINO FUELED WEATHER PATTERN HELPED TO FEED MOISTURE INTO THE ATMOSPHERE WHICH RESULTED IN 14.25 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION THIS WINTER. THAT WAS ENOUGH FOR THE 10TH WETTEST WINTER ON RECORD. AND AGAIN...THIS WAS EXTREME COMPARED WITH RECENT HISTORY. OUR MORE THAN FOURTEEN INCHES WAS MORE THAN TRIPLE THE PRECIPITATION FROM LAST WINTER AND DOUBLE WHAT WE HAD TWO YEARS AGO. IT IS EASY TO SEE...WITH THE EL NINO ENHANCED PRECIPITATION AND COLD CANADIAN AIR IN PLACE MUCH OF THE SEASON...WHY SNOW CAME BACK IN FORCE THIS WINTER. THERE WERE 17 DAYS WITH SNOW THIS WINTER. THAT WAS THE GREATEST NUMBER OF SNOW DAYS IN ALMOST SEVENTY YEARS...AGAIN SINCE THE WINTER OF 1935-36. IT ALL BEGAN WITH A MODERATE SEVEN INCH SNOW STORM ON DECEMBER 5TH. THAT WAS FOLLOWED BY A FEW MINOR EVENTS IN DECEMBER AND JANUARY...THE BIGGEST BEING A THREE INCH EVENT ON JANUARY 5TH AND 6TH. THEN IN FEBRUARY...THE SNOW MACHINE REALLY BEGAN TO WORK. ANOTHER MODERATE SEVEN INCH EVENT ON THE 6TH AND 7TH TURNED OUT TO BE A PRELUDE TO AN EPIC STORM...OUR FIRST MAJOR SNOW STORM SINCE JANUARY 2001. SNOW BEGAN ON THE 15TH AND CONTINUED OFF AND ON UNTIL THE 18TH. THE 28.2 INCHES THAT FELL MADE IT THE GREATEST SNOW EVER RECORDED IN BALTIMORE. INTERESTINGLY...IT HAPPENED ON THE TWENTY FOURTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE AREAS SEVENTH GREATEST SNOWFALL...THE PRESIDENTS DAY STORM OF 1979. ALSO...FEBRUARY ENDED UP BEING THE SNOWIEST MONTH EVER RECORDED WITH JUST OVER FORTY INCHES IN ITS TWENTY-EIGHT DAYS. WITH ALL OF THESE SNOW EVENTS...PLUS A FOUR INCH EVENT THAT LASTED FROM FEBRUARY 26TH-28TH...THE NUMBER OF DAYS WITH SNOW COVER ENDED UP COMPRISING A THIRD OF THE WINTER. THERE WERE 31 DAYS WITH SNOW COVER THIS WINTER...THE MOST IN MORE THAN FORTY YEARS...SINCE 1960. IN ADDITION TO ALL THE SNOW....THERE WAS A MAJOR RAINFALL EVENT SHORTLY AFTER THE PRESIDENTS DAY SNOWSTORM. A PROLIFIC WEEKEND RAIN STORM LASTED FROM FEBRUARY 21ST THROUGH THE 23RD AND DUMPED MORE THAN TWO AND A HALF INCHES OF RAIN IN JUST 24 HOURS. THAT MARKS BALTIMORE/S GREATEST 24 HOUR PRECIPITATION EVENT IN A YEAR AND A HALF...SINCE AUGUST 2001. ALL IN ALL...THE WINTER OF 2002-03 WAS A COLD...SNOWY AND DAMP WINTER THAT WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR SOME TIME TO COME. $$ STRONG