Weather Service Releases Winter, 2008 Stats
The number crunchers over at the National Climatic Data Center in Asheville have released the final figures for Winter 2008, running from December through February. In the United States and around the world, it was the coldest winter recorded since 2001, with an average US temperature of 33.2 degrees–still .2 degrees above the 20th century average. Much of the country saw above-normal precipitation, leading to plenty of snow in the north and west.
In February, US temperatures were near average, and precipitation was above normal. It was the 84th wettest and 63rd warmest of 114 years measured. In general, the west was cooler than average, while the east was warmer. In Georgia, it was the 88th warmest winter recorded, with the warmest temperatures relative to average in the northwest and southeast corners of the state.
Winter precipitation was close to a record in a band of states stretching from Utah to New England. New York had its wettest winter ever, while Colorado, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Vermont had their second-wettest winters since records began in 1895. North Dakota had its 4th driest winter and Texas recorded its 11th driest winter. Georgia was above average in the rainfall department, although the northern part of the state was below normal and the southern part of the state was above.
Other interesting factoids from the winter:
- Concord, New Hampshire had over 100 inches of snow and Burlington Vermont recorded over 103 inches, both records. That’s over 8 feet of snow.
- In the west, mountain snowpack was 150% of normal. This is good news for communities dependent on the Colorado River, since the melting snowpack will supply water to the river basin and Lake Mead over the summer months.
- The winter’s weather was affected by the strong La Nina, which is expected to continue through spring. This may mean warmer than normal temperatures and less rainfall than normal in the southeast.