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Our region's extreme run


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At 2:52 PM today, there was a temperature difference of 21 degrees between DCA (65) and IAD (44).  Not a record, as on both January 21, 1984 and January 28, 1987, the daily DCA/IAD minimums differed by 24 degrees (8 and minus 16, and 7 and minus 17, respectively). However, both of those occurred with significant snow on the ground at IAD and a clear night, and so radiational cooling was the source of the extreme difference in morning lows. Does anyone know what the record is for the largest afternoon difference, both at the same time and for the entire afternoon?  (IAD is still forecast to reach about 60 later today.)

It looks as if the IAD temperature peaked at about 52 this afternoon (and is now higher), so the afternoon difference between DCA and IAD was only about 13 degrees.  To my surprise, I found that the greatest difference in the daily maximum temperature at the two airports is four degrees higher.  That occurred on December 9, 1975, when DCA recorded a high of 53 and IAD 36.  So, today did not come close to that, although there is still the question of the greatest difference at the same time.  By the way, I found a third case of a 24-degree difference in the daily minimums, which occurred on February 13, 1983, when DCA recorded 16 degrees and IAD minus 8.

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Pretty interesting 2015-16 meteorological winter at DCA, as despite the blizzard and relative cold of January, the average temperature was 42.0 degrees -- good enough for an 8th place tie for warmest in DC history.  The last Super El Nino, in 1997-98, was the 6th warmest DC winter at 42.4 degrees.  However, that winter lacked the variability of this one, with a standard deviation from the average daily winter temperature of only 6.1 degrees, compared to 10.7 degrees this season.  In fact, this winter at DCA had the highest standard deviation since the winter of 1989-90, which came in at 11.1 degrees.    

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  • 2 weeks later...

High 82, low 40... that's a 42 degree spread. I wonder what the largest difference is ever recorded in one day? I feel like that's gotta be close?

Not sure about Baltimore, but in DC the record one-day spread is 50 degrees -- March 22 1907, when the temperature range was 90/40.

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Not sure about Baltimore, but in DC the record one-day spread is 50 degrees -- March 22 1907, when the temperature range was 90/40.

I looked to 2000, has happened a few times. Most recently in 2011, April 4.. 43/86.

 

Dulles actually has 5 above 50 but not that shocking for its location I suppose.

4/11/1977    87    33    54
4/3/1981     86    34    52
1/28/1987    35    -17   52
3/23/1994    83    32    51
4/18/1985    84    34    50
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I looked to 2000, has happened a few times. Most recently in 2011, April 4.. 43/86.

 

Dulles actually has 5 above 50 but not that shocking for its location I suppose.

4/11/1977    87    33    54
4/3/1981     86    34    52
1/28/1987    35    -17   52
3/23/1994    83    32    51
4/18/1985    84    34    50

That -17 35 is the coolest one on that list IMO

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I looked to 2000, has happened a few times. Most recently in 2011, April 4.. 43/86.

 

Dulles actually has 5 above 50 but not that shocking for its location I suppose.

4/11/1977    87    33    54
4/3/1981     86    34    52
1/28/1987    35    -17   52
3/23/1994    83    32    51
4/18/1985    84    34    50

That -17 35 is the coolest one on that list IMO

 

The temperature range at DCA that day was 7 to 32.  So, the maximum was 3-degrees higher at IAD, but the minimum was 24-degrees lower.  As previously mentioned on this thread, that is one of three times that there has been a 24-degree difference between the minimums at the two airports.  

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I looked to 2000, has happened a few times. Most recently in 2011, April 4.. 43/86.

 

Dulles actually has 5 above 50 but not that shocking for its location I suppose.

4/11/1977    87    33    54
4/3/1981     86    34    52
1/28/1987    35    -17   52
3/23/1994    83    32    51
4/18/1985    84    34    50

That -17 35 is the coolest one on that list IMO

 

Yes, literally.....lol.

That is an amazing swing, usually it requires a spring/fall sun and dry air to create numbers like that.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Pretty interesting 2015-16 meteorological winter at DCA, as despite the blizzard and relative cold of January, the average temperature was 42.0 degrees -- good enough for an 8th place tie for warmest in DC history.  The last Super El Nino, in 1997-98, was the 6th warmest DC winter at 42.4 degrees.  However, that winter lacked the variability of this one, with a standard deviation from the average daily winter temperature of only 6.1 degrees, compared to 10.7 degrees this season.  In fact, this winter at DCA had the highest standard deviation since the winter of 1989-90, which came in at 11.1 degrees.    

DCA astronomical (December 21-March 20) and composite (December 1-March 20) winters were even warmer, at 42.8 and 43.9 degrees, respectively.  Those averages were good enough for a 5th place tie and 3rd place, respectively, all-time in DC.  The comparable averages for 1997-98 were 42.5 and 42.4.  The warmest astronomical and composite DC winters each occurred during a weak La Nina in 2011-12, at 45.9 and 45.6, respectively. 

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BWI finished tied for 6th hottest March (50.0 degrees, +6.4 departure).

 

Did DCA or IAD make top ten?

Yes.  DCA averaged 53.5 degrees, which was 4th all time --  3.3 degrees cooler than March 2012.  IAD averaged 50.6 degrees, which was 2nd all time --  3.7 degrees cooler than March 2012.  

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  • 4 weeks later...

Final three days of April with maximums in the 50s at DCA marked the first time for anything like that since 1966, when the final four days had maximums ranging between 46-59.

Assuming that the temperature does not rise to 60 degrees before midnight, an all-time DC record will be set, with each day April 28-May 1 failing to reach 60.

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I just posted this on the Capital Weather Gang board:  " . . .11 straight days of measurable precipitation at DCA. .. According to my records, that sets the all-time DC record (back to 1871) for most consecutive days of measurable precipitation. I believe that the previous record was ten (twice: August 12-21, 1873 and July 17-26, 1938). During August 9-24, 1920, there were 16 straight days of at least a trace of precipitation, but only seven straight days of measurable."

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I just posted this on the Capital Weather Gang board:  " . . .11 straight days of measurable precipitation at DCA. .. According to my records, that sets the all-time DC record (back to 1871) for most consecutive days of measurable precipitation. I believe that the previous record was ten (twice: August 12-21, 1873 and July 17-26, 1938). During August 9-24, 1920, there were 16 straight days of at least a trace of precipitation, but only seven straight days of measurable."

Early morning rain at DCA extends the DC record measurable precipitation streak to 12 days.

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BWI had measurable rain today already so that's 15 days with any rainfall (including Trace amounts). The record for that is 17 days, from 3/31/1935 - 4/16/1935. There was only a Trace on May 9 so the measurable streak ended then.

 

If anyone from LWX is reading this, thanks for tracking the records in the Forecast Discussion page!

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BWI had measurable rain today already so that's 15 days with any rainfall (including Trace amounts). The record for that is 17 days, from 3/31/1935 - 4/16/1935. 

DC has that very same record.  I originally thought that the "any precipitation" record streak in DC was 16 (August 9-24, 1920), but I missed the 1935 streak. 

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