Grading the winter of 2013/14

[thunderbolt]

I will give it a - A ( I would have given it a A if we would have gotten one storm over 20 inches)

[Guest Pamela]

I will give it a - A ( I would have given it a A if we would have gotten one storm over 20 inches)

 

Throwing a zip code in might help...

[thunderbolt]

Langhorne pa

[Guest Pamela]

Langhorne pa

 

Looks like you are a little ways WSW of Trenton...might want to put that in your profile so your location can be quickly identified by readers...of course, if you are concerned about giving out your location...that is certainly up to you. 

[Absolute Humidity]

Solid A. Would be an A+ if we scored a HECS. Only 95/96 - 09/10 have that distinction.

[Animal]

B

Slightly above average snow. Nothing in March yet.

Temps have been chilly at times, but nothing historic for cold.

Snow - c+

Temp B

[BxEngine]

Above avg snow is a c+? What do you give an avg season, a D?

[WeatherX]

B+ here, Total accumulated snow, frequency of storms, the cold and sustained snowcover. Could still eek out an A- but that would require a late season event. Overall, a fantastic, memorable winter.

[SnoSki14]

This winter should score no lower than a B+ around this area. If you do then you have incredibly unrealistic expectations/standards. I generally like to grade met winter though so I don't really take into account storms that fringe around that time frame (usually because there are few if any significant events outside Dec-Feb), but if a storm is significant enough before or beyond met winter then my grade would go up a bit as a whole. 

 

I give it a B+ for met winter. 

 

Pros:

 

Persistent snow cover from late January through late February.

Generally below average temperatures Dec-Feb.

Numerous storm threats and snows, multiple 1" plus events and several moderate to significant events

Snowfall more than double seasonal average, historic (Top 10). 

 

Cons:

 

Several moderate to strong thaw periods (late December, mid January, mid February)

No major snow event (significant KU), at least 12"+ (not counting mid February storm due to long lull and rain in between front and back end)

Persistent though not necessarily extreme cold (failed to drop to and below zero, minimum was 2F). 

 

If we had one true MECS or higher event then that would have taken this winter into the A-/A range for sure. 

[TwcMan]

B+ with a pending chance at an A- if we get one more snowstorm....A+ if we end up getting two more haha

[uncle W]

A+

[Stormlover74]

This winter should score no lower than a B+ around this area. If you do then you have incredibly unrealistic expectations/standards. I generally like to grade met winter though so I don't really take into account storms that fringe around that time frame (usually because there are few if any significant events outside Dec-Feb), but if a storm is significant enough before or beyond met winter then my grade would go up a bit as a whole. 

 

I give it a B+ for met winter. 

 

Pros:

 

Persistent snow cover from late January through late February.

Generally below average temperatures Dec-Feb.

Numerous storm threats and snows, multiple 1" plus events and several moderate to significant events

Snowfall more than double seasonal average, historic (Top 10). 

 

Cons:

 

Several moderate to strong thaw periods (late December, mid January, mid February)

No major snow event (significant KU), at least 12"+ (not counting mid February storm due to long lull and rain in between front and back end)

Persistent though not necessarily extreme cold (failed to drop to and below zero, minimum was 2F). 

 

If we had one true MECS or higher event then that would have taken this winter into the A-/A range for sure. 

The problem with that criteria is you would never have a true A/A+ winter. 95/96 had a major thaw, 02-03 had a snowless January, and major warmup following PDII. 03/04 had a snowless February. 93/94 didn't have a true KU as the 2/8-2/11 events were relatively localized.

 

We're running 4.5-5 degrees below normal going back to January 1st. March kind of ruins the winter in that December, January and February were all well above normal snowfall wise we had 4 6"+ events and we had very impressive cold snaps in both January and February. Most impressive was the consecutive snowcover that was only repeated in 2010-11 from 12/26 through mid February. The amount of events in early to mid February that kept freshening up the snowpack was also pretty unprecedented.

 

Therefore because March has so far sucked as far as snow I give the winter an A-, but every other criteria as far as cold, snow, snowcover etc from Dec-Feb has been an A

[RutgersWx92]

I give it a B+.  Very good winter with a lot of moderate to significant events and almost always something to track, as well as the coldest temps I've experienced since I started closely following the weather (several subzero lows at home, one day with highs in the single digits).  Also very persistent snow cover from late January through early March (46 straight days of at least an inch on the ground in New Brunswick). 

 

But the one thing really lacking from this winter was a major or historic event of widespread 12+", and I consider that very important and pretty much a necessity for a winter to get an A rating in my book.  It was slightly frustrating because we came so close several times.  Also March has blown chunks; by the time we get this late in the season if it isn't going to snow, let it just be warm.  And we've had several missed opportunities.  If we do by some chance get a late season storm I may revise it to an A-.

[Juliancolton]

8.8/10... combination of cold and snow made it feel like a bona fide northcountry winter. Got my blockbuster 20.6" event in Feb, and a month later I still have 6" OTG. As others have expressed, I wish the last four weeks were more exciting in the snow department, but given the persistent cold and durable snowpack, I really can't complain.

[Rjay]

A. An 18"+ snow fall would have made it an A+. Otherwise, long lasting cold, more than double the season snowfall for my area and long lasting snow cover make this winter no less than an A. I don't understand anyone who grades this winter lower than an A.

[+SNfreak21]

A- Tracking snow since Early Dec, persistent cold and snow, felt like 1993-94, snowcover from Jan 21st- Early March, only thing that could make this an A+ is if there were a late season MECS like April 1982; or if we surpass 65" in NYC

[Juliancolton]

A. An 18"+ snow fall would have made it an A+. Otherwise, long lasting cold, more than double the season snowfall for my area and long lasting snow cover make this winter no less than an A. I don't understand anyone who grades this winter lower than an A.

It was kind of a short snow season. My first real event was December 14 and my last (presumably) was February 13. It would be like having a 15/9/5 hurricane season in which the final storm formed on September 8... nobody could say that's a bad season, but people will be bored when the last and typically most active several weeks are all shut-out.

[Zelocita Weather]

B+ here...only winters that exceed it are 93/94, 95/96, 10/11, and 02/03

Feb 15th and on was a disappointment and occasional but extreme torches especially in dec and jan

[jm1220]

I'd give it a B+ for my backyard. January and early Feb were great, but after the first week of Feb my luck began to run out, after getting shafted on Feb 13th with a little more than half the snow that three towns away had due to tons of rain and sleet, and numerous misses and underperformers thereafter. But any winter with double the snow average and with well below average temperatures all winter can't be judged badly. I have 54" for the winter as of today.

[Rjay]

I'd give it a B+ for my backyard. January and early Feb were great, but after the first week of Feb my luck began to run out, after getting shafted on Feb 13th with a little more than half the snow that three towns away had due to tons of rain and sleet, and numerous misses and underperformers thereafter. But any winter with double the snow average and with well below average temperatures all winter can't be judged badly. I have 54" for the winter as of today.

Does it get an A- from you if you lived 10 miles morth lol? That Feb 13th storm was brutal for anyone south of Merrick Road.

[uncle W]

it used to be if KNYC got 40" for the season it was an A+...The last 21 years have five winters with over 50" of snow...three of the last five had over 50"...We are being spoiled...before 1993-94 there were five 50" winters in over 60 years...only 17 times since 1869 KNYC had over 50" of seasonal snowfall...This year was also cold with more days below freezing than most of the 50" winters...

[WintersGrasp]

Question here.....do you think that maybe it's a start to a much snowier period in and around NYC ?

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[Stormlover74]

Question here.....do you think that maybe it's a start to a much snowier period in and around NYC ?

Sent from my iPhone

We've been in a very snowy period since 2002 and especially since 2009

[WintersGrasp]

We've been in a very snowy period since 2002 and especially since 2009

That's exactly what I'm saying. I mean a start to a snowier period as in a change to the average snow overall.....usually those types of things change long term with fluctuations, but if it's extreme enough and in a shorter period of time, large variances I guess could mean more

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[Stormlover74]

That's exactly what I'm saying. I mean a start to a snowier period as in a change to the average snow overall.....usually those types of things change long term with fluctuations, but if it's extreme enough and in a shorter period of time, large variances I guess could mean more

Sent from my iPhone

Hard to say. We could be in a snowy period that might last another 5 to 10 years but some feel if the climate continues to change we'll eventually warm to the point where we start to see fewer and fewer snowy winters

[WintersGrasp]

Hard to say. We could be in a snowy period that might last another 5 to 10 years but some feel if the climate continues to change we'll eventually warm to the point where we start to see fewer and fewer snowy winters

Something else on that note.....I would think as the climate changes and we warm gradually year after year, that would mean stronger storms and more snow at least during the transition period (however long that may be)

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[Stormlover74]

Something else on that note.....I would think as the climate changes and we warm gradually year after year, that would mean stronger storms and more snow at least during the transition period (however long that may be)

Sent from my iPhone

Yep. I keep saying with all the extremes we've had I fully expect another blizzard of 96 type storm..maybe even worse.. in the next decade. A storm that stalls and just blasts us for 3 days like 78 did to new england.

[JC-CT]

8.8/10... combination of cold and snow made it feel like a bona fide northcountry winter. Got my blockbuster 20.6" event in Feb, and a month later I still have 6" OTG. As others have expressed, I wish the last four weeks were more exciting in the snow department, but given the persistent cold and durable snowpack, I really can't complain.

That would be a B+.

[jm1220]

Yep. I keep saying with all the extremes we've had I fully expect another blizzard of 96 type storm..maybe even worse.. in the next decade. A storm that stalls and just blasts us for 3 days like 78 did to new england.

Or like Sandy did in October 2012. The one thing I'd be most concerned about would be more Perfect Storms like Sandy. Although it's hard to say if the pattern would favor more progressive or blocky patterns-a blocky pattern allowed Sandy to happen. A progressive pattern would have more frequent moderate storms but nothing huge.

[RutgersWx92]

it used to be if KNYC got 40" for the season it was an A+...The last 21 years have five winters with over 50" of snow...three of the last five had over 50"...We are being spoiled...before 1993-94 there were five 50" winters in over 60 years...only 17 times since 1869 KNYC had over 50" of seasonal snowfall...This year was also cold with more days below freezing than most of the 50" winters...

40" isn't terribly uncommon and certainly not worthy of an A+.  A grade that good would require record-breaking cold, record-breaking or near record-breaking snow, and at least one HECS.

 

Also I could be wrong but I have to believe that most of the 50" winters NYC has had have seen at least one widespread 12+ inch storm throughout the area which this winter lacked...