nzucker Posted February 7, 2011 Share Posted February 7, 2011 Yes there was a big snow event on Mar 15-16th I think. You can't always go by the typical teleconnection index theme that late in the season. The wave lengths have changed quite a bit by then. February/March 1967 were absolutely ridiculous...we had a 70" season here after basically no snow in December and January. Of course last year was almost the same.....we had 48" of our 68" seasonal total in February with the 2/10 storm and Snowicane leading the way. I still don't think that storm can ever be beaten in my backyard, just absolutely ridiculous snowfall rates with windy conditions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ORH_wxman Posted February 7, 2011 Share Posted February 7, 2011 February/March 1967 were absolutely ridiculous...we had a 70" season here after basically no snow in December and January. Of course last year was almost the same.....we had 48" of our 68" seasonal total in February with the 2/10 storm and Snowicane leading the way. I still don't think that storm can ever be beaten in my backyard, just absolutely ridiculous snowfall rates with windy conditions. There was 77.4" of snow after Feb 1st here that season...no other year can match it. Not even 2001, 1993, 1958, or 1956 which were some heavy hitters late in the season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncle W Posted February 7, 2011 Author Share Posted February 7, 2011 snow depth as of yesterday was still 15" in Central Park...11" Newark...15" is the same as the day before...It was 45 and Sunny with no snow melt???...Doesn't seem right...I'm estimating 10" is left in Central Park now...I hope we get an accurate reading today... 44 straight days now with at least an inch or more of snow depth and counting...After this week it might melt completely if there are no reinforcements... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sundog Posted February 7, 2011 Share Posted February 7, 2011 snow depth as of yesterday was still 15" in Central Park...11" Newark...15" is the same as the day before...It was 45 and Sunny with no snow melt???...Doesn't seem right...I'm estimating 10" is left in Central Park now...I hope we get an accurate reading today... 44 straight days now with at least an inch or more of snow depth and counting...After this week it might melt completely if there are no reinforcements... There are some cold days and cloudy days mixed in this week. I think we can hold on to the snowcover, albeit minimally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jconsor Posted February 7, 2011 Share Posted February 7, 2011 Down to 13" snow cover at Central Park as of this morning. The 15" was as of 7AM Sunday. Sat was cloudy and cool with temps in the mid 30s - temps only briefly warmed into the low 40s for a few hours after sundown. Central Park saw about the same amount of snow melt as surrounding sites (LGA, JFK, Bridgeport) between Sat morning and Mon morning: http://www.crh.noaa....TP&issuedby=OKX http://www.crh.noaa.gov/product.php?site=OKX&issuedby=OKX&product=RTP&format=CI&version=3&glossary=0 snow depth as of yesterday was still 15" in Central Park...11" Newark...15" is the same as the day before...It was 45 and Sunny with no snow melt???...Doesn't seem right...I'm estimating 10" is left in Central Park now...I hope we get an accurate reading today... 44 straight days now with at least an inch or more of snow depth and counting...After this week it might melt completely if there are no reinforcements... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncle W Posted February 7, 2011 Author Share Posted February 7, 2011 Down to 13" snow cover at Central Park as of this morning. The 15" was as of 7AM Sunday. Sat was cloudy and cool with temps in the mid 30s - temps only briefly warmed into the low 40s for a few hours after sundown. Central Park saw about the same amount of snow melt as surrounding sites (LGA, JFK, Bridgeport) between Sat morning and Mon morning: http://www.crh.noaa....TP&issuedby=OKX http://www.crh.noaa....on=3&glossary=0 thanks...I was using the local climate data...we had an all day rainfall and a Sunny mild day and only lost 2"?... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormlover74 Posted February 7, 2011 Share Posted February 7, 2011 I measured yesterday afternoon and still had 11-12" IMBY, but in areas that dont get direct sunlight so melting was much slower. we had that inch of ice on top as well to melt through. So despite rain and temps in the mid 40s I only lost a few inches. Thankfully had some good melting in my driveway/sidewalk where the ice buildup was nuts. thanks...I was using the local climate data...we had an all day rainfall and a Sunny mild day and only lost 2"?... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jconsor Posted February 7, 2011 Share Posted February 7, 2011 The ice added on top of the snow pack last week may have made it more durable. JFK, BDR and Yorktown Heights, NY (Westchester County) also only lost 2" of snow pack between Sat morning and Mon morning. LGA lost 3", and Newark, NJ lost 4". thanks...I was using the local climate data...we had an all day rainfall and a Sunny mild day and only lost 2"?... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tamarack Posted February 7, 2011 Share Posted February 7, 2011 1966-67 was an epic late season winter---- Feb-Mar unparalleled combo. Add to that an epic Dec, with 2 storms of 7" each plus the 12/24 thundersnow. Measured 30"+ in Dec,Feb,Mar in NNJ. The St.Pattie's Day megaclipper dumped a quick 6" with temp down to 8F during the snowfall, then our high on 3/18 was just 11 or 12, and the low on 3/19 was -3. The NYC high of 20 for 3/18 is, I think, their latest high of 20 or below. The cappers were 1.5" on 4/24 (as a cold rain was exiting) and 3.0" on 4/27, latest I saw measurable snow in NJ. Then co-workers fishing in N.Central PA in early May had to cope with 2" of snow/sleet, and in late May a strong northeast storm kept temps in the mid-40s (normal high then was about 75) while toppling some newly foliated trees. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncle W Posted February 7, 2011 Author Share Posted February 7, 2011 Add to that an epic Dec, with 2 storms of 7" each plus the 12/24 thundersnow. Measured 30"+ in Dec,Feb,Mar in NNJ. The St.Pattie's Day megaclipper dumped a quick 6" with temp down to 8F during the snowfall, then our high on 3/18 was just 11 or 12, and the low on 3/19 was -3. The NYC high of 20 for 3/18 is, I think, their latest high of 20 or below. The cappers were 1.5" on 4/24 (as a cold rain was exiting) and 3.0" on 4/27, latest I saw measurable snow in NJ. Then co-workers fishing in N.Central PA in early May had to cope with 2" of snow/sleet, and in late May a strong northeast storm kept temps in the mid-40s (normal high then was about 75) while toppling some newly foliated trees. After the St. Patricks Day storm the melting snow from the streets was evaporating and it looked like steam was coming from the streets...3/14-15 had a surprise snow and sleet event...3/17 had 3" of powder...3/21-22 had 10" of snow that wasn't wet...Not to mention the storm that was over 3" of rain the beginning of the month that was snow in the north country...There were a few record high temperatures the first half of the month and again April 2nd... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KEITH L.I Posted February 7, 2011 Share Posted February 7, 2011 After the St. Patricks Day storm the melting snow from the streets was evaporating and it looked like steam was coming from the streets...3/14-15 had a surprise snow and sleet event...3/17 had 3" of powder...3/21-22 had 10" of snow that wasn't wet...Not to mention the storm that was over 3" of rain the beginning of the month that was snow in the north country...There were a few record high temperatures the first half of the month and again April 2nd... yep..Feb and March 67 rocked in this area.I became best friends that winter with the lampost across the street.the winter of 66-67 really got me into weather..beginning with the snowstorm Christmas eve..my favorite winter as a kid! ..the chilly weather lasted into the spring..my first met game was a doubleheader against the Phillies in mid April..it was in the 40's all day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncle W Posted February 7, 2011 Author Share Posted February 7, 2011 yep..Feb and March 67 rocked in this area.I became best friends that winter with the lampost across the street.the winter of 66-67 really got me into weather..beginning with the snowstorm Christmas eve..my favorite winter as a kid! ..the chilly weather lasted into the spring..my first met game was a doubleheader against the Phillies in mid April..it was in the 40's all day if you told me it was going to be... 66 degrees 12/9 part of four straight days 60 or better... 56 12/18 53 1/8 68 1/24...part of four straight warm days... 58 2/2 60 2/15 64 3/3 72 3/11 63 3/14 81 4/2 I would have thought snowfall would end up below average... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A-L-E-X Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Add to that an epic Dec, with 2 storms of 7" each plus the 12/24 thundersnow. Measured 30"+ in Dec,Feb,Mar in NNJ. The St.Pattie's Day megaclipper dumped a quick 6" with temp down to 8F during the snowfall, then our high on 3/18 was just 11 or 12, and the low on 3/19 was -3. The NYC high of 20 for 3/18 is, I think, their latest high of 20 or below. The cappers were 1.5" on 4/24 (as a cold rain was exiting) and 3.0" on 4/27, latest I saw measurable snow in NJ. Then co-workers fishing in N.Central PA in early May had to cope with 2" of snow/sleet, and in late May a strong northeast storm kept temps in the mid-40s (normal high then was about 75) while toppling some newly foliated trees. Very underrated winter and reading about it, it would have to be one of my favorites. A weak la nina that produced hypersnowfall totals, like 1995-96. It was actually the record setting winter at Upton, prior to 1995-96, with 75" of snow, of which 30" + inches fell in Feb and Mar (each!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A-L-E-X Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 if you told me it was going to be... 66 degrees 12/9 part of four straight days 60 or better... 56 12/18 53 1/8 68 1/24...part of four straight warm days... 58 2/2 60 2/15 64 3/3 72 3/11 63 3/14 81 4/2 I would have thought snowfall would end up below average... Not very different from 1995-96 in that an extended thaw happened in January. The summers prior to those winters were both torchers too If you had to ask which snow season months I would have taken, for November I'd want 1995, for December I would have picked 1966 over 1995, for January I would have picked 1996, for February and March I would want 1967 and for April, 1996. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jconsor Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Amazingly, Central Park still has 11" of snow cover - the wooded nature of that site seems to give it an advantage over nearby airports. Central Park now has 14 consecutive days with at least 10" of snow cover, and has a decent shot at tying the all-time record of 16 days. Keep in mind that the original streak of 16 days was achieved in late Dec-early Jan 1947-48. To achieve such a streak in late Jan-early Feb is much tougher than late Dec-early Jan due to the sun angle. Except for Central Park and parts of the North Shore of Suffolk County, nearly all areas of metropolitan NE NJ, NYC and LI have less than 10" of snow cover. Many areas in SW CT and the Lower Hudson Valley still have around 15". Current snow cover reports: http://forecast.weat...TP&issuedby=okx Yesterday's snow cover: http://forecast.weat...on=2&glossary=0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uncle W Posted February 8, 2011 Author Share Posted February 8, 2011 Amazingly, Central Park still has 11" of snow cover - the wooded nature of that site seems to give it an advantage over nearby airports. Central Park now has 14 consecutive days with at least 10" of snow cover, and has a decent shot at tying the all-time record of 16 days. Keep in mind that the original streak of 16 days was achieved in late Dec-early Jan 1947-48. To achieve such a streak in late Jan-early Feb is much tougher than late Dec-early Jan due to the sun angle. Except for Central Park and parts of the North Shore of Suffolk County, nearly all areas of metropolitan NE NJ, NYC and LI have less than 10" of snow cover. Many areas in SW CT and the Lower Hudson Valley still have around 15". Current snow cover reports: http://forecast.weat...TP&issuedby=okx Yesterday's snow cover: http://forecast.weat...on=2&glossary=0 I have about 6" left with huge piles still...1947-48 had one great storm while we have two so far this year...I had a record of dailey max snow depth but it was lost on easternwx...One of these days I'll reconstruct it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gravitylover Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I'm not feeling too confident that what's left, though substantial, has much staying power left in it unless it really locks up quickly today. The front is coming through right now and the temp is dropping quickly with a stiff breeze to dry the surface moisture so we'll see. On my drive home last night it was pretty obvious that the nature of the snowpack has changed. The ice cap got "aerated" yesterday in the sun and rain so now it's ready to release I think. I don't know if the city will hold on more than a few more days unless this cold snap really goes to town. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A-L-E-X Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Amazingly, Central Park still has 11" of snow cover - the wooded nature of that site seems to give it an advantage over nearby airports. Central Park now has 14 consecutive days with at least 10" of snow cover, and has a decent shot at tying the all-time record of 16 days. Keep in mind that the original streak of 16 days was achieved in late Dec-early Jan 1947-48. To achieve such a streak in late Jan-early Feb is much tougher than late Dec-early Jan due to the sun angle. Except for Central Park and parts of the North Shore of Suffolk County, nearly all areas of metropolitan NE NJ, NYC and LI have less than 10" of snow cover. Many areas in SW CT and the Lower Hudson Valley still have around 15". Current snow cover reports: http://forecast.weat...TP&issuedby=okx Yesterday's snow cover: http://forecast.weat...on=2&glossary=0 Thanks for those links! Do you have one for where we can get snowcover reports for the whole area (I'd like to see how much they have on the north shore of Suffolk County, maybe some places still have around 20"?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jconsor Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 You'd have to ask some of the North Shore Suffolk posters how much they have. I would think both William in Port Jeff. and NorthShoreWx in Smithtown have somewhere between 12-15" on the ground, because they both had 26" right after the Jan 26-27 event (a few more inches than Central Park). Thanks for those links! Do you have one for where we can get snowcover reports for the whole area (I'd like to see how much they have on the north shore of Suffolk County, maybe some places still have around 20"?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthShoreWx Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 Amazingly, Central Park still has 11" of snow cover - the wooded nature of that site seems to give it an advantage over nearby airports. Central Park now has 14 consecutive days with at least 10" of snow cover, and has a decent shot at tying the all-time record of 16 days. Keep in mind that the original streak of 16 days was achieved in late Dec-early Jan 1947-48. To achieve such a streak in late Jan-early Feb is much tougher than late Dec-early Jan due to the sun angle. Except for Central Park and parts of the North Shore of Suffolk County, nearly all areas of metropolitan NE NJ, NYC and LI have less than 10" of snow cover. Many areas in SW CT and the Lower Hudson Valley still have around 15". Current snow cover reports: http://forecast.weat...TP&issuedby=okx Yesterday's snow cover: http://forecast.weat...on=2&glossary=0 14" here this morning. We've been loosing about an inch a day during the past few days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sundog Posted February 8, 2011 Share Posted February 8, 2011 I walked through the southwest part of the park today and there was around 7 or 8 inches of snow on the ground. Granted this was snow exposed to the sun. I don't know what it looks like where they take the official depth but 3 or 4 inches difference between different parts of the same park seems pretty steep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nzucker Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 I walked through the southwest part of the park today and there was around 7 or 8 inches of snow on the ground. Granted this was snow exposed to the sun. I don't know what it looks like where they take the official depth but 3 or 4 inches difference between different parts of the same park seems pretty steep. It's not steep at all...it's very understandable. You get massive differences in the snowpack in February depending on which direction the area faces, how exposed it is to sunshine, and whether it can radiate below freezing on the warmer nights. As the sun angle increases, so do the variations in the snow cover. For example, here in Southern Westchester, there are south-facing areas in downtown Dobbs Ferry with basically no snow cover at all...if you go into the wooded parts of town, you'll find at least a foot on the ground, by contrast. The highest north-facing wooded sections at 400' elevation have spots that are nearly 18" deep with snow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jconsor Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 I wouldn't expect Central Park's snow pack to fully melt until the warm spell next week. No way 11 inches of snow pack will melt in "a few days" with highs near 30 and lows in the teens to near 20. I'm not feeling too confident that what's left, though substantial, has much staying power left in it unless it really locks up quickly today. The front is coming through right now and the temp is dropping quickly with a stiff breeze to dry the surface moisture so we'll see. On my drive home last night it was pretty obvious that the nature of the snowpack has changed. The ice cap got "aerated" yesterday in the sun and rain so now it's ready to release I think. I don't know if the city will hold on more than a few more days unless this cold snap really goes to town. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gravitylover Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 I wouldn't expect Central Park's snow pack to fully melt until the warm spell next week. No way 11 inches of snow pack will melt in "a few days" with highs near 30 and lows in the teens to near 20. Like I said " unless this cold snap really goes to town." The thing about it is the surface, after recrystallizing a few times, has more surface area now and more air pockets for warm air to pool in and do it's dirty work. It's also covered with a grayish film which helps it to absorb sunlight even more and warm the top layer. As the top layer melts off and condenses a bit more each day that dirty layer gets thicker and more productive. Even with daytime temps a few degrees below freezing the melting will continue. We'll see how it goes starting on Friday but unless we get a refresher soon I think the park will be showing big open spaces by Monday or Tuesday at the latest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthShoreWx Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 13" here as of this AM. I'm blown away by the fact that ISP is reporting 3". They are only 10 miles SSE from here. We have some thinner spots in the usual places, but even the most exposed spot that usually melts out first looks like it still has at least 6". Can anyone from the Bohemia / Holbrook area weigh in on their snowcover? In the interest of full disclosure, I'm not doing a lot of sampling. I have 2 snowstakes in the front about 10 - 12 feet from each other in a flat open area that are roughly 30 feet from the nearest tree, drivaway, house, etc. I just view them out the window for a quick read of snow depth. Essentially, the snow stakes are in same area where I put the snow boards. There is a well packed trail running out there tramped down and refilled and tramped down again many times since December. I'm curious to see if I am left with a monorail when the snow around it melts. It was definitely a different kind of winter around here through late Janaury. Much more typical since, although we still have the Dec-Jan snows laying around and slowly eroding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A-L-E-X Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 It's not steep at all...it's very understandable. You get massive differences in the snowpack in February depending on which direction the area faces, how exposed it is to sunshine, and whether it can radiate below freezing on the warmer nights. As the sun angle increases, so do the variations in the snow cover. For example, here in Southern Westchester, there are south-facing areas in downtown Dobbs Ferry with basically no snow cover at all...if you go into the wooded parts of town, you'll find at least a foot on the ground, by contrast. The highest north-facing wooded sections at 400' elevation have spots that are nearly 18" deep with snow. Youre right..... We definitely have to factor in UHI and the composition of the surface and its albedo, because the sun heats up different surfaces differently, just using air temp to determine snow melt rate is far too simplistic. Some of my lawn is already bear and the rest has a couple inches of snowcover at best. This has not much to do with snowfall, as much as it does the amount of exposure to the sun and the albedo and specific heat of the surface upon which the snow has fallen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jconsor Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 The relative lack of trees/wooded areas on the South Shore definitely hurts their snow cover. Also, areas within 5 miles of the South Shore torched into the mid-upper 40s after last Wed's ice storm when the warm front busted through. Most importantly, however, ISP and most areas on the South Shore were well behind the Smithtown/Port Jeff. areas on snow cover even before the big Jan 26-27 storm. ISP only had 5" on the morning of Jan 26, and peaked at 18" on the morning of Jan 27. If I recall correctly, you had about 12" on Jan 26 and 26" on Jan 27. 13" here as of this AM. I'm blown away by the fact that ISP is reporting 3". They are only 10 miles SSE from here. We have some thinner spots in the usual places, but even the most exposed spot that usually melts out first looks like it still has at least 6". Can anyone from the Bohemia / Holbrook area weigh in on their snowcover? In the interest of full disclosure, I'm not doing a lot of sampling. I have 2 snowstakes in the front about 10 - 12 feet from each other in a flat open area that are roughly 30 feet from the nearest tree, drivaway, house, etc. I just view them out the window for a quick read of snow depth. Essentially, the snow stakes are in same area where I put the snow boards. There is a well packed trail running out there tramped down and refilled and tramped down again many times since December. I'm curious to see if I am left with a monorail when the snow around it melts. It was definitely a different kind of winter around here through late Janaury. Much more typical since, although we still have the Dec-Jan snows laying around and slowly eroding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isotherm Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 So NYC has 10" as of this morning, and if they make it until tomorrow with a 10" depth, they'll tie the all time record of 16 consecutive days w/ 10"+ snowpack. Not sure what the overall trend line has been at Central Park, but I'd assume that today's cold temps and relative cloudiness prevented much if any melting. Going to be close. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jconsor Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 One of the best measures of the overall winter snow pack is Snow Depth Days (SDD), which is simply the sum of each day's snow depth for the entire winter. In terms of SDD, this winter has now moved into the #2 spot all time for Central Park, with 438 SDD as of this morning. (Note: If you use Uncle W's method of the maximum snow depth for a day instead of the 7AM snow depth measurement, we are now at 463 SDD.) Beating 1947-48 will be very difficult at this point. We should rack up about another 40 SDD before the current snow pack melts. The top 5 are: 1) 1947-48: 648 2) 2010-11: 438 3) 1960-61: 431 4) 1995-96: 370 5) 1993-94: 335 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A-L-E-X Posted February 9, 2011 Share Posted February 9, 2011 The relative lack of trees/wooded areas on the South Shore definitely hurts their snow cover. Also, areas within 5 miles of the South Shore torched into the mid-upper 40s after last Wed's ice storm when the warm front busted through. Most importantly, however, ISP and most areas on the South Shore were well behind the Smithtown/Port Jeff. areas on snow cover even before the big Jan 26-27 storm. ISP only had 5" on the morning of Jan 26, and peaked at 18" on the morning of Jan 27. If I recall correctly, you had about 12" on Jan 26 and 26" on Jan 27. Its more than that though-- it also has to do with the surrounding area and the composition of the surface underneath the snow. For example, EWR had a snowpack of 6" a few days ago when NYC was 13" The sun can make some surfaces heat up much faster-- hence the faster snow melt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.