March 2025

[LibertyBell]

6 minutes ago, weatherpruf said:

It was the ice on top; that was very rare, several inches of ice and so snow removal operations were stymied; I had to use a garden spade to dig out; people dug tunnels, in effect, in the urban areas to get their cars in and out, and it. stayed frozen for days. In Kocin's book, he has a phot of people trying to scale a wall of ice in Manhattan.

What I found so disappointing about that storm was having waited a whole decade for the successor to February 1983,  I wanted an area wide 20 inch blizzard.  My thirst wasn't satisfied until January 1996.

WABC7 on the day of the storm came in (as did 1010WINS radio) and said that the storm track had changed and it was now going to track over Montauk and we'd all get 20+ inches of snow, which didn't happen of course.

 

[LibertyBell]

On a different topic, I really hate the definition of *blizzard*

We should have a separate warning for *ground blizzard* which does not involve heavy snow falling.

And a separation definition for an *extreme blizzard* that involves at least 10 inches of snow falling in 12 hours or 20 inches of snow falling in 24 hours accompanied by high winds. And an *extreme snow warning* for that same amount of snow without the high winds.

 

[bluewave]

It would be good news if the new Euro seasonal wetter pattern into the summer verifies on the update today. But who really knows with these long range rainfall forecasts. One wild card could be how much warming we get in the ENSO regions.

https://charts.ecmwf.int/products/seasonal_system5_standard_rain?area=NAME&base_time=202503010000&stats=ensm&valid_time=202504010000

[LibertyBell]

Just now, bluewave said:

It would be good news if the new Euro seasonal wetter pattern into the summer verifies on the update today. But who really knows with these long range rainfall forecasts. One wild card could be how much warming we get in the ENSO regions.

https://charts.ecmwf.int/products/seasonal_system5_standard_rain?area=NAME&base_time=202503010000&stats=ensm&valid_time=202504010000

I'm not sure how many people like wet summers lol.  Average rainfall in summer is fine, but we really do not need more than 4 inches of rain in any month.

 

[LibertyBell]

1 minute ago, bluewave said:

It would be good news if the new Euro seasonal wetter pattern into the summer verifies on the update today. But who really knows with these long range rainfall forecasts. One wild card could be how much warming we get in the ENSO regions.

https://charts.ecmwf.int/products/seasonal_system5_standard_rain?area=NAME&base_time=202503010000&stats=ensm&valid_time=202504010000

By the way we are doing prescribed burns in Nassau County right now, this is what every county should be doing.

[bluewave]

30 minutes ago, LibertyBell said:

I'm not sure how many people like wet summers lol.  Average rainfall in summer is fine, but we really do not need more than 4 inches of rain in any month.

 

We will need steady rains in order to come out of this drought which has been going since late last summer. There is higher water demand in the warm season so drought and heat would lower the reservoir levels and lead to water restrictions which haven’t been in effect since 2002. Most people probably don’t want watering restrictions for their lawns. So hopefully we can see a relaxation and not intensification of this drought for much of the US.
 

 

[snowman19]

1 minute ago, bluewave said:

We will need steady rains in order to come out of this drought which has been going since late last summer. There is  higher water demand in the warm season so drought and heat would lower the reservoir levels and lead to water restrictions which haven’t been in effect since 2002. Most people probably don’t want watering restrictions for their lawns. So hopefully we can see a relaxation and not intensification of this drought for much of the US.
 

 

While water restrictions are definitely a very serious concern, I think the bigger issue is the wildfires we saw in the fall starting up again. Mid-late March is when brush fire season gets going and we are still in the same dry/drought boat we were in back in the fall

[FPizz]

Wind gusting into the mid-30s now. 

[LibertyBell]

16 minutes ago, bluewave said:

We will need steady rains in order to come out of this drought which has been going since late last summer. There is higher water demand in the warm season so drought and heat would lower the reservoir levels and lead to water restrictions which haven’t been in effect since 2002. Most people probably don’t want watering restrictions for their lawns. So hopefully we can see a relaxation and not intensification of this drought for much of the US.
 

 

I feel the same way about using 30 year climate averages for rainfall like you do for using them for temperatures, Chris.  Our average rainfall should be around 40 inches not the 48-50 inches the anomalous 30 year average states.  I like to use the 1951-1980 average for rainfall as well as temperatures. Or 1961-1990.

[LibertyBell]

14 minutes ago, snowman19 said:

While water restrictions are definitely a very serious concern, I think the bigger issue is the wildfires we saw in the fall starting up again. Mid-late March is when brush fire season gets going and we are still in the same dry/drought boat we were in back in the fall

We need more prescribed burns and get rid of this excess brush and foliage we don't need.

 

[steve392]

Winds absolutely howling outside.  Sounds like an old horror movie set in winter in my old house with the sounds it's making. 

[psv88]

Hate March because it’s always so windy. Hate the wind 

[Brian5671]

1 minute ago, psv88 said:

Hate March because it’s always so windy. Hate the wind 

At least it's mild today

[LibertyBell]

too cloudy.  Next week will be enjoyable

[LibertyBell]

3 minutes ago, psv88 said:

Hate March because it’s always so windy. Hate the wind 

The only time I like the wind is when it's raining or snowing.

[LibertyBell]

8 minutes ago, steve392 said:

Winds absolutely howling outside.  Sounds like an old horror movie set in winter in my old house with the sounds it's making. 

weird, I'm near the ocean and there's no wind here and we're usually the first to get the wind.

[Sundog]

7 minutes ago, psv88 said:

Hate March because it’s always so windy. Hate the wind 

I beg for a breeze in summer when it's 90/75 and the wind is completely dead. The air can get so stagnant and disgusting. 

[Allsnow]

12z gfs looks ugly for next week now 

[uofmiami]

18 minutes ago, psv88 said:

Hate March because it’s always so windy. Hate the wind 

This whole winter has been windy, why should spring be any different?  At least it's warmer out with the wind.

[psv88]

19 minutes ago, Sundog said:

I beg for a breeze in summer when it's 90/75 and the wind is completely dead. The air can get so stagnant and disgusting. 

Very rarely is there no breeze in the summer out here. Most days by 2/3 pm the sea breeze kicks in. The city is a different story. 

[SACRUS]

 

62 / 47 rai near by into EPA and WNJ.  Dries out Thu / Fri with a brief cool down this weekend.   Much warmer next week , but still need to watch warm/wet progression.

 

 

 

[MJO812]

17 minutes ago, Allsnow said:

12z gfs looks ugly for next week now 

Rainy and mild

[SACRUS]

 

Records:

Highs:

EWR: 75 (1976)
NYC: 72 (1880)
LGA: 72 (1976)
JFK: 66 (1985)


Lows: 

 

EWR: 9 (1948)
NYC: 3 (1872)
LGA: 9 (1948)
JFK: 14 (1978)


Historical:

1894: The low temperature of 36 degrees in San Diego, California, on this day was their lowest on record for March.

 

1959: In Iowa, the record-breaking snowstorm on March 4-6 began with light snow in western Iowa on the morning of the 4th, then spread across the state and intensified with heavy snow falling from the night of the 4th through the 5th and into the early morning on the 6th in eastern Iowa. The snowfall and its subsequent effects were less severe in western Iowa and grew progressively worse, moving eastward. In central Iowa, snowfall amounts were generally 6 to 10 inches. In contrast, in eastern Iowa, a swath of about 12 to 20 inches of snow fell roughly from Appanoose County through Tama County and northeast to Allamakee County. Reported storm total snowfall amounts included 12.9 inches at Waterloo, 14.5 inches at Decorah, 16.0 inches at Oelwein, 17.0 inches at Oskaloosa, 17.6 inches at Dubuque, 19.8 inches at Marshalltown, where 17.8 inches fell in just 24 hours, and 22.0 inches at Fayette where 21.0 inches fell in 24 hours. Winds strengthened steadily during the storm, with speeds reaching 30 to 50 mph at times and causing extensive blowing and drifting of snow. Drifts 6 to 10 feet deep were common, and in northeastern Iowa, a few locations reported drifts 15 to 20 feet deep.
 

1959: Near blizzard conditions occurred over northern and central Oklahoma. Up to seven inches of snow fell and winds up to 50 mph created snow drifts 4 to 8 feet deep. In Edmond, a bus slid off the road into a ditch and overturned, injuring 16 people. The image below is from Storm Data.
 

1960 - Eastern Massachusetts greatest March snowstorm of record began to abate. The storm produced record 24 hour snowfall totals of 27.2 inches at Blue Hill Observatory, 17.7 inches at Worcester, and 16.6 inches at Boston. Winds gusted to 70 mph. (3rd-5th) (The Weather Channel)

1962 - A tremendous storm raged along the Atlantic coast. The great Atlantic storm caused more than 200 million dollars property damage from Florida to New England. Winds along the Middle Atlantic Coast reached 70 mph raising forty foot waves, and as much as 33 inches of snow blanketed the mountains of Virginia. The Virginia shoreline was rearranged by historic tidal flooding caused by the combination of the long stretch of strong onshore winds and the Spring Tides. (David Ludlum)

 

1966: A plane crashes near Mount Fuji in Japan after severe turbulence. Aviation-safety.net said the probable cause was, "The aircraft suddenly encountered abnormally severe turbulence over Gotemba City, which imposed a gust load considerably over the design limit." All 124 people on board were killed in the crash.

 

1972: Palm Springs, California, recorded a high of 100 degrees, the earliest the city has ever hit the century mark. 

1987 - A storm in the western U.S. produced heavy rain and high winds in California. Up to six inches of rain soaked the San Francisco Bay area in 24 hours, and winds gusted to 100 mph at the Wheeler Ridge Pumping Plant near the Tehachapi Mountains. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)

1988 - While snow blanketed eastern Kansas and northern Oklahoma, eight cities in North Dakota reported new record high temperatures for the date. The afternoon high of 61 degrees at Bismarck ND was 27 degrees warmer than that at Chanute KS. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)

1989 - Thunderstorms produced severe weather in the southeastern U.S. A strong (F-2) tornado killed one person and injured six others in Heard County GA. A strong (F-3) tornado injured 23 persons and caused more than five million dollars damage around Grantville GA. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)

 

1989: A F2 tornado killed one person and injured six others in Heard County, Georgia. A stronger F3 tornado injured 23 persons and caused more than $5 million in damage around Grantville, Georgia.

1990 - Thunderstorms over eastern Colorado, developing ahead of a major storm system, produced up to three inches of small hail around Colorado Springs in the late morning and early afternoon. Strong thunderstorms swept through southeastern sections of the Denver area during the evening hours. These strong thunderstorms also produced up to three inches of small hail, along with wind gusts to 50 mph, and as much as 2.4 inches of rain. (The National Weather Summary) (Storm Data)

 

1998: A thunderstorm dropped dime to golfball size hail along its track from McLain to Leakesville, Mississippi. The most severe damage was around the city of Leakesville. Hail depth was six to twelve inches throughout the city. The elementary school in Leakesville reported hail drifts to the bottom of the school's windows.

[SACRUS]

 

March 5, 1981

NYC: 81 inches of snow
EWR: 8.5 inches of snow

 

[SACRUS]

March 5, 2001

 

The busted storm forecasts of 1 -3 feet of snow trended north

EWR: 3.1 inches of snow
EWR: 5.2 snow

[SACRUS]

 

March, 5 2015

NYC: 7.5 inches of snow
EWR: 6.7 inches of snow (wet snow ad changed from rain)   1.12 inches of Liquid

[Franklin0529]

9 minutes ago, MJO812 said:

Rainy and mild

We need it 

[SACRUS]

 

 

[snowman19]

42 minutes ago, Allsnow said:

12z gfs looks ugly for next week now 

After what the abysmal GFS just pulled for this weekend, it could tell me the sky is blue and I wouldn’t believe it

[Allsnow]

27 minutes ago, snowman19 said:

After what the abysmal GFS just pulled for this weekend, it could tell me the sky is blue and I wouldn’t believe it