Weather 2015

[benben reincarnated]

So we had sleet until almost midnight last night, before turning to snow. Today we have almost 6" of snow and at the very bottom somewhere less than an inch of ice. Our intelligent city workers decided to scrape all the snow off the roads exposing just the ice. Driving home should be more fun than the drive in to work.

If they went back and put salt down after they plowed it, then you'll be golden, assuming you get home before the temps really drop this evening.

[Big J]

About a quarter inch of ice on the roads.  5 accidents, a couple of them flipped cars on 460 between a couple exits.  Wife is stuck at Panera and I'm stuck at work.   

[bmadd]

Have not seen the snow trucks, just plow trucks and a backhoe.

Chance of more snow throughout the rest of the day. Lows around 0 tonight. Sunny and 48 for Saturday

[Dougfish]

[bmadd]

Agreed. I'm ready to start complaining about how hot it is.

[JMiller]

Im kind of enjoying it. We got about 2 inches plus some ice underneath it. Roads are a total mess.
I live where I work, so I don't have the commute to worry about. Wife and kids are home, and we still have power this time. Can't complain.

Really wasn't too bad last time when the power was out. Fired up the wood stove and had plenty of hot coffee.


Gonna take the jeep out  here in a bit just to have a look around and buy some bunk carpet for the boat trailer.

[Big J]

This is my exit.  Only in the south.....

[natureboy]

Got hammered with snow here mid-day, hoping my trip over Brush and Gap Mountains is uneventful this evening... 

[Onslow]

Feb stats for Feb.

http://nc-climate.ncsu.edu/climateblog?id=123

[Native Fisher]

Got another 6" snow in the 'burg today.  The last snow of 12" had mostly melted away except for the piles after the rain yesterday and last night.  I could do with no more snow.  My back is tired of shoveling. 

[Onslow]

20 degrees in lower Elkin this morning.  I reckon there will be no need in thinning the peach trees this year.

[benben reincarnated]

22 degrees this morning.   Had a slight dusting of snow yesterday am at my house.  Mountains I could see from town still had snow on them this afternoon.  Hopefully winter's last breath.

[Onslow]

I've been hearing chatter about this Spring as cooler than average.  Perhaps cooler than the Spring of 2009, but not cooler than average.  Here are the NC numbers for April

April Showers Alleviate Lingering Dryness

Posted on May 4, 2015 by Corey Davis

After several months of dry weather in western North Carolina, April saw plenty of precipitation across that region along with above-normal temperatures across the state. The infographic below includes some statewide headlines from the past month. Click any underlined heading in the graphic to read more about that topic, or scroll down to read our full climate summary.

April 2015 Climate Summary


Temperatures Trend Above Normal

Our warm finish to March carried over into April, as the statewide average temperature of 59.31°F ranked as the 34th-warmest April since 1895. However, our average high temperatures in the low 70s were near-normal for April. So what caused the above-normal mean temperatures?

The culprit may be nighttime cloud cover, which kept our low temperatures on the warm side throughout the month. Average low temperatures ranked among the top ten warmest on record for April at many locations. That includes the seventh-warmest April based on average minimum temperatures in Raleigh and Charlotte, the fifth-warmest in Greenville, and the fourth-warmest in Greensboro.


Minimum temperature rankings for April 2015. (Data from the Southeast Regional Climate Center's Climate Perspectives tool)

Most of the state hasn't seen below-freezing temperatures since a minor freeze event on April 5. And barring a record-breaking May freeze like we had in 1963, it's likely that most of the state outside of the higher elevations in the mountains has seen its last spring freeze for 2015.


Regular Rainfall Blots Recent Dryness

Since last fall, our monthly precipitation summaries have probably sounded like a broken record: wet in the east, dry in the west. We finally reversed that trend in April, as needed rains soaked the western half of the state as well as a corridor from the Triangle across the central coast. The April average precipitation of 4.48 inches ranks as the 28th-wettest April on record.


Total precipitation for April 2015, from Multi-sensor Precipitation Estimates.

Parts of the state, including the Triad, had been classified under Abnormally Dry conditions by the US Drought Monitor since last summer. But April's rains -- including 6.14 inches in Charlotte, 7.95 inches in Jefferson, and an impressive 11.19 inches at Highlands in Macon County -- helped replenish soils and streams across the region.

The US Drought Monitor has removed all Abnormally Dry conditions from the state, effectively giving us a clean slate as we head into the summer.

What's behind the change in our rainfall pattern? It may be partly explained the building El Niño in the Pacific. Sea surface temperatures in the eastern equatorial Pacific warmed to more than a degree above normal during April, which means El Niño conditions are in place.

Although El Niño's spring and summertime influences on North Carolina are often much weaker than in winter, it can still have some impact. Many of our April rain events were due to an active southern branch of the jet stream, which is one common effect of El Niño events.

That doesn't mean we should expect more of the same for May, though. In its May precipitation outlook, NOAA's Climate Prediction Center puts North Carolina in an equal chance of seeing above- or below-normal precipitation. Their latest discussion notes that "the typical wintertime El Nino impacts [were] introduced into the outlooks... albeit at low probabilities."


Fire, Flooding, and Hail Among April's Hazards

An active weather pattern in April also meant several hazards. Early in the month, a wildfire started just east of Asheville near Black Mountain and Montreat, apparently the result of debris burning that was never properly extinguished. The so-called Weed Lane fire burned 740 acres between March 31 and April 8 before crews led by the NC Forest Service (and aided by the rain) got it under control.

Heavy rains on April 19 near Charlotte and Boone caused localized flooding. Accumulations of more than two inches in eight hours or less caused creeks to reach their flood stage, and several roads were closed due to high water.


Local Storm Reports from April 2015.

Several thunderstorm events during the month brought hail to some areas. On April 8 and 9, a particularly strong storm dropped up to two-inch hail as it moved from near Roxboro southeastward through Kinston and New Bern.

More storms on April 20 brought hail up to 1.25 inches in diameter near Charlotte and Winston-Salem. And in Raleigh, the month rounded out on April 30 with a brief but intense period of pea-sized hail, which covered the ground in some areas.

Despite the storms last month, no tornadoes were reported across the state. A tornado-free April isn't unusual -- 29 times since 1950, or 44% of all years, we've had no confirmed April tornadoes in North Carolina -- but April is also when we've seen some of the more widespread tornado outbreaks, including the record event from 2011.

[Onslow]

Weather roundup for May.

A Warm, Dry May Wraps Up a Similar Spring

Posted on June 1, 2015 by Corey Davis

May saw above-normal temperatures continue and a return of dry conditions, especially in western North Carolina. The infographic below includes some statewide headlines from the past month. Click any underlined heading in the graphic to read more about that topic, or scroll down to read our full climate summary.

May 2015 Climate Summary


May Heats Up Across the State

Last month's statewide average temperature of 67.76°F (1.42°F above the long-term average) made it the 29th-warmest May in the past 121 years. Several stations with shorter periods of record had one of their top-ten warmest Mays. That included Raleigh (9th warmest), Asheville (9th warmest), and Hickory (6th warmest).

Although above-normal maximum temperatures helped drive our warm May, we didn't see a preponderance of 90 degree days. Raleigh, Charlotte, Fayetteville, and Wilmington each had just two days at or above 90°F last month, and Greensboro has yet to hit 90 this year. That makes 263 days and counting since Greensboro's last 90° occurrence on September 11, 2014, which is the 38th-longest such streak on record. However, it's far from the record, which came from July 18, 1971, to July 18, 1972 -- a full year, or 366 days, between 90° readings in the Gate City.

Instead of widespread 90s, we saw many days with highs in the mid to upper 80s -- slightly above our normal May highs in the upper 70s or low 80s. That warm pattern was due in part to an upper-level ridge over the southeast that lingered for much of the month.


Dryness Returns to Western NC

That ridge also kept us dry. The statewide average precipitation of 2.66 inches (1.30 inches below the historical average) ranks as the 19th-driest May on record. Almost the entire state received less than 75% of its normal May precipitation, and the few wet spots along the coast received most of their rain from one event -- Tropical Storm Ana's landfall on May 10th.

The dry conditions were worst in the western and southern tiers, where many sites saw less than two inches of rain all month. Charlotte received just 0.32 inches of rain, which all came on a single day. That total ranks as the 2nd-driest May and the 9th-driest month since 1940 at the Charlotte Airport. Nearby Monroe recorded 0.34 inches of rain all month, making it their 3rd-driest May in the past 116 years.


Total observed precipitation in May. Map from the Climate Perspectives tool.

Even on the heels of a wet April, the warmth and dryness in May led to increased evaporation and a return of Abnormally Dry conditions. The US Drought Monitor's May 26th update included 49% of the state in those D0 conditions, although none of the state is officially in a drought quite yet. However, the clean slate for summer we discussed last month is quickly becoming etched by the recent dryness.


Spring was Warm, Dry, with Limited Severe Wx

Our wet April notwithstanding, this meteorological spring -- March, April, and May -- was warm and dry across the board. The preliminary rankings show it was the 38th-warmest and 39th-driest spring on record for North Carolina.

Springtime Severe Thunderstorm Warnings Issued by NWS Office
(Data from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet)
Office    2015    2014    2013    2012    2011    2010
Wilmington, NC    10    26    12    72    59    17
Newport, NC    10    23    3    29    18    1
Wakefield, VA    13    40    29    15    92    38
Blacksburg, VA    20    21    46    96    219    94
Raleigh, NC    39    63    20    92    107    49
Greer, SC    47    74    58    191    207    109

In some ways, periods of warm and dry weather are fairly typical this time of year as we begin to receive more of our precipitation from convective showers and thunderstorms, which tend to be fairly localized.

Although we did see storms popping up this spring, we didn't see many severe storms. The National Weather Service offices that forecast for all or part of North Carolina issued fewer than 50 severe thunderstorm warnings each over the past three months. As the table to the right shows, that's among the fewest in the past six years for each office.

There was also just one confirmed tornado all spring: an EF-1 near Bolton in Columbus County on May 21st. A waterspout was also reported to have come ashore on Roanoke Island on May 11th, causing tornado-like damage around Manteo.

From 1991 to 2010, we averaged about 12 tornadoes each spring, and May is historically our most active month for tornado activity, according to research by the Southeast Regional Climate Center. That puts this spring's tornado activity well below average as well.

What does the summer hold in store? In case you missed it, last week, we released our Summer and Tropical Outlook that includes a closer look at the developing El Niño and how it might affect our weather. Stay tuned throughout the summer as we cover whatever the weather has to offer.

http://nc-climate.ncsu.edu/climateblog?id=135

[bmadd]

Hell showed up in West Tennessee today.