It's SPRING! Is the cold gone?

Lots of people are asking about the cold and snow. There is fear in their minds about "the other shoe dropping" as they say. I'm not so sure there is another show to drop. Perhaps what we have here is a one-legged man.

Consider the fact that the days are getting longer. That means more daily sunshine which will quickly warm the atmostphere. Also, as AccuWeather forecaster Henry Margusity points out today, there is virtually no snow on the ground east of the Rocky Mountains. (See the snow cover map at left.) Generally there is snow on the ground this time of year and that keeps the cold air blowing down from the north cold. It's like a refrigerator affect. Well, with no snow to keep the air masses cool, they will continue to moderate, as they have been, as they move across the upper midwest.

So, I would say, don't sit around nervously awaiting a massive cool down and snow storm.  Yeah, temperatures will likely drop back into the 50s for a few days now and then, but that would just be normal for this time of year.

Relax and Enjoy!

Warm...Warm...Cooler

Map courtesy of AccuWeather

Normal daytime highs for this time of year are in the mid 40s. Well, if you checked out the forecast for the next two weeks, then you know that we are going to be well above that almost every day. The next two weeks look freightenly warm...daytime highs in the upper 50s to upper 60s.  It's kinda scary to see those kind of temperatures this early in the year. I hate to talk about them because I fear I will jinx us. However, there is a change likely as we head into the last week of March. At the moment it appears that we should be heading back to more normal temperatures...at least for the week. Even at that, there is no massive cold outbreak on the horizon.

A mild March is on the way

I must admit that I have been remis in posting on the blog this winter. I've just had a really difficult time getting excited about it. If you enjoy extremes, like most weather people do, then this one has been a sleeper. The only way it's been extreme is in the fact that nothing much has happened. I don't see that changing a lot in the near future.

Let's review February.  We had snow, but no earth-shattering snowstorms to speak of. As for temperatures, we averaged 4.7 degrees above normal at Akron/Canton Airport. 68 was the highest and we got that one thanks to "Leap Day". Our low for the month was 12 on February 11th.

So, what's in stor for March? Not much is going to change. It looks like a few cool days to start things of, but as we get into the 2nd and 3rd weeks, we look for temperatures to average above normal. (The maps below begin on Sunday the 4th so you can project out the 1-5, 6-10, and 11-15 day forecasts.) Our normal daytime high at the beginning of the month is 41. By the time we get to the end of March we should be hitting 53. That's a 12 degree jump in normal during the 31 day period.  So, with temperatures forecast to average near to above normal, you gotta feel pretty good about what is coming up.  To be sure, we will still have some cold days, but as with the previous parts of winter, they will be short-lived.

Enjoy!

(Forecast maps courtesy of AccuWeather)