February Weather Discussion. Wild Winter Storms?

[wxman57]

Encouraging signs on the latest GFS run as far as at least some warming in March. This is the first time that the 15-day GFS has predicted a SINGLE day with a high above 70F. I added the 70F line to the graphics (red) as well as the 32F line (blue) for reference.

To contrast this March, last march we had hit 80-85 degrees 7 times by March 13th, and 75F once.

[wxdata]

USA Today is reporting that on Feb 12, a scientist who works at an observatory atop Mauna Kea, Hawaii had found a few patches of snow that together would cover a table top. So indeed there was snow in all 50 states on Feb 12th! First time since January 1978

[Ptarmigan]

USA Today is reporting that on Feb 12, a scientist who works at an observatory atop Mauna Kea, Hawaii had found a few patches of snow that together would cover a table top. So indeed there was snow in all 50 states on Feb 12th! First time since January 1978

Well, at least Mauna Kea is covered in snow year around. 1978 was one of the coolest years for Texas and America. The late 1970s was cooler than normal, form 1976- 1979.

[wxdata]

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX
204 PM CST MON MAR 1 2010

...FEBRUARY 2010 ONE OF THE COLDEST ON RECORD...

...2009-2010 WINTER ALSO ONE OF THE COLDEST ON RECORD...

IF MARCH COMES IN LIKE A LION AND GOES OUT LIKE A LAMB...I GUESS
FEBRUARY CAME IN LIKE A PENGUIN AND WENT OUT LIKE A POLAR BEAR. IT
WAS COLD!!! MOST OF THE CLIMATE SITES SUFFERED AVERAGE TEMPERATURES
THAT WERE SEVEN TO EIGHT DEGREES COLDER THAN THE 30 YEAR CLIMATE
AVERAGES. DATA FOR HOUSTON AND GALVESTON GO BACK TO 1892 AND 1875
RESPECTIVELY SO HAVING THE 5TH COLDEST FEBRUARY IS RATHER
REMARKABLE. HERE ARE THE FIVE COLDEST FEBRUARIES ON RECORD FOR THE
PRIMARY CLIMATE SITES ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS:

AVERAGE MONTHLY TEMPERATURES
HOUSTON GALVESTON COLLEGE HOUSTON
STATION HOBBY

42.2 1895 42.6 1895 44.1 1905 46.3 1978
44.0 1905 45.6 1905 44.8 1929 48.8 1947
45.1 1978 47.0 1978 45.1 1978 49.3 2010
45.4 1899 48.6 1899 45.8 1936 49.4 1964
48.5 2010 49.7 1872 46.7 2010 49.7 1960
50.4 2010

ALTHOUGH SOUTHEAST TEXAS ENDURED COLD TEMPERATURES...DAILY
TEMPERATURE RECORDS WERE NEVER REALLY IN JEOPARDY OF BEING BROKEN.
IT WAS JUST A CONSISTENTLY COLD MONTH. HOUSTON ONLY HAD TWO DAYS
WITH AVERAGE TEMPERATURES WARMER THAN NORMAL. THIS COLD SPELL
BEGAN IN DECEMBER. TEMPERATURES FOR THE LAST 12 WEEKS HAVE JUST
BEEN COLD. MEASURING THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FROM DECEMBER 1
THROUGH FEBRUARY 28 YIELDS A THREE MONTH AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF
49.2 DEGREES FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON. THE 30 YEAR CLIMATOLOGICAL
AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE THREE MONTH PERIOD IS 53.6 DEGREES.
GALVESTON HAS HAD AN AVERAGE THREE MONTH TEMPERATURE OF 51.2
DEGREES WHICH IS 6.1 DEGREES COLDER THAN THE NORMAL DECEMBER
THROUGH FEBRUARY AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 57.3 DEGREES. COLLEGE STATION
HAD AN AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 47.5 DEGREES SINCE DECEMBER 1ST
2009. THE 30 YEAR NORMAL AVERAGE TEMPERATURE BETWEEN DECEMBER 1ST
AND FEBRUARY 28TH IS 52.3 DEGREES. BELOW ARE THE TEN COLDEST
DECEMBER 1 THROUGH FEBRUARY 28 FOR THE CITIES OF HOUSTON...
GALVESTON AND COLLEGE STATION:

AVERAGE TEMPERATURE DECEMBER 1 THROUGH FEBRUARY 28

HOUSTON GALVESTON COLLEGE
STATION

46.6 1977-78 50.1 1977-78 46.0 1978-79
48.3 1898-99 50.7 1904-05 46.2 1977-78
48.4 1976-77 50.7 1898-99 47.1 1972-73
48.5 1904-05 50.9 1963-64 47.3 1963-64
48.8 1983-84 51.2 2009-10 47.4 1976-77
49.2 2009-10 51.3 1976-77 47.5 2009-10
49.5 1978-79 51.7 1911-12 47.6 1983-84
49.7 1894-95 51.8 1962-63 47.9 1935-36
50.2 1972-73 51.8 1894-95 48.3 1904-05
51.0 1911-12 51.8 1880-81 48.6 1962-63

IN ADDITION TO THE COLD...THERE WERE TWO SNOW EVENTS THAT AFFECTED
THE NORTHERN THIRD OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS. THE FIRST SNOW EVENT
AFFECTED AREAS NORTH OF A BRYAN TO TRINITY ON FEBRUARY 11TH. 2 TO
4 INCHES OF SNOW FELL ALONG A MADISONVILLE TO CROCKETT LINE WITH
LIGHTER AMOUNTS TO THE SOUTH. THE SECOND SNOW EVENT OCCURRED ON
FEBRUARY 23RD AND AGAIN AFFECTED THE NORTHERN THIRD OF SOUTHEAST
TEXAS. 2 TO 4 INCHES OF SNOW FELL NORTH OF A BRENHAM TO TRINITY
LINE. CROCKETT RECEIVED OVER FIVE INCHES OF SNOW DURING THE MONTH
AND MADISONVILLE PICKED UP ABOUT 4 INCHES OF SNOW DURING FEBRUARY.

HERE ARE THE BRUTALLY COLD NUMBERS FOR THE PRIMARY CLIMATE SITES
AND SUPPLEMENTAL ASOS SITES FOR SOUTHEAST TEXAS (PUT ON A SWEATER
BEFORE READING):

SITE AVG AVG AVG DEP RAIN DEP SNOW
HIGH LOW MONTH

IAH 57.6 39.4 48.5 -6.9 3.55 +0.57 T
GLS 56.7 44.1 50.4 -7.6 3.47 +0.86 0
CLL 55.4 38.0 46.7 -7.8 2.77 +0.39 3.0
HOU 57.6 40.9 49.3 -8.4 3.38 +0.37 0
CXO 55.9 34.6 45.2 -8.3 3.24 +0.33 0.8
UTS 54.8 36.1 45.4 -7.6 1.98 -1.16 1.5
SGR 56.6 38.6 47.6 -8.4 2.94 -0.18 T
PSX 60.2 42.0 51.1 -4.7 4.53 +2.08 0
DWH 56.4 37.9 47.1 -7.8 3.68 +0.79 T
LBX 58.2 40.3 49.3 -7.0 3.55 -1.21 0
LVJ 59.6 42.1 50.8 -5.2 3.71 +0.89 0
HGX 57.1 39.7 48.4 -8.3 4.25 +0.80 0