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A Warmer, Wetter Start to Winter in December

All Climate Blog Posts

Mar 12, 2013

CCMMS Students Return to Research at the SCO

For a few hours every week since October, the State Climate Office has welcomed two additional researchers: Miles Hunt and Maggie Loughlin, both eighth-grade students at Centennial Campus Magnet Middle School, who participated in the annual internship program now in its ninth year. Continuing in the tradition of past interns, Miles and Maggie each conducted…

Mar 1, 2013

Citizen Science Program Needs Your Help Observing the Weather!

Do you ever wonder how much rain a thunderstorm brought to your backyard, or how deep the snow was after a winter storm? If so, then you could be a great addition to a growing national network of amateur observers! CoCoRaHS — or the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow network — is a collection…

Feb 27, 2013

Upgrades to Wind Rose Tool

A wind rose is a graphical tool used to show wind speed and wind direction for a particular location over a specified period of time. The wind rose is divided into a number of spokes which represent the frequency of winds blowing from a particular direction. For example, the longest spoke on the wind rose…

Feb 20, 2013

Record Rainfall in the Mountains in January

The statewide statistics below highlight the relative wetness and warmth in January 2013. But those statewide numbers represent an average of extremes. Let’s start with rainfall: dry in the east, but record breaking wetness in the west. Statewide Average Precipitation: 5.47 inches (17th wettest since 1895)Statewide Average Temperature: 43.90°F (24th warmest since 1895) Extreme precipitation…

Feb 6, 2013

Climate Summary: 2012 By the Numbers

Now that all the numbers are in, we have sense as to how 2012 fits into our climate history for North Carolina. The statewide average annual precipitation of 46.2 inches ranked as the 32nd driest since 1895, and the average temperature of 60.35°F ranked as the 6th warmest since 1895. Here are some other interesting…

Jan 30, 2013

Groundhog Day is On the Way

After much of North Carolina saw wintry weather in recent weeks, many folks must be wondering whether there is more snow and ice to come or if warmer weather is on the way. Weather folklore enthusiasts may get their answer on Saturday from the lowly groundhog. Here in North Carolina, our resident rodent is Sir…

Jan 22, 2013

Wind Chill Tells the Tale of Bitter Winter Conditions

For those cold winter days when the wind seems to bite at your skin, meteorologists have developed a way to quantify the hold that the cold has on you. The first wind chill estimates were created by Paul Siple and Charles Passel, two Antarctic researchers in the 1940s who measured the cooling rate of a…

Jan 17, 2013

When is it Most Likely to Snow?

With the threat of snow for much of North Carolina in the forecast, we wondered how typical was the timing of this event. We often get asked about when the first snowfall for a region typically is – a question easily answered with our Climate Thresholds tool. For example, the most typical first day of…

Jan 15, 2013

A Warmer, Wetter Start to Winter in December

December brought welcome precipitation and relatively warm temperatures to North Carolina. Let’s review precipitation patterns first. Western and eastern parts of the state did quite well. Two major rain events (and a couple of smaller events) brought substantial amounts to the mountains and the coastal plain. However, much of central NC missed out on the…