Today in New York Weather History: December 17

 

 

Dec. 17 is the average date of the first high temperature of 32° or colder (based on the period 1970-2020).  It's happened as early as Nov. 22 (in 2008) and Nov. 23 (1989), and as late as Jan. 20 (1986).  In more than half of the years the first high of 32° or colder was 31° or 32°, but it's been as cold as 20° (which happened in the winter of 2007-08, when it occurred late, on Jan 3).   

 

1904 (Saturday)

A snowfall of six inches (three inches this evening, three inches tomorrow morning) came four days after a snowfall of seven inches.

 

1919 (Wednesday)

Four days after the temperature reached 61°,  tonight, shortly before midnight, the mercury dropped to one degree above zero.  This was the first of fifteen days this winter with lows in the single digits or colder.

 

 

1932 (Saturday)

Snow that began late in the morning continued through early morning on 12/18, amounting to 7.2".  Today's temperatures were also very cold, with a high/low of only 21°/10°.  (The snow was gone by Christmas Day, which had a high of 59°.)  The next measurable snowfall wouldn't be for another seven weeks (2/4).

 

1951 (Monday)

Today's frigid high/low of 20°/8° (22 degrees below average) would be the coldest day of the winter.  Skies were clear.

 

1971 (Friday)

This was the twelfth day in a row with above average temperatures.  During these dozen days temperatures were ten degrees above average.  Even after passage of a cold front early this morning, and temperatures falling throughout the day, the mean temperature was five degrees above the norm.  This stretch of mild weather followed a two-week period of colder than average weather. 

 

1973 (Monday)

The epic ice storm that began yesterday afternoon continued through this morning.  Conditions were worse than yesterday as sleet and freezing rain fell at an even heavier rate.  In total, 1.46" of precipitation fell - all in the form of sleet or freezing rain.  The temperature stayed below freezing all day, and by midnight had fallen to 17°. 

 

 

1996 (Tuesday)

Light showers through early afternoon amounted to 0.12".  This was the 146th day this year with measurable precipitation, establishing 1996 as the year with the most days of precipitation in the 20th century, passing 1972, the previous crown holder.  And there would be six additional days of precipitation before the year ended.  (The average number days of precipitation per year is 121.)

 

1998 (Thursday)

Today was the 25th day in a row with above-average temperatures.  During this stretch of mild days temperatures were ten degrees above normal.  (This would be the mildest December since 1984.)

 

 

 

2000 (Sunday)

Today's high of 62° was a record for the date, just one of five days with above-average temperatures during a December that was quite cold (5.5 degrees below average) - the coldest since 1989. 

 

2001 (Monday)

This was the 18th day in a row in which no low temperature was duplicated.  During these days (beginning on Nov. 30) they ranged between 32° and 58° - all above average.

 

2012 (Monday)

Only three degrees separated the day's high (43°) and low (40°) on a raw, "gloomy Gus" kind of day. 

 

2013 (Tuesday)

Light snow, occasionally mixed with sleet, fell throughout the daytime hours and amounted to 1.5".  This was the fourth snowfall of the past ten days, totaling 8.6".  Three of these snow "events" delivered one-inch+ - the most such snowfalls in December since 2005.  Besides being snowy, the ten days since 12/8 were also quite cold, with the average high/low of 35°/26° nearly eight degrees below the norm.  

 

 

2015 (Thursday)

It was a mild and rainy day.  The 1.25" of rain that was measured in Central Park fell mostly between 11 AM and 4 PM.  This was the eighth day in a row that had a mean temperature more than 10° degrees above average.  The average high/low during these days was 63°/52° - nineteen degrees above average.

 

2016 (Saturday)

Six days after the first measurable snow of the winter (0.4"), today saw the first snowfall of one inch or more as 2.8" accumulated between 4-8 AM.  Then it changed to sleet, then to freezing rain, all of which was over by noon.  (By contrast, last winter's first one-inch snowfall wasn't until 1/23 - the blizzard that buried the City under its biggest snowfall on record.)

 

 

2018 (Monday)

Light wraparound showers in the wee hours of the morning (amounting to just 0.03"), remnants from yesterday's rainstorm, made this the 152nd day this year with measurable precipitation, tying 1996 for the all-time record.  What distinguishes 2018 from 1996 is that its total precipitation for the year was more than five inches above 1996's (with two weeks remaining in 2018).

 

2021 (Friday)

Just three days after Central Park registered its lowest humidity level in December this century (20% later in the afternoon), today had an even lower humidity level - 14% (also during late afternoon).  As low as this was, it was twice as high as the 7%  humidity reported on 4/6 of this year.

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February 2015 - One of New York's Coldest Months on Record

 

 

Through mid-February, it appeared this would be the coldest February since 1979, but as incursions of Arctic cold continued unabated through the second half of the month, it ended up being even colder than that February.  (February 1979 was brutally cold until the last six days of the month when temperatures were eight degrees above average.)  Most who experienced February 2015 probably don't need convincing that it was an unusually frigid month, but for those who need statistical proof, read on:

 

• It was 1) New York's coldest month since January 1977; 2) the coldest February since 1934 (which is NYC's coldest month on record); and 3) the third coldest February overall.  Among all months it was the tenth coldest (see chart below). 

• February 2015 joins four other months in the past 25 years that rank among their respective month's 10 coldest (all of which have occurred since 2000):  July 2000, January 2004, June 2009 and July 2009.

• There were nine days in a row (Feb. 13-21) in which the mean temperatures were 10 degrees or more below average (the longest streak since one of 11 days in February 1979).  Overall, sixteen days were ten degrees or more below average, the most since December 1989.  Five days were 20 degrees or more below average.

• Despite there being no sub-zero readings, the month was characterized by its consistent cold.  The temperature got no higher than 43° (the only Februarys with lower "warmest" temperature were in 1978, when the maximum temperature was just 41°, and 1934, when it was 42°.)  This continued a streak that began on Jan. 6 and became the longest such streak on record (and it continued thru the first week of March).

 

Frozen fountain in Bryant Park

 

• Every day had a low of freezing or below; every day but one, Feb. 22, had a below average mean temperature.  Fifteen days had highs of 32° or colder (a typical winter averages eighteen in total).

• The coldest day of the entire winter was Feb. 20, with a high/low of 19°/2°, 26 degrees below average.

• There were no big snowstorms, but 13.6" accumulated, four inches above average. (This total reflects a revision made by the National Weather Service in late March that increased Feb. 2's snowfall from 3.3" to 5.0").  This came mostly from three snowfalls in the three to five-inch range.  These snowfalls, along with the cold weather, helped maintain a snow cover in Central Park of at least six inches for the entire month.  And although total precipitation for the month was just 2.04", there have been six Februarys since 2000 with less.

 

NEW YORK'S TEN COLDEST MONTHS
	Mean
	Temp	Snow	Coldest	Warmest
Feb 1934	19.9	27.9"	-15°	42°
Jan 1918	21.7	13.2"	-4°	53°
Jan 1977	22.1	13.0"	-2°	44°
Feb 1885	22.7	14.5"	-2°	46°
Jan 1888	23.0	11.0"	0°	54°
Jan 1920	23.4	8.2"	-1°	51°
Jan 1912	23.7	13.0"	-3°	54°
Jan 1893	23.7	16.0"	1°	52°
Jan 1875	23.8	14.5"	-3°	40°
Feb 2015	23.9	13.6"	2°	43°
Source: NOAA Local Climatological Data

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Sleet - The Most Misunderstood Form of Precipitation?

 

 

When it comes to weather phenomena, the general public seems knowledgeable about most types of precipitation, but one they seem to have a blind spot for is sleet, often referring to this wintertime annoyance as hail.  I find their confusion curious since these forms of precipitation, although both are ice formations, are created in very different ways.  (Interestingly, in the summer no one confuses hail with sleet.)  Alas, because sleet is more of a nuisance than hail, which is formed during severe thunderstorms, it doesn't draw attention to itself - like someone who is overshadowed by a sibling who's always getting into trouble, or is an overachiever (sisters Jan and Marcia on The Brady Bunch come to mind).

 

The fact of the matter is sleet doesn't cause damage like hail does (or injuries from falls, like freezing rain does).  The only time it may create a problem is when it's wind-blown and stings your face.  It also can be annoying when it taps incessantly against window panes.  But it doesn't cause damage to vehicles, crush plants or pull down power lines.  One thing sleet and hail have in common is that during heavy periods of either, snowplows are needed to clear streets.  Sleet is also the nemesis of snow lovers, responsible for reducing lofty snow predictions when it mixes with snowflakes or completely overtakes them.

 

 

On rare occasions a heavy sleet storm can result in accumulations greater than a few inches.  When this happens, walking through the ice pellets is like trudging through crushed glass.  Memorable New York sleet storms in the past 50 years have occurred in December 1973; March 1993; January 1994; two in the winter of 2007; March 2016; and February 2019.  The sleet that fell in March 1993 was part of the historical Storm of the Century.  I was walking outside when the changeover from snow to sleet occurred.  The sleet pellets, propelled by winds gusting over 40 mph, stung my face, giving me somewhat of a skin burn.  Then once inside I had to contend with the sound of the sleet crashing against my windows for hours.

 

 

 

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Today in New York Weather History: March 16

 

1900 (Friday)

The day after a five-inch snowfall, today saw an onslaught of freezing rain.  0.89" of liquid precipitation fell in temperatures that were mostly at freezing or colder (the day's high/low was 33°/22°).

 

1911 (Thursday)

Today's frigid high/low of 20°/13° made this the second coldest day of the winter.  Only 12/16 was colder (21°/11°).

 

1932 (Wednesday)

This was the tenth day in a row with low temperatures in the teens or twenties.  During this stretch of days lows averaged 21°, thirteen degrees below average.  Despite this extended chill only 0.2" of snow fell, and that occurred today between 11 PM and midnight.

 

1935 (Saturday)

The high temperature soared to 77° (twenty-nine degrees above average), the day after the high was just 43°.  It would be six weeks before a high warmer than today's would occur. 

 

1945 (Friday)

Beginning today, which had a high of 76°, the rest of March would be extraordinarily mild, with highs averaging 70°, eighteen degrees warmer than average.  Seven days would have highs in the 70s, with all of them at 74° or warmer (including three in the 80s).  Not surprisingly, these very mild conditions resulted in the mildest March on record (the first half of the month was four degrees above average).   

 

1969 (Sunday)

Today's high of 50° was the mildest reading since Dec. 28.

 

1976 (Tuesday)

The last measurable snow of the winter, 0.2", fell between 9-11 PM.  This followed an all-day rain which amounted to 0.81".  The season's snowfall was 17.3", nine inches below average.

 

1978 (Thursday)

Rain changed to snow during the afternoon, accumulating 1.8".  This brought the winter's snowfall above 50 inches, the most since the winter of 1966-67.  It was also the last measurable snowfall of the season.

 

1979 (Friday)

The morning low of 20° (fifteen degrees below average) was the coldest reading since Feb. 19, when it was 17°.

 

1990 (Friday)

Today's high of 82°, thirty-two degrees warmer than average, was the third record high in the past four days.

 

1999 (Tuesday)

This was the winter's last morning with a low temperature of 32° or colder, the earliest date for the last freeze since 1962 (when it occurred on 3/9).  This early date would be tied six years later.  (Average date for the last freezing temperature tends to be around March 31.)  

 

2004 (Tuesday)

Today's weather was a drastic change from yesterday's upper 50s as temperatures fell below freezing by late morning, then a late winter storm dumped 3.5" of snow on the City during the afternoon (up to seven inches fell in the suburbs).  The snow was blown around by winds gusting to 40 mph, which created extensive traffic problems.

 

 

2007 (Friday)

An all-day onslaught of sleet and snow dumped 5.5" of icy precipitation, the biggest snow of the winter.  This storm resembled last month's severe sleet storm on Valentine's Day, but this one had considerably more snow.  The total amount of liquid precipitation was 2.07", a record for the date.  This was the last snowfall of the winter, a winter in which just 12.4" was measured, quite a contrast from the previous four winters, all of which had at least forty inches.

 

    

 

2017 (Thursday)

Today was 10 degrees colder than average and was the twentieth day of the past twenty-seven that were either 10 degrees+ colder or 10 degrees+ milder than average (eleven of the days were 15 degrees+ colder/milder).  Since eight days were below average and twelve above average they somewhat cancelled each other out, so the entire period was a somewhat deceptive 2.5 degrees above average.

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Today in New York Weather History: March 13

 

1888 (Tuesday)

A bit more snow (three inches) fell today from yesterday's blizzard, but what stood out today was the extreme cold (even by the standards of mid-winter), as the high/low was just 12°/6° - the second coldest day ever experienced in March (the high/low on March 5, 1872 was 10°/3°).  With gusty winds still prevalent, wind chills were below zero.  This was the fourth March in the 1872-1888 period to have two days with lows in the single digits; since then it's happened in one other year (1916).  

 

1953 (Friday)

The 2.61" of rain that fell this morning made this the rainiest Friday the 13th in the years since 1900.  This rain was from a nor'easter that moved in yesterday afternoon (when 1.17" of rain fell).  The amount was a record for the date (until 2010, when 3.86" of rain fell). 

 

1960 (Sunday)

Today was the eleventh day in a row with a mean temperature that was 10 degrees or more below average.  (This would be the second coldest March of the 20th century.)

 

^{1978 (Monday)}

For the first time since Feb. 5, there was no snow cover in Central Park. 

 

1980 (Thursday)

One last wintry day as sleet and slow lashed the area from 5 PM into the wee hours of 3/14, accumulating 4.6" (much of it today).  After a morning low of 23° the day's high of 33° was reached just before midnight.     

 

1983 (Sunday)

The sun finally reappeared after nine straight days of gloomy, drizzly and foggy conditions.  During these days 3.72" of rain fell and there was little diurnal variation in temperature as lows were around 40° and highs in the mid-40s.

 

1984 (Tuesday),

A winter storm brought snow in the morning, freezing rain in the afternoon, and plain rain during the evening.  1.4" of snow/ice accumulated and 2.31" of liquid was measured, most of which fell after 4 PM.  The temperature rose from the mid-20s at daybreak to the mid-30s by 10 PM.  This was the sixth day in a row with temperatures that were 10 degrees or more colder than average.  The average high/low during these days was 33°/18°, fourteen degrees below average.

 

1990 (Tuesday)

Winds shifted to the southwest, lifting the temperature from 43° to 85°, which was 37 degrees above average.  This was the earliest date for an 80-degree reading (breaking the previous record from 1945 by a week).

 

1993 (Saturday)

The great March Superstorm (also referred to as "Storm of the Century") paralyzed the Eastern third of the nation and dumped 10.2" of snow on New York.  The heavy snow changed to sleet and rain later in the afternoon, reducing the predicted snow total by four to six inches.  The sound of the sleet lashing against the windows of my apartment, propelled by 40-60 mph wind gusts, was deafening.  All told, 2.37" of liquid precipitation was measured.  This snowfall is the last time a measurable amount of snow fell on this date (through 2024).  

For a first-person account of the storm click here.  (Photo taken near corner of 7th Ave. South and Bleecker St.)

 

 

2001 (Tuesday)

0.74" of rain fell between 1-3 AM.  In total, 1.27" fell, most of it by 8 AM.  Temperatures were seasonable.

 

2003 (Thursday)

The past twelve days were seven degrees colder than average.

 

2010 (Saturday)

On the anniversary of the March Superstorm, another ferocious nor'easter dumped close to four inches of rain and was accompanied by 50-75 mph wind gusts.  The rainfall was the most in a 24-hour period in March since 1875.  Six persons were killed in the metro area by falling trees and hundreds of thousands of homes were left without power.

 

 

2012 (Tuesday)

Today's high of 74° was twenty-six degrees above average and the warmest reading since Oct. 10 of last year.  This was the third 70-degree day in the past week.  At midnight the temperature was still at 67°. 

 

2013 (Wednesday)

Today was the fifth day in a row with temperatures in the 50s.  Although hardly an eye-popping occurrence (the average high during these days was just three degrees above average), it was the longest such streak in nearly four months (Nov. 20-24). 

 

2014 (Thursday)

Between 3 PM yesterday and 7 AM this morning, the temperature plunged from 56° to 18°.  This surge of Arctic cold was accompanied by wind gusts of 35-50 mph, which produced below-zero wind chills.  Under clear skies today's afternoon temperature struggled to reach the mid-20s.

 

 

 

 

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Today in New York Weather History: February 19

 

1936 (Wednesday)

Although Jan. 23 had the coldest reading of the winter, at -3°, today, with a high/low of 18°/1°, had the coldest mean temperature (0.5 degree colder than 1/24, which had a high/low of 16°/4°).

 

1972 (Saturday)

A nor'easter packing 40 mph winds brought the biggest snowfall of the winter, 5.7", but it was part of a sloppy mix of snow, sleet and rain, so there was never more than two to three inches of snow on the ground at any given time.  Temperatures didn't fall below freezing until evening (after peaking at 37° in the early afternoon).  In total, 1.64" of precipitation was measured, with nearly half of the amount falling in the two-hour period between 7-9 AM. 

 

1979 (Monday)

A fast-moving snowstorm on Presidents' Day dumped 12.7" of snow between 4 AM and noon.  The storm's deepest snows fell in Virginia, DC, Maryland and Delaware, where 18" to 24" piled up.  Besides the snow, this was the fifteenth day of the past nineteen with a high temperature of 32° or colder.  Including today's snowfall, 20.1" of snow fell during these nineteen days.  (Another President's Day storm with even more snow would bury the region 24 years later.)

 

 

1980 (Tuesday)

The morning low of 28° made this the 31st day in a row with a low at freezing or colder.  There have been only six streaks longer than this in the years since 1960 (the most recent was one of 38 days during the winter of 2015).

 

1996 (Monday)

Morning lows over the past four days were: 22°-21°-22°-21° (today) - eight degrees colder than average.  Today's high rebounded to 42°, marking the beginning of an extended thaw that would see temperatures average 14 degrees above average between Feb. 20-28.

 

1997 (Tuesday)

Today's high of 66° was a record for the date.  There would be two other records set, with even warmer highs, on 2/22 (69°) and 2/27 (72°). 

 

2000 (Saturday)

Today's high/low was 32°/29°, with freezing rain between 1-3 AM (0.24" of liquid precipitation was measured).

 

2006 (Sunday)

Today was the second coldest day of a mild winter as the high reached 30° after a low of 15°.  (The coldest day of the winter was back in mid-December).

 

2007 (Monday)

Thirteen of the past sixteen days had morning lows in the teens, and eleven had highs at freezing or below.  Average high/low during these days was 30°/17°, ten degrees colder than normal.

 

 

2013 (Tuesday)

The 0.15" of rain that fell during the afternoon was the first precipitation to fall on this date since 2000.

 

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Today in New York Weather History: Valentine's Day (February 14)

 

1912 (Wednesday)

After having no high of 32° or colder this winter until 1/4, today was the thirty-first day in the six weeks since then to have a high that cold (three-fourths of the days).  Today was the end of a seven-day streak with highs of 32° or colder (and the eleventh day of the past twelve).  It would be followed fifteen days later by another seven-day streak.

 

1914 (Saturday)

Snow that began falling last night, accumulating 1.6", continued falling heavily this morning, accumulating an additional 8.1".  Until this snowstorm just 2.1" had fallen this winter.  Then 5.2" would fall two days later and 14.5" would bury the City on March 1-2. 

 

1934 (Wednesday)

The morning low of 4° was the eighth low in the single digits since 1/29 - and there would be four more this month.

 

1940 (Wednesday)

It was a wintry day as wind-blown sleet and snow fell throughout the day, accumulating 7.7" (and an additional 1.3" fell overnight).  Late in the morning winds gusted to 50 mph.  Temperatures fell from the low-30s in the morning to low 20s by midnight.

 

1943 (Sunday)

The temperature fell steadily through the day, from 30° to 5° (on its way to -8° tomorrow morning).

 

1948 (Saturday)

Today's high of 54° was the first high warmer than 45° in two months (since Dec. 13).

 

1958 (Friday)

Today's high/low of 25°/13° came in the midst of an 11-day streak (which began on 2/8) in which high temperatures failed to get above 32°.

 

1979 (Wednesday)

This morning's low temperature of 3° was the sixth consecutive day with a low in the single digits.  During these days the average low was 5°, twenty-two degrees colder than average.

 

 

 

1986 (Friday)

The 0.3" of snow that fell today was the last snowfall of the winter, a winter in which just thirteen inches fell, half of the typical amount.  

 

2005 (Monday)

Rain fell throughout the afternoon and evening, amounting to 0.95", putting somewhat of a damper on  romantic plans of New Yorkers. 

 

2007 (Wednesday)

A nasty sleet storm during the morning and afternoon hampered traffic and snarled air travel.  (Jet Blue was crippled, as its fleet at JFK was incapacitated for a number of days.)  0.94" of liquid precipitation was measured at Central Park, and two inches of sleet accumulated.  The day's precipitation represented half of February's total.  Despite a high of 29°, little of the day's precipitation fell as snow.  Another severe sleet storm would hit the area in March. 

 

 

 

2016 (Sunday)

The morning low of 1° below zero broke the record from 100 years ago.  This was: 1) the first below-zero reading since January 1994; 2) the first sub-zero reading in February since 1963; and 3) the latest date for such a frigid reading since 1943 (when a sub-zero low occurred on 2/15). 

Until today, the coldest temperature this century was 1° above zero, which occurred twice in the winter of 2004.  Later today, a second record was set as the high of 15° was the coldest for the date.  The day's mean temperature was 28 degrees below average, the most below average day in New York in the years since 1950.  Ironically, this would be the last day of the winter with a high of 32° or colder.  

 

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2023 (Tuesday)

Through today, just 0.05" of precipitation had fallen in Central Park this month, making this the second driest first half of February on record.  Only February 1980 had a smaller amount.

 

 

2024 (Wednesday)

With a high/low of 38°/29°, today's mean temperature was slightly below average, breaking a 22-day streak of above average temperatures.  In this century, only the winters of 2023, 2016, and 2007 have had longer streaks (36, 34, and 32 days, respectively).

 

Today in New York Weather History: February 6

 

1908 (Thursday)

Today's snowfall of eight inches came two weeks after a snowfall of ten inches.

 

1915 (Saturday)

From Jan. 12 through today 10.62" of precipitation was measured (0.41" of rain fell today).  Nineteen days had measurable precipitation, ten of which had snow (with a total accumulation of 8.2").  These exceptionally wet days were instrumental in making this, at the time, the wettest winter on record (until the winter of 1978-79).

 

1920 (Friday)

For the third day in a row the City was lashed by snow, sleet, freezing rain and rain (although the temperature got no higher than 33°).  Like the previous two days, between five and six inches of snow and ice accumulated, bringing the storm's three-day total to 17 inches (and an additional half inch would fall in the wee hours of 2/7).  1.40" of liquid precipitation was measured today, bringing the three-day total in Central Park to 4.41".  

 

1970 (Friday)

Just two degrees separated today's high and low (35°/33°), something that occurs just once every two or three years.

 

1978 (Monday)

Less than three weeks after 13.6" of snow buried the City, an even bigger snowstorm struck.  Snow began falling before dawn and by midnight 15.5" had piled up in Central Park.  An additional 2.2" fell the next morning.  The snow, drifted by winds gusting between 30-40 mph, fell heaviest between 7 PM-1 AM, when it fell at a rate of more than an inch per hour.  This was the first winter in seventeen years to have two snowstorms of one-foot or more.

 

 

1980 (Wednesday)

For the fifth year in a row the high temperature on this date was colder than 32°: 31° (this year)-29°-27°-22°-24° (1976).

 

1983 (Sunday)

Snow began in the afternoon and by the time it ended early the next day 3.9" had fallen (2.5" of it fell today).  This was the largest accumulation so far this winter (but would be easily topped in a less than a week by a crippling snowstorm).  

 

 

1985 (Wednesday)

Including this morning's snowfall of 2.3", ten inches of snow fell since Feb. 2.

 

1993 (Saturday)

Arctic air moved in early in the day, dropping the temperature from 46° to 10° by midnight (the high the day before was 56°).  1.9" of snow fell during the morning.

 

1995 (Monday)

With a high of 20°/low of 6°, today was the coldest day of the winter, 19 degrees below average.   

 

2008 (Wednesday)

Today's high of 68° broke the previous record by 10 degrees.

 

2010 (Saturday)

It was a very frustrating day for New York snow lovers as a crippling snowstorm that dumped 20"-30" in Pittsburgh, DC, Baltimore and Philly stopped at our doorstep, bringing just a few flurries to Central Park.  (Parts of Staten Island, however, picked up three to five inches.)  The culprit was a strong high pressure system over New England that blocked the storm from moving up the coast.  (Despite escaping this storm, Feb. 2010 would become NYC's snowiest month on record, with 36.9".)

 

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Today in New York Weather History: February 5

 

 

 

Going back to 1869, Feb. 5 and Feb. 12 are the dates that have been most likely to have had a snowfall of one inch or more.  Through February 2023, it's happened in nineteen years, or once every eight years.  The last time it happened on Feb. 5 was in 2016 (when 2.5" of  snow fell).  The biggest snow to fall on this date was in 1920, when 5.9" accumulated .

 

1871 (Sunday)

For the second day this winter the high was a frigid 11°.  The other occurrence was on 1/23.  Lows on these days were 2° and 0°, respectively. 

 

1920 (Thursday)

The fierce snow and sleet storm that began yesterday continued unabated today.  Winds gusted to 44 mph in the pre-dawn hours, and gusts of 25-35 mph lashed the area for the rest of the day.  Combined with temperatures in the mid-20s throughout the day, the wind chill was down in the single digits.  Much of the day's precipitation came in the form of sleet.  Like yesterday, close to half a foot of snow/ice accumulated while 1.31" of liquid precipitation was measured.  And the storm would continue through tomorrow.  

 

1975 (Wednesday)

2.7" of snow fell during the morning.  The temperature held steady at 33° from 10 AM today until 7 AM tomorrow.  

 

1977 (Saturday)

This was the third year in a row to have a snowfall of two to three inches on this date.  2.8" fell this year, all of it before daybreak (two inches fell last year).  The day's temperature held steady between 31° and 32° until mid-afternoon, when Arctic air moved in; by midnight the temperature had dropped to 13°.

 

1985 (Tuesday)

The biggest snowfall of the winter began this evening and continued through next morning, accumulating 5.7".  3.3" of the snow fell tonight.  (This came three days after a 4.3" snowfall.)  After this snowfall, just 0.2" fell for the rest of the winter.

 

1989 (Sunday)

Today's high of 26° came just four days after a record high of 67°.

 

1991 (Tuesday)

Today's high of 70° was  31 degrees above average, and the third day in a row with a record high (all which are still standing).  Yesterday's high was 68° and the day before that it was 64°.  This was the City's earliest 70-degree temperature since Jan. 26, 1950.  (Later passed in 2007 when the high reached 72° on Jan. 6.)

 

 

1996 (Monday)

The morning low of 5° was the coldest reading of the winter.  (Last winter the coldest temperature occurred on Feb. 6.)

 

1998 (Thursday)

A cold rain that began yesterday evening continued thru this evening, amounting to 1.36" (1.07" of the amount fell today).  Just two degrees separated today's high (36°) and low (34°).

 

2001 (Monday)

3.5" of sloppy, wet snow fell, with a high/low of 36°/32°.

 

2002 (Tuesday)

The morning low of 19° was the coldest reading of the winter, later tied on 3/5.  This was relatively mild for the coldest temperature; on average, a winter's coldest reading is 9°.

 

2007 (Monday)

Today's high/low of 18°/8° made this the coldest day of the winter - and of the past three years.

 

2009 (Thursday)

Today's high/low of 23°/12° made this the coldest day of the month.  

 

2014 (Wednesday)

The fifth winter storm of the season punished the area with four inches of snow and a quarter-inch of sleet and freezing rain.  The precipitation fell heaviest between 1-6 AM and snarled the morning commute.  This storm brought the winter's snowfall to 40.3" - the seventh time in the past twelve winters that more than 40 inches of snow was measured in Central Park.

 

2016 (Friday)

Rain in the overnight hours changed to snow in the wee hours of the morning and accumulated 2.5" by the time it ended shortly before 11 AM.  This would be the biggest snowfall of the month.

 

2022 (Saturday)

The temperature at daybreak was 21°, which was a drop of 36 degrees from yesterday's maximum reading that occurred in the morning.  The last time the City experienced a drop this great in such a short period of time (25 hours) was in April 2018, when the mercury fell from 77° during the afternoon of 4/14, to 38° at daybreak on 4/15. 

 

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Today in New York Weather History: February 4

 

1876 (Friday)

Eleven inches of snow fell from a storm that began last night and continued into today, when most of the accumulation occurred.  This was by far the biggest snowfall of the winter, as only 7.3" fell from eight other snowfalls.

 

1882 (Saturday)

A snowfall of nine inches followed a snowfall of eight inches on Jan. 31.  (Eight of the nine inches fell today.)  Temperatures were quite cold, with a high/low of 22°/13°. 

 

1920 (Wednesday)

A nasty winter storm that would span 72 hours moved in during the morning.  Temperatures fell from the low 30s, when precipitation began falling in the pre-dawn hours, to the mid-20s by lunchtime.  Northeasterly winds gusting to 40 mph after 10 PM produced wind chills in the single digits.  Close to a half-foot of snow fell, but much of the day's 1.70" of precipitation fell as sleet and freezing rain.  An additional 2.70" in precipitation, and another foot of snow, would fall in the following two days.

 

 

1933 (Saturday)

The 1.8" of snow that fell this afternoon and evening was the first measurable snowfall in seven weeks (since 7.2" fell on 12/17-18).  And with a high/low of 33°/28° today was the coldest day in three weeks. 

 

1947 (Tuesday)

After the mildest reading of the month was reached (50°), the coldest air of the winter moved in, and by midnight the temperature had fallen to 17°, on its way down to 7° tomorrow morning.  Rain changed to snow, which accumulated 1.8". 

 

1961 (Saturday)

The snowstorm that arrived yesterday evening, dumping six inches of, continued through the morning and brought an additional 11.4".  Today's snow was heavy and wet, and driven by gale force winds.  This was the third major snowstorm of the winter, following 15.4" on Dec. 11-12 and 9.9" on Jan. 19-20.  However, those storms were characterized by very cold temperatures, while this storm saw the temperature rise from the upper 20s to the mid-30s during the afternoon when snow changed to rain.  This was the second winter in a row to have two snowstorms of a foot or more in accumulation.  

 

1975 (Tuesday)

Although it wasn't the coldest day of the winter (that would come six days from now), today had the coldest high temperature, 27°.

 

1978 (Saturday)

With a high/low of 21°/10°, today was the coldest day of the winter, sixteen degrees colder than average.

 

1990 (Sunday)

This was the 21st day in a row with above-average temperatures.  During this three-week period, temperatures were 12 degrees above normal (high/low of 49°/36°).  It was a wet period as well, with 4.58" of rain measured.

 

1995 (Saturday)

Only 11.8" fell during the winter of 1995 and 10.8" of it fell today.  Wet snow fell furiously during the morning (close to three inches fell between 6-7 AM) before changing over to rain at around 9 AM.  Then the coldest air of the winter moved in overnight.

 

 

2016 (Thursday)

This was the third day of the past four to have a high temperature of 59° (19 degrees above average).  The high on each day, though, occurred at a different time.  On Feb. 1 it was reached in the early afternoon, on the 3rd it happened at 9:30 PM, and today it occurred just before daybreak.

 

2018 (Sunday)

Nearly an inch of rain fell tonight, mostly between 5-11 PM.  This was the biggest rainstorm since the end of October, when nearly three inches fell (the biggest rainstorm of 2017).

 

2019 (Monday)

After two days in January got very close to 60° (highs of 58° and 59°), today had the year's first high in the 60s (61°).  Coming just four days after a low of +2°, this was the fewest days between a reading colder than 10° and a high of 60°+ since January 1986, when there was a three-day gap (a low of 8° on 1/15, followed three days later by a high of 63°) -  but this year's jump in temperature was greater.  This was the second huge swing in temperature in the past week-and-a-half, as the temperature rose from 4° to 59° between 1/21 and 1/24.

 

  

2023 (Saturday)

This morning's frigid low of +3° was Central Park's coldest reading in four years (+2° on 1/31/19) and the coldest reading in February in seven years (-1° on 2/14/16).  And from 3-7 AM howling winds gusting between 25-35 mph produced wind chills between -10° and -15°.  Today's reading was in sharp contrast to January's coldest of 28° (the mildest coldest reading in January on record).  Finally, although today's reading was the coldest of the winter, the coldest day of the winter (based on average temperature) remained 12/24, with a high/low of 15°/7° (today's high reached 27° shortly before midnight).

Today's low was the ninth time since 2000 that a reading of 3° or colder occurred (and the fourth time it's happened in February). 

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