December through February, a three-month period known as "meteorological winter," has shattered warm and wet records in 2015-2016 from New England to the Southeast, Midwest, Plains and West.
At least 14 cities with a period of record of at least 60 years set a record warm winter, according to data from the National Weather Service and the, mainly in the Northeast.
Locations in the U.S. which set either a record warm or second warmest December through February period in 2015-2016. (Note: Only locations with at least 60 years of data were included.)
(Data: NWS, SERCC)
Among these record warm winter cities are:
Albany, New YorkAllentown, PennsylvaniaBarrow, AlaskaBurlington, VermontCaribou, MaineConcord, New HampshireMinot, North DakotaProvidence, Rhode Island
Montpelier, Vermont, also had a record warm winter, after tying their fifthcoldestwinter last year.
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Partially resulting from the record warm winter, Albany, New York, had their least snowy season-to-date through the end of February picking up a measly 10.3 inches of snow, over three feet below average-to-date. Incredibly, last season-to-date, they had over 70 inches of snow.
Another two dozen locations set their second warmest winter, including:
Anchorage, AlaskaBostonBuffalo, New YorkFlint, MichiganHartford, ConnecticutMedford, OregonNew York CityWichita, Kansas
In both Boston and New York City, only the winter of 2001-2002 was warmer than this one.
Medford, Oregon, has now had their two warmest winters the past two years, smashing their record warm winter in 2014-2015.
By the end of February, thanks to the warm month and dearth of snow, , according to Alaska-based climatologist Brian Brettschneider. It was the .
Dozens of locations in the East, Midwest, Plains and West appear to have chalked up a top five warmest winter.
Looking at the last two months of 2015, it seemed as if winter was never going to start across some parts of the country. Buffalo, New York, for example, was without measurable snow until December 17, a full two weeks later than the previous latest date for their first snowfall of the season.
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In fact, the first eight named winter storms of the season all failed to bring significant snowfall to the mid-Atlantic region and southern New England. It wasn't until January that Atlantic City, Philadelphia and New York City finally reported the first accumulating snowfall of the season.
Winter's warmth came to a peak in December, a month that featured more than .
The pattern was dominated by high pressure across the Southeast, not exactly the most typical pattern for early winter. As a result, locations near and under that ridge of high pressure generally experienced milder than average temperatures for an extended period of time.
Dec. 1 - Feb. 25, 2016 temperature anomalies (in deg. C) over the U.S.
(NOAA/ESRL Physical Sciences Division)
The warmth was particularly impressive across Florida, where record highs were regular occurrences throughout much of November, December and early January. Key West saw record warm low temperatures for an astonishing 11 days in a row between December 23 and January 2.
January was a transition month of sorts, especially across much of the East. The middle of the month saw the crippling blizzard that was, breaking all-time snowfall records for a single snowstorm along the Washington D.C. to Baltimore and New York City corridor.
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A Valentines' Arctic outbreak brought the coldest temperatures to parts of the Northeast in decades, but was short-lived.
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Locations in the contiguous U.S. which set either a record wet or second wettest December through February period in 2015-2016. (Note: Only locations with at least 60 years of data were included.)
(Data: NWS, SERCC)
Winter also shattered precipitation records in parts of the U.S., including the Southeast, Upper Midwest, and Northwest.
Not surprisingly, given the , several locations in South Florida smashed winter wet records, in what is normally the dry season in the Sunshine State, including:
Ft. MyersMiamiMoore HavenNaplesVero Beach
Miami (20.26 inches) smashed their previous wet winter record by over 4 inches. Three of the top four wettest winters on record in Miami have all occurred during strong El Niños (1982-1983 and 1997-1998 were the others).
The subtropical (southern) branch of the jet stream is stronger than average during a strong El Niño winter, shifting the storm track of low-pressure systems closer to the Sunshine State, often bringing heavier rainfall, instead of simply a thin band of rain with an Arctic cold front.
Parts of the Upper Midwest were also soaked more than usual this winter.
Both Waterloo, Iowa (7.51), and Lincoln, Nebraska (6.01 inches), crushed their previous record wet winters set over 100 years ago in 1914-1915.
Through much of late autumn and early winter, the active storm track was from the Plains into the Great Lakes. While this left the East Coast on the warm side of these early season storms, it also meant a steady barrage of precipitation events for the central U.S.
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Parts of the Northwest were also very wet this winter.
Dispelling a myth that strong El Niños are notoriously dry in the Northwest, Seattle set its record wet winter, interestingly enough topping a record set during a moderate La Niña (22.77 inches in 1998-1999), by almost two inches.
Portland, Oregon, fell just shy of its record wettest winter, which still stands from 1937-1938 (26.92 inches).
Here are some other wet winter notables:
Atlanta, Georgia: Second wettest winter (25.04 inches), topped only in 1919-1920 (26.22 inches)La Crosse, Wisconsin: Second wettest winter (6.58 inches), topped only by a winter during the Ulysses S. Grant presidency (7.32 inches in 1875-1876).
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