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| Interesting Snow Related Information |
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| Severe Weather Conditions
- New York City |
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The coldest day in recorded history
for NYC was on February 9, 1934, when the temperature plummeted to
a blistering 15 degrees F below zero. |
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The coldest month in recorded
history for NYC was that same February in 1934, with an incredible
average of 34.6 degrees F. |
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The coldest winter season (December, Jan,
Feb) in recorded history for NYC was the 1917-1918 season, with an
average of 25.7 degree F. |
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The coldest year (Jan.-Jan.) in recorded history
for NYC was 1888, with an average temperature of 49.3 degrees F. Within
the past 130 years, the average yearly temperature has risen by about
3.5 degrees F. Today, the average temperature is about 55.2 degrees
F. |
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The greatest snow storm in recorded NYC history
came on December 26-27, 1947, with a 26.4-inch blizzard. NYC practically
shut down for days. |
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The snowiest month in NYC recorded history
was March 1896, with 30.5 inches of snow. This is a colossal figure
considering that March averages only 3.9 inches. |
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The snowiest winter season in recorded NYC
history occurred just years ago. Who can forget “Blizzard ‘96”
(20.2 inches) and the storms that came with it? Accumulatively, winter
dumped 75.6 inches during the 1995-1996 winter season. |
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The least snow ever in NYC was 2.8 inches
during the 1972-1973 winter season. The 2001 -02 season comes in second
at 3.5 inches. The average season has 24.5 inches of snow. |
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The earliest trace of snow in a season in
NYC, hard as it is to believe, occurred on October 10, 1979 and in
1925; the latest tract recorded arrived on May 9, 1977. |
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The Blizzard of 1888:
March 11 – March 15, 1888 |
The most famous snowstorm in American history,
the Blizzard of 1888, has acquired an almost legendary status. Although
there have been heavier snowfalls as well as significantly lower temperatures,
the blizzard’s combination of inclement conditions has been
unmatched in 115 years.
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The U.S. Weather Service defines a blizzard
as a storm with winds of more than 35 miles an hour and snow that
limits visibility to 500 feet or less. A severe blizzard is defined
as having winds exceeding 45 miles an hour, visibility approaching
zero, and temperatures of 10 degrees F or lower.
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The “Great White Hurricane,” as
it was called, paralyzed the East Coast from Chesapeake Bay to Maine.
Telegraph and telephone wires snapped, isolating New York, Boston,
Philadelphia, and Washington for days. Two hundred ships either sunk
or were severely damaged, and at least one hundred seamen died. Overall,
more than 400 people lost their lives resulting from the long exposure
to the cold and blustery conditions.
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The days leading up to the blizzard were unseasonably
mild, with temperatures in the 40s and 50s along the East Coast. Then,
what started out as a balmy, unseasonably warm day became a cold nightmarish
several days to follow. Torrential rains began falling, and on March
12th the rain changed to heavy snow, temperatures plunged, and a ferocious
wind began. The storm continued unabated for the next 36 hours. Sources
vary, but National Weather Service estimated that 50 inches covered
New York and New Jersey. Winds blew up to 48 miles an hour, creating
snowdrifts forty to fifty feet high.
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| As a result of the blizzard of 1888, changes
were made that influence our lives today. In lieu of the transportation
crisis the idea of a subway system was proposed and then approved
in 1894. Construction of The New York City subway system began six
years later in 1990 and still runs to this day. In addition, underground
telephone and cable lines were developed as a result of the breakdown
in communication during blizzard of 1888. |
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| Did you know that… |
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A hailstone measuring 8 inches in diameter
and weighing 1.67 pounds was found in Coffeyville, Kansas on September
3, 1970. |
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Avalanches are dangerous and after 20 minutes
most people succumb to the cold and suffocation. A postman in Austria
survived for three days. |
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Sheep can survive for up to two weeks buried
in snow drifts. |
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Practically every location in the United States
has seen snowfall. Even most portions of southern Florida have seen
a few snow flurries. |
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An avalanche made up of ice fell over 10,000
feet from a mountain in the Andes in Peru, and in the span of 15 minutes
killed an estimated 3,500 people and 10,000 livestock. |
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Rochester, New York averages 94 inches of
snow annually and is the snowiest large city in the United States. |
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The highest recorded snowfall in 24 hours
was 76” in Silver Lake, Colorado on April 14-15 1921. |
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China suffers from severe hailstorms. In June
1932 a hailstorm killed an estimated 200 people, and injured thousands
more. |
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Near midnight on March 29, 1848 a south-west
windstorm blowing off of Lake Erie caused ice to jam and dam up at
the mouth of the Niagara River causing Niagara Falls to run dry. The
water stopped flowing for approximately 30 - 40 hours before the flow
of water at Niagara Falls had returned to normal. |
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No one really knows where the snowiest place
on earth is, but the biggest snowfalls are often recorded in the US.
The Rocky Mountains have an average snowfall of between 300 and 400
inches. Paradise Ranger Station in the Rockies once recorded 1224
inches or 30 meters of snow in a single year. |
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Phoenix, Arizona, located on the upper edge
of the Sonoran Desert, was reported to have a record snowfall of one
inch. This only occurred twice. The first time was January 20, 1933.
It happened again four years later on the exact same date. |
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| Word Advisory |
WINTER STORM WATCH
A Winter Storm Watch is issued to alert the public to the possibility
of heavy snow, heavy freezing rain, heavy sleet or even a blizzard.
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WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY
A Winter Weather Advisory is issued when accumulating snow or sleet
generally between 2-5 inches and hazardous winter weather is occurring
or imminent and is an inconvenience. |
WINTER STORM WARNING
Winter Storm Warnings are issued when a significant, hazardous winter
storm is imminent or occurring, and is considered a threat to life
and property. |
NOR'EASTER
A Nor'easter is a cyclonic storm occurring off the east coast of North
America. These winter weather events are notorious for producing heavy
snow, rain, and tremendous waves that crash onto Atlantic beaches,
often causing beach erosion and structural damage. Significant accumulations
are also possible. Wind gusts associated with these storms can exceed
hurricane force in intensity. A nor'easter gets its name from the
continuously strong northeasterly winds blowing in from the ocean
ahead of the storm and over the coastal areas. A nor'easter occurs
when warm moist air picked up in the tropics moves north up the coast
and a mass of polar air from Eastern Canada and the North Atlantic
moves south. |
BLIZZARD
A Blizzard is a ferocious snow storm with winds of more than 35 miles
an hour, visibility limited to 1/4 of a mile and temperatures no more
than 20 degrees. A SEVERE BLIZZARD would have winds exceeding 45 miles
an hour, visibility approaching zero and temperatures of 10 degrees
or lower. |
ALBERTA
CLIPPER
An Alberta Clipper is born on the mountains of Alberta east of the
Canadian Rockies. A clipper generally stays hundreds of miles away
from the mild waters of the Atlantic or the Gulf of Mexico. This means
the average clipper is moisture-deprived and fast moving, so it won’t
drop huge amounts of snow, perhaps a few inches throughout a narrow
track. On rare occasions a clipper moves across the Appalachians and
can take on a new life as a roaring nor’easter. That happened
in grand fashion on February 6, 1978, when a modest clipper turned
into the great New England Blizzard of ‘78. |
LAKE EFFECT SNOW
Lake effect snow is snow showers that are created when cold dry air
passes over a large warmer lake such as one of the Great Lakes. As
a result, clouds build over the lake and eventually develop into snow
showers and squalls. |
SNOW SQUALL
A snow squall is a sudden onset of heavy snow showers and strong winds
with speeds increasing to at least 18 miles per hour and sustained
at 25 miles per hour for at least one minute. The intensity and duration
is longer than that of a gust. |
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