Old-fashioned winters
Most of us who grew up in Southwestern Pennsylvania can remember winters with plenty of snow and cold weather.
Old-timers probably can reflect on winter with snow on the ground most of the winter and streams and rivers frozen over. Pictures of the ice on Pittsburgh’s three rivers like the past few weeks were common and flooding from ice jams was often a newsmaker.
We have a fondness for remembering the big snows that were part of our youth and left us with memory makers, the Big Snow of 1950, the Blizzard of 93 and of course who could forget the winters of 76-77 and 77-78. Barges and river traffic came to a halt and emergencies were declared to have commodities moved by truck and rail.
The trend in recent decades is to have milder winters with less cold and snow and last winter was certainly evidence of a changing weather pattern. We had very little snow, however we did have a quick visit from the Polar Vortex that brought temperatures well below zero but it only lasted for 24 hours and was soon replaced by friendlier air from the Gulf of Mexico. My thermometer recorded a low of 14 below zero.
In recent decades we have experienced entire winters with no visits from the Polar Vortex; just a few cold days in the single digits for lows and daytime readings mostly in the 20s.
The siege this winter has been extreme with temperatures well below zero for lows and some days just in the single digits. The ice and snow never got a chance to melt.
Remember normal temperatures for this time of the year are upper 30s for afternoon highs and around 20 for morning lows. Most years a few days after a heavy snow we get a bit of a thaw that helps clear roadways and sidewalks; but so far this winter that has not been the case.
It is interesting to see that temperatures in our west have been well above normal with very little snow. Ski resorts are having difficulty and in the opposite hemisphere record heat is being reported. It’s important to remember one bad winter is not the end of our long-term warming trend. Even with a warmer earth we will have visits from the Polar Vortex.
The above normal warmth in the west is beginning to show signs of moving east and the Polar Vortex may be running out of replacements. This should allow for some 30s and 40s and some rain although the milder weather will also come with some snow.
NOAA and our weather people have done a tremendous job in providing timely forecasts to warn communities ahead of time of upcoming weather events. I believe their track record far exceeds our furry friend who is calling for six more weeks of winter.