Thursday, February 10, 2011

Empirically Frigid February

Yeah, I know, I know...global warming is causing all this record-setting, deadly cold. (My ass...)

If colder-than-normal temperatures continue into February, this winter could possibly set records for the coldest winter ever in some parts of Georgia. Record low temperatures were set at Macon, Savannah and Alma Jan. 14. Macon reported 16 degrees, breaking the old record of 19 degrees set that date in 1970. Savannah and Alma reported 18 degrees, surpassing the old records of 20 degrees set at both locations in 1964.

[From Georgia eyes coldest winter ever | Freeze Damage content from Southeast Farm Press]

The average temperature in January 2011 was 30.0 F. This was -0.8 F cooler than the 1901-2000 (20th century) average, the 37th coolest January in 117 years. The temperature trend for the period of record (1895 to present) is 0.1 degrees Fahrenheit per decade.

[From CONTIGUOUS UNITED STATES Climate Summary]

The fresh snow was especially troublesome in Tulsa, Okla., where many roads were still impassable from last week's record 14-inch snowfall. The previous storm kept students out of school for at least six days. Mail, bus and trash service were only recently restored.

Five more inches of snow fell Wednesday in Tulsa, according to the National Weather Service. That raised the city's total for the winter to 25.9 inches, breaking the previous seasonal record of 25.6 inches, set during the winter of 1923-24.

[From Frigid air, snow, worry ranchers in Plains, South - Yahoo! News]

PLANO (CBSDFW.COM) – The demand for electricity could reach record high levels on Thursday morning, as temperatures reach a record low. Many people across North Texas will be struggling to stay warm. This means that rolling power outages could potentially return.

As cold temperatures rolled into the Metroplex last week, and the entire area was covered under a blanket of snow and ice, people became enraged when their power went out. The high demand for electricity late last week forced the Electric Reliability Council of Texas to coordinate rolling outages. This process, called load-shedding, is designed to take strain off of the state’s electric grid.

[From North Texas Could See More Rolling Blackouts « CBS Dallas / Fort Worth]

In fact, some temperatures across the state Thursday morning were lower than the North Pole which was a balmy 16 degrees.

In Bartlesville, the temperature reached 28 degrees below 0, an all-time record for Oklahoma. It also sets an all-time record for the city.

The previous state record was -27 in Watts in 1930 and -27 in Vinita in 1909.

[From Bartlesville ties Oklahoma state record for low temperature, Tulsa ties city record]