• Hello, please take a minute to check out our awesome content, contributed by the wonderful members of our community. We hope you'll add your own thoughts and opinions by making a free account!

Pattern Freezing Ferocious February

SoutheastRidge said:
Unfortunately for cold lovers, the deeper we get into February the harder it is to get cold into the south. Plus you have to deal with a much higher sun angle. It can still get cold in Late Feb but it usually doesnt have the staying power.
Click to expand...
oh brother, not this **** again...the overblown sun angle...I'll take the snow if I get any and worry about side issues later
 
SoutheastRidge said:
I know I don't speak for everyone on here, but I have personally not seen a snowfall of any significance after February 15th since March 1993. Late Feb/March 2015 didn't deliver and neither did March 2009.

I guess my point is after Feb 15th it becomes increasingly unlikely to get snow in the DEEP south but when it does snow it can be a big one like some areas had in March 1993 and March 2009.
Click to expand...
Feb 1973 was a decent snowstorm, what dates were those in February?
 
tennessee storm said:
Cold is one thing. But where is the moisture going come from.... cause dry cold. No good
Click to expand...
Think that was said about the last couple of outbreaks, yet many seem to have scored snow and ice
 
Jimmy Hypocracy said:
I get some of my best storms in mid-late Februry and I can remember several that stuck around for a week after falling. Hard for the sun angle to be a deterrent when it's shielded by cumulonimbus clouds and its puking snow underneath : )
Click to expand...

In 2015 of February I had snow on the ground for nearly 2 weeks from February 16th till almost March. Definitely the longest I’ve ever had snow on the ground. I’ve easily had more snow in February then any other month in all my years living here. I consider all snow before February to be bonus snow in the south.
 
Tarheel1 said:
Feb 1973 was a decent snowstorm, what dates were those in February?
Click to expand...


2/9-10.

Interestingly, the 2nd week in Feb has had by far the largest # of measurable snows of any week at CHS/SAV dating back to the 1700s. I think this is also the case at CAE back to the late 1800s, but I need to doublecheck.
 
DixieBlizzard said:
Larry, Ice Storm chances start going down with winter systems in February I seem to recall you saying in the past. Is this correct? @GaWx
Click to expand...

Yes, Greg. If you love at the number of major ice storms at ATL, they peak in late Jan and then decrease markedly after early Feb whereas major snows peak in mid Feb and there still were a good number in late Feb. However, what's counterintuitive is that the very latest major KATL winter storm was a ZR on 3/25!!
 
GaWx said:
Yes, Greg. If you love at the number of major ice storms at ATL, they peak in late Jan and then decrease markedly after early Feb whereas major snows peak in mid Feb and there still were a good number in late Feb. However, what's counterintuitive is that the very latest major KATL winter storm was a ZR on 3/25!!
Click to expand...
You say that there have been a good number of major snows in Late Feb in ATL but I can't think of any in the last 30 years.
 
GaWx said:
Yes, Greg. If you love at the number of major ice storms at ATL, they peak in late Jan and then decrease markedly after early Feb whereas major snows peak in mid Feb and there still were a good number in late Feb. However, what's counterintuitive is that the very latest major KATL winter storm was a ZR on 3/25!!
Click to expand...

You have taught me well over the past 10 years or so my friend. I have learned so much about the local, historical wx from you.
 
With all due respect to all concerned (being a guilty party myself in this discussion) ... Can we rename this thread "Past February Reminiscences" and get one going about what we might be looking at moving forward ... :eek:
 
Last edited:
SoutheastRidge said:
Unfortunately for cold lovers, the deeper we get into February the harder it is to get cold into the south. Plus you have to deal with a much higher sun angle. It can still get cold in Late Feb but it usually doesnt have the staying power.
Click to expand...

since I've been in Texas, my best stretch of winter has been late February/early March 2015 :p
 
SoutheastRidge said:
You say that there have been a good number of major snows in Late Feb in ATL but I can't think of any in the last 30 years.
Click to expand...

Actually, for KATL, you're actually correct this time. For whatever reason, there hasn't been a major SN or IP 2/20-29 there in 66 years! They were in 1952, 1901, 1894, 1889. However, over those same 66 years, there have been a whopping 4 in March and that's excluding the nearly 3" 3/1980! Weird stats.
 
pcbjr said:
Are you sure?
:eek:
I more think of February like Oct / early Nov ... ;)
Click to expand...

I am just going by how in many ways Feb can be worse than January, sort of like how it gets hotter in August even September more so than July. March and April still can have many surprises in them at least here in Atlanta and most of the interior SE over the last few decades...
 
EmersonGA said:
Snow came not far from the city. I got a good one even if it turned to rain for a bit in the middle.
Click to expand...
Yeah. Can you imagine having that much cold air and then get no snow while areas not far away get snow ? It's torture ! Feb 2015 will go down as my least favorite month ever !
 
As long as we're doing a history lesson today, here's some February/March info about FL since 1900:

February 7, 1907: During the afternoon, a light snow flurry occurred "in the immediate vicinity" of the city of Jacksonville

February 8/9, 1947: A cold wave entering from Canada, accompanied by winds of up to 80 miles per hour (130 km/h; 36 m/s), causes snow as far south as Clearwater

February 2/3, 1951: Snowfall accumulates to 2.0 inches (51 mm) at Saint Augustine and Crescent City

March 6, 1954: 4 in (100 mm) of snow accumulates at Milton Experimental Station, Santa Rosa County, within a 24-hour period, the highest such total for Florida according to official modern records

March 28, 1955: Snowfall accumulates to 1 inch (25 mm) in Marianna along the Florida Panhandle.

February 13, 1958: An overnight rainfall changes to snowfall in Jacksonville and accumulates to 1.5 inches (38 mm).[2] Additionally, Tallahassee reports a record 2.8 inches (71 mm).

February 9, 1973: Snow falls over the northern portion of the state, including a total of 2.0 inches (51 mm) in Pensacola, with unofficial reports of up to 8 inches (200 mm)

March 2, 1980: About 0.25 inches (6.4 mm) of snow covers car tops and patio furniture in Jacksonville

March 1, 1986: 0.5 inches (13 mm) of snow accumulates overnight in Jacksonville

March 12, 1993: The 1993 Storm of the Century produces up to 4 inches (100 mm) of snow along the Florida Panhandle

February 3, 2007: Very light snow flurries are reported in the northeastern panhandle, lasting less than an hour

February 12, 2010: Portions of northwestern Florida experience snowfall totals of around 1 in (25 mm)

February 14, 2010: 0.5 inches (13 mm) of snow fell across the northern halves of Escambia, Santa Rosa, Walton and Okaloosa Counties

March 3, 2013: Snow flurries were reported in the Panhandle, specifically around Panama City Beach

You just never know ...

Now back to regularly scheduled programming ... :cool:
 
Oh good nice job derailing what is supposed to be a winter beat thread and not "let's complain about the past", the sun angle, and all that baloney. The only thing that I will add is in the deeper south, you have a 6 week window that will end after the second week of February but it doesn't make it impossible.

You know what the other analog that Eric said the long range EPS in early February was looking like...January 2014. So there (and I'm pretty sure I said that in my first post). A Jan '14/Feb '15 look, I'm shooting my shot on. Even with me not where I was for either of them.
 
pcbjr said:
As long as we're doing a history lesson today, here's some February/Marchi info about FL since 1900:

February 7, 1907: During the afternoon, a light snow flurry occurred "in the immediate vicinity" of the city of Jacksonville

February 8/9, 1947: A cold wave entering from Canada, accompanied by winds of up to 80 miles per hour (130 km/h; 36 m/s), causes snow as far south as Clearwater

February 2/3, 1951: Snowfall accumulates to 2.0 inches (51 mm) at Saint Augustine and Crescent City

March 6, 1954: 4 in (100 mm) of snow accumulates at Milton Experimental Station, Santa Rosa County, within a 24-hour period, the highest such total for Florida according to official modern records

March 28, 1955: Snowfall accumulates to 1 inch (25 mm) in Marianna along the Florida Panhandle.

February 13, 1958: An overnight rainfall changes to snowfall in Jacksonville and accumulates to 1.5 inches (38 mm).[2] Additionally, Tallahassee reports a record 2.8 inches (71 mm).

February 9, 1973: Snow falls over the northern portion of the state, including a total of 2.0 inches (51 mm) in Pensacola, with unofficial reports of up to 8 inches (200 mm)

March 2, 1980: About 0.25 inches (6.4 mm) of snow covers car tops and patio furniture in Jacksonville

March 1, 1986: 0.5 inches (13 mm) of snow accumulates overnight in Jacksonville

March 12, 1993: The 1993 Storm of the Century produces up to 4 inches (100 mm) of snow along the Florida Panhandle

February 3, 2007: Very light snow flurries are reported in the northeastern panhandle, lasting less than an hour

February 12, 2010: Portions of northwestern Florida experience snowfall totals of around 1 in (25 mm)

February 14, 2010: 0.5 inches (13 mm) of snow fell across the northern halves of Escambia, Santa Rosa, Walton and Okaloosa Counties

March 3, 2013: Snow flurries were reported in the Panhandle, specifically around Panama City Beach

You just never know ...

Now back to regularly scheduled programming ... :cool:
Click to expand...

Each and every one of these is noteworthy for sure. However, I'd say the incredibly late 3/28/1955 and 2" St. Augustine should get asterisks for most unusual. Also, note a plurality of these was in the 2nd week of Feb.
 
One of the biggest snowstorms in Middle Georgia history (the one that all the old timers viewed as the "monster" before 1973) happened on 2/26-28 1914. I know that things like sun angle, lack of strong enough cold air masses, and other issues are always discussed in any storm that strikes the region after Valentine's Day. However, I think that the entire board is basically in play for some form of wintry precipitation until around St. Patrick's Day.
 
CentralGAColdFront said:
One of the biggest snowstorms in Middle Georgia history (the one that all the old timers viewed as the "monster" before 1973) happened on 2/26-28 1914. I know that things like sun angle, lack of strong enough cold air masses, and other issues are always discussed in any storm that strikes the region after Valentine's Day. However, I think that the entire board is basically in play for some form of wintry precipitation until around St. Patrick's Day.
Click to expand...

This same storm not only gave ATL and other areas to the north a nice hit, but I'm nearly 100% sure it hit CHS hard and it definitely gave a very rare major sleet/ZR combo to SAV of all places.

Edit: Would a mod like to move these history posts to its own thread?
 
GaWx said:
This same storm not only gave ATL and other areas to the north a nice hit, but I'm nearly 100% sure it hit CHS hard and it definitely gave a very rare major sleet/ZR to SAV of all places.

Edit: Would a mod like to move these history posts to its own thread?
Click to expand...
Larry (and Mods),
If the Mods are so inclined, this thread needs to be renamed and a new one started by or credited to the originator(s) of this one ...
Too much good stuff here to lose by picking and choosing what might get "moved" ...
Phil
 
Boy, the first week og February looks great. Good potential for cold and a winterstorm in yhe mix. Enjoy this warm weather while you can because February will start with a Boom!!!
 
pcbjr said:
Though that PNA and AO remain a bit of a concern ...
Click to expand...

Based on what I've seen this winter, a -PNA is a concern that may keep February from truly being really good. Since we still have time, maybe it goes away or we get into a good PNA cycle by the second week of February.

and yeah, most of us are in play until March, it's just rarer after the second week of February but that doesn't mean close the thread or start talking about what's been beaten to death.
 
gfs_mslp_pcpn_frzn_us_42.png
Been watching this time frame
 
:eek:
... or maybe the history lesson here in this thread today is good mojo (MJO) for February, and perhaps it all oughta just stay intact ... :rolleyes:
 
I see you Happy Hour 18z GFS...:rolleyes:

(I think it's a trip by Mr. Polar Vortex)
 

Attachments

  • polarvortex18z.png
    polarvortex18z.png
    154.5 KB · Views: 34
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top