Weather

February 201 and Winter 2013-2014 St. Cloud Weather Summary


10 Snowiest Winters
"Little Darling, It's Been A Long Cold Lonely Winter" - George Harrison

February 2014 and Winter 2013-2014 Saint Cloud, MN, Weather Summary

Note: This is a summary of meteorological winter, which is defined as the three coldest months of the year (1 December through 28 February). Astronomical winter ends on the spring equinox, which will be on March 20 this year. That's the day when we get back to 12 hours of daylight. Also, note that the cold season can be used to refer to the part of the year when Minnesota can get snow (typically Oct-Apr, but can be longer) or the heating season (July 1-June 30).

The seemingly endless winter of 2013-2014 continued with very few breaks in February 2014. There were still very few records set for the cold, but the parade of reinforcing arctic cold fronts did accumulate enough cold records to push close to some milestones.

The average temperature of February 2014 in St. Cloud was 5.5°F, 11.5°F colder than average. That ranks as the 9th coldest February in St. Cloud records. That means that the winter of 2013-2014 (Dec.-Feb.) will have two months that ranked in the top 10 in coldest temperature (December 7th coldest). Despite that, the three winter months had an average temperature of 5.5°F, 9.3°F colder than average and tied for the 5th coldest winter in St. Cloud records. Regardless, this will be the coldest meteorological winter since 1978-1979.

There were only 4 record cold temperatures: the record cold high of -15 on January 4 and the February 25 high of 4, the record tying February 27 low of -20, and the record tying February 27 average temperature of -10.

However, the relentless accumulation of days below zero, lows below zero have produced the following:

Cold Extremes

Not only has the winter been endless in terms of cold; it has also been a season with large snowfall totals, although we began with a series of small snowfalls. February actually had the fewest days (8) with measurable snow of the winter months. Still, we ended up with 13.5 niches of snow, 6.3 inches above average. This brings the cold season snowfall (since the start of October) to 54.3 inches. That's 19.2 inches greater than the average through February (35.1 inches) and the 3rd highest snowfall total through Feb. Only 1936-1937 and 1968-1969 had more snow.

For the winter months (Dec., Jan, Feb), St. Cloud had the 3rd snowiest meteorological winter with 50.6 inches, nearly double the 25.5 inch average. Again, 1936-1937 and 1968-1969 are the only two winters to top this winter's total.

The primary cause of the huge snowfall has been the large number of snow days. Through the end of February, there have been 42 days with measurable snowfall. This is tied for the most days through February with the winters of 1935-1936, 1968-1969, and 1978-1979.

Snow Extremes:

The worst of these storms was the February 20-21 snowstorm. There were 12-18 inches of snow in north central Wisconsin, the Arrowhead, and St. Louis County with 6-10 inches along I-35 from Duluth through the Twin Cities into southern Minnesota and also to the west to I-94 between the Twin Cities and St. Cloud. However, the biggest problem was that the initial snow fell with the temperatures at or above freezing in much of central and southern Minnesota. When, the temperatures plunged during the last third of the snowstorm, a layer of ice formed under the snow. Since temperatures quickly fell to the single digits, no road treatment could aid the ice melting. Take that and winds up to 50 MPH blowing the new snow back over roads and driving quickly became a nightmare. There were over 5,000 accidents reported by the Minnesota State Police.

And all of that snow has so much liquid inside of it that this winter is the 5th wettest winter (Dec.-Feb.) on record with 4.18 inches, nearly double average (2.18 inches).

So far, that huge water content isn't leading to large worries about when the snow melts. The National Weather Service's River Forecast Center lists about an average chance of minor flooding at Brainerd and Long Prairie with a better chance at Atkin. However, the main threat of minor to moderate flooding would be along the Red River and along the Mississippi along the Illinois-Iowa border.

It hasn't been cold everywhere this winter. You can get an estimate of the "winners" and "losers" this winter on the two-week loop of surface temperatures from Penn State's e-wall. On the right hand panel are the estimated temperatures every 6 hours with the purple being the single digits above zero. So, near or below zero temperatures have dominated all of Russia and Siberia, Mongolia at times, Alaska (more frequently the past two weeks than a lot of the winter), Canada, and at times, the North Central US. That's because, a week ago, we had one of our few breaks between cold outbreaks.

The left-hand loop shows the departures from average. So, the winters have been Alaska, western and central Europe, and the southwestern US. The losers have mostly been Siberia, Mongolia, interior Canada and the US east of the Rockies.

There is promised relief after Tuesday of next week, but many long-range forecast mild breaks have fizzled.

 

 

10 Snowiest Winters

February 2014 Statistics

Temperatures (°F)
Feb 2014
Normal
Average High Temperature (°F)
16.4
26.8
Average Low Temperature (°F)
-5.5
7.2
Mean Temperature for February (°F)
5.5 (tied for 9th coldest)
17.0
*9th Warmest February in St. Cloud Records  
February Extremes
Temperature(°F)
Date
Warmest High Temperature for Feb 2014 (°F)
43
Feb. 18
Coldest High Temperature for Feb 2014 (°F)
3
Feb. 5
Warmest Low Temperature for Feb 2014 (°F)
14
Feb. 12
Coldest Low Temperature for Feb 2014 (°F)
-25
Feb. 11
Record Temperatures in February 2014
Temperature(°F)
Date
Old Record
Daily Record Cold High Temperature
4°F
February 25
5°F set in 1934
Daily Record Cold Low Temperature
-20°F (tie)
February 27
record set in 1919, 1962
Daily Record Cold Average Temperature
-10°F (tie)
February 27
record set in 1922
Temperature Thresholds
Number of Days
Normal
February 2014 Days with High Temperatures <= 32°F
25
20.0
February 2014 Days with High Temperatures <= 0°F
1
0.8
February 2014 Days with High Temperatures <= -10°F
0
0.5
February 2014 Days with Low Temperatures <= 32°F
28
27.8
February 2014 Days with Low Temperatures <= 0°F
20
12.2
February 2014 Days with Low Temperatures <= -20°F
3
2.9
February 2014 Days with Low Temperatures <= -30°F
0
0.4
Liquid Equivalent Precipitation (in)
Feb 2014
Normal
February 2014 Saint Cloud Airport Melted Precipitation (in)
1.17
0.59
February Extremes
Precipitation (in)
Date
Most Daily Precipitation in February 2014
0.61 inch
Feb 20
Record Precipitation in February 2014
Precipitation (in)
Date
Old Record
Daily Record Precipitation
0.44 inch
Feb. 17
0.29 in 1972
Precipitation Thresholds
Number of Days
Normal
February 2014 Days with Measurable (>= 0.01 inch) Precipitation
7
5.7
February 2014 Days with >= 0.10 inch Precipitation
2
2.1
February 2014 Days with >= 0.25 inch Precipitation
2
0.8
February 2014 Days with >= 0.50 inch Precipitation
1
0.3
February 2014 Days with >= 1.00 inch Precipitation
0
0.0
Snowfall (in)
Feb. 2014
Normal
February 2014 Saint Cloud Airport Snowfall (in)
13.5
7.2
Snowfall Thresholds
Number of Days
Normal
February 2014 Days with Measurable (>= 0.1 inch) Snowfall
8
5.7
February 2014 Days with >= 1.0 inch Snowfall
2
2.6
February 2014 Days with >= 2.0 inch Snowfall
2
1.4
February 2014 Days with >= 5.0 inch Snowfall
1
0.2
February Extremes
Snowfall (in)
Date
Most Daily Snowfall (in) in February 2014
7.6 (set record; see below)
February 20
Record Snowfall (in) in February 2014
Snowfall (in)
Date
Old Record
Daily Record Snowfall
4.3
February 17
3.2 inches in 1972
 
7.6
February 20
6.3 inches in 1953
       
10 Snowiest Winters

Winter (Dec 1-Feb 28) 2013-2014 Statistics

Temperatures (°F)
Winter 2013-2014
Normal
Average High Temperature (°F)
16.0
24.2
Average Low Temperature (°F)
-5.1
5.3
Mean Temperature for Winter (°F)
5.5 (tied for 5th coldest)
14.8
 
Winter Extremes
Temperature
Date
Warmest High Temperature for Winter 2013-2014 (°F)
43
Feb 18, 2014
Coldest High Temperature for Winter 2013-2014 (°F)
-15@
Jan 6, 2014
Warmest Low Temperature for Winter 2013-2014 (°F)
29
Dec 3, 2013
Coldest Low Temperature for Winter 2013-2014 (°F)
-25
Dec 24, 2013 Feb 11, 2014

@Coldest low since January 21, 2011 (-29)

 
Temperature Thresholds
Number of Days
Normal

Cold Season 2013-2014
Days with High Temperatures <= 32°F

#Tied for fewest through Feb.

85
87.6

Cold Season 2013-2014
Days with High Temperatures <= 0°F

4.3

Cold Season 2013-2014
Days with High Temperatures <= -10°F

First since January 29, 2004

1
0.6

Cold Season 2013-2014
Days with Low Temperatures <= 32°F

129
170.4

Cold Season 2013-2014
Days with Low Temperatures <= 0°F

42.7

Cold Season 2013-2014
Days with Low Temperatures <= -20°F

None the previous 2 winters

5.4

Cold Season 2013-2014
Days with Low Temperatures <= -30°F

None since January 16, 2009

0
0.6
Liquid Equivalent Precipitation (in)
Winter 2013-2014
Normal
Saint Cloud Airport Winter Melted Precipitation (in)
2.18
Precipitation Thresholds
Number of Days
Normal
Winter 2013-2014
Days with Measurable (>= 0.01 inch) Precipitation
24
19.4
Winter 2013-2014
Days with >= 0.10 inch Precipitation
7
6.5
Winter 2013-2014
Days with >= 0.25 inch Precipitation
4
2.3
Winter 2013-2014
Days with >= 0.50 inch Precipitation
3
0.6
Winter 2013-2014
Days with >= 1.00 inch Precipitation
0
0.0

 

Snowfall (in)
Winter 2013-2014
Normal
Winter 2012-2013 Snowfall (in)
25.5
Seasonal Snowfall (in) for Cold Season 2013-2014 (October 1, 2013-February 28, 2014)
35.9
     
Snowfall Thresholds
Number of Days
Normal
Cold-Season 2013-2014 Days with Measurable Snowfall
24.8
Cold-Season 2013-2014 Days with >= 1.0 inch Snowfall
16
10.6
Cold-Season 2013-2014 Days with >= 2.0 inch Snowfall
9
5.5
Cold-Season 2013-2014 Days with >= 5.0 inch Snowfall
3
1.0
10 Snowiest Winters

 

 

Most St. Cloud Oct-Feb Snowfall
Rank
Snowfall (in)
Cold Season
1
73.0
1936-1937
2
60.8
1968-1969
3
54.3
2013-2014
4
54.2
1993-1994
5
54.1
1978-1979
6 (tie)
53.6
1921-1922
6 (tie)
53.6
1966-1967
8
53.2
1983-1984
9
51.9
1985-1986
10
51.5
1927-1928

 

 

St. Cloud Days with Measurable Snowfall Through Feb.
Rank
Days With Measurable Snow
Season
1 (tie)
42
1935-1936
1 (tie)
42
1968-1969
1 (tie)
42
1978-1979
1 (tie)
42
2013-2014
5 (tie)
41
1947-1948
5 (tie)
41
1993-1994
7 (tie)
40
1950-1951
7 (tie)
40
2011-2012
9 (tie)
38
1951-1952
9 (tie)
38
1992-1993
Longest Streaks of Zero or Colder Lows
Rank
Consecutive Days
Dates
1
37
January 17-Feb 22, 1936
2
22
January 10-31, 1963
3
21
December 29, 1978- January 18, 1979
4 (tie)
20
January 23-February 11, 1895
4 (tie)
20
December 8, 1924 - January 1, 1925
4 (tie)
20
January 16 - February 4, 1966
4 (tie)
20
January 18-February 6, 1996
9
19
January 26 - February 13, 1899
10 (tie)
18
January 24 - February 10, 1949
10 (tie)
18
January 25-February 11, 1978
10 (tie)
18
January 3-20, 1982
13 (tie)
17
December 31, 1911-January 16, 1912
13 (tie)
17
January 11-27, 1924
13 (tie)
17
December 28, 1973-January 13, 1974
13 (tie)
17
January 3-19, 1977
13 (tie)
17
January 25-February 11, 2014

 

 

10 Snowiest Winters

 



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Send comments to: raweisman@stcloudstate.edu
Last updated: March 3, 2014
Background courtesy of aaa-backgrounds.com

Historic temperature data provided courtesy of the Saint Cloud National Weather Service Office, and NOAA/NWS
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Send comments to: raweisman@stcloudstate.edu