NATIONAL WEATHER SUMMARY

MARCH 2023

Feb. 26-Mar. 4: Weekly temperatures averaged at least 10 to 15°F above normal from the Gulf Coast northward into the lower Ohio Valley. Above-normal temperatures encompassed areas as far west as the central and southern Plains and as far north as the middle Atlantic States and lower Great Lakes region. Conversely, readings averaged more than 10°F below normal in parts of California, the Great Basin, the Intermountain West, and the Desert Southwest. Some of the coldest Western weather, relative to normal, occurred in areas with anomalously deep and extensive snow cover.

Any cold air was confined to the northern and western U.S. Eureka, CA, experienced 10 freezes during the month, tying a February record set in 1887. Daily-record lows occurred in Eureka on February 28 and March 2, with respective lows of 32 and 30°F. Elsewhere on March 2, daily-record lows dipped to 7°F in Burns, OR, and -5°F in Eureka, NV. With a daily-record low of 39°F on the 1st, downtown San Francisco, CA, fell below the 40- degree mark in March for the first time since March 11, 2006. In contrast, summer-like temperatures persisted across the Deep South. The last day of February featured monthly record highs in Mobile, AL (85°F), and Pensacola, FL (84°F); standards in both locations had been achieved just 3 days earlier, on the 25th. From February 27 – March 2, Hattiesburg, MS, posted four consecutive daily-record highs (84, 86, 85, and 86°F). Additionally, Hattiesburg notched highs above 80°F from February 21 – March 3, a span of 11 days. Warmth made its most significant northward surge on March 1, when Evansville, IN (80°F), notched its earliest-ever high of 80°F or greater (previously, 82°F on March 4, 1983). Other daily-record highs for March 1 included 101°F in Laredo, TX; 89°F in West Palm Beach, FL; and 80°F in Huntington, WV. At week’s end, early-season heat intensified across Florida’s peninsula, where Vero Beach (91°F both days) and Orlando (90°F both days) closed the week on March 3-4 with consecutive daily-record highs.

5-11: Mostly dry weather covered the remainder of the country, including the central and southern High Plains, the Rio Grande Valley, southern Florida, and New England. Elsewhere, chilly conditions prevailed from the Pacific Coast to the northern half of the Plains, while record-setting warmth continued across the Deep South. Weekly temperatures averaged at least 10°F above normal in portions of the western and central Gulf Coast States. General warmth covered the remainder of the South, extending northward into portions of the Great Lakes region. In contrast, readings averaged 10 to 20°F below normal on the northern High Plains, as well as adjacent locations in the northern Rockies and northern Intermountain West. Colder-than-normal conditions also encompassed the Far West, including the Pacific Coast States. On March 6, daily-record highs topped 90°F in Florida locations such as Fort Myers (92°F) and Miami (91°F). Miami again attained 91°F on March 7. Elsewhere on the 7th in Florida, additional daily-record highs above the 90-degree mark included 91°F in Melbourne and Fort Myers. Farther north, warmth peaked on March 6 with daily-record highs of 78°F in Louisville, KY, and 77°F in Evansville, IN. From March 7-9, New Orleans, LA, tallied a trio of daily-record highs (83, 84, and 86°F). Meanwhile in southern Texas, Harlingen notched daily-record highs of 91 and 90°F, respectively, on March 8 and 10. Corpus Christi, TX, collected consecutive daily-record highs (91 and 99°F, respectively) on March 11-12. In contrast, chilly weather dominated the West. Burns, OR, tallied multiple daily-record lows, including a reading of -3°F on March 6. Burns later received heavy snow, with a liquid equivalency of 0.53 inch on March 9, a day when a daily-record low of 5°F was reported. Sub-zero, daily-record lows were set in other Western locations, including Casper, WY (-6°F on March 8), and South Lake Tahoe, CA (-3° on March 9).

12-18: Mostly dry weather covered the nation’s mid-section, including the droughtstricken southern High Plains. Southern Florida also remained mostly dry.

At week’s end, beneficial precipitation developed in southern Texas, where Del Rio netted a daily-record sum of 1.13 inches. Early in the week, record-setting heat gripped southern Texas, where March 12 highs soared to 100°F in Harlingen and 99°F in Corpus Christi. With a high of 88°F on the 12th, Galveston, TX, narrowly missed a March record (89°F on March 19, 2018). Early-week warmth also prevailed in Florida, where recordsetting highs for March 13 included 94°F in West Palm Beach and 90°F in Melbourne. In contrast, Hibbing, MN, tallied a daily-record low of -14°F on March 14. The following day, Jackson, TN, registered a record-setting low (22°F) for March 15. Cold air also prevailed across the Plains and Northwest; daily-record lows included 11°F (on March 16) in Burns, OR, and 15°F (on March 17) in Garden City, KS. Big Piney, WY, reported its 13th sub-zero reading of the month on March 18, notching a daily-record low of -15°F. Cold, dry weather dominated Alaska, although some precipitation fell across the state’s southern tier.

19-25: Near-normal weekly temperatures prevailed in most areas along and east of a line from Texas to Michigan, while readings averaged at least 10°F below normal in parts of the Rockies, Great Basin, and Intermountain West. Similarly, temperatures generally averaged 10 to 20°F below normal in much of northern Montana, western Minnesota, and the Dakotas. Early in the week, a Southern cold snap threatened blooming fruits and other temperature-sensitive crops. Record-setting lows for March 19 in Tennessee included 18°F in Crossville and 21°F in Jackson. Cold weather extended westward to the Plains, where Garden City, KS, posted a daily record-tying low of 10°F on the 19th. Below-normal temperatures also persisted in the West, where selected daily-record lows on March 19 included -17°F in Big Piney, WY, and -12°Fin Randolph, UT. By March 20, the Southern cold wave generally peaked with lows in Tennessee again dipping to daily-record levels in Crossville (14°F) and Jackson (17°F). Elsewhere in the Southeast, record-setting lows for March 20 plunged to 19°F in Lynchburg, VA; 23°F in Anniston, AL; and 28°F in Augusta, GA. On the same date, freezes extended to Gulf Coast cities such as Mobile, AL (29°F), and Pensacola, FL (30°F). With cold air lingering in the Atlantic Coast States, daily-record lows for March 21 fell to 24°F in Elizabeth City, NC, and 32°F in Brooksville, FL. Soon, record-setting warmth returned across the southcentral U.S. By March 22, San Angelo, TX, posted a daily-record high of 92°F. In Louisiana, Baton Rouge logged consecutive daily-record highs of 86°F on March 23-24. In Mississippi, daily-record highs on the 24th—the day of the tragic tornado outbreak—soared to 87°F in Greenwood and 85°F in Tupelo. On March 24, McAllen, TX, attained 101°F for the second time this month. McAllen also observed 2 days of triple-digit heat during March in 1954, 1971, 1991, 2008, and 2013. By March 25, daily-record highs topped the 90-degree mark in Florida locations in Leesburg (92°F) and Vero Beach (91°F). Other Southeastern daily-record highs for the 25th reached 90°F in Montgomery, AL, and 89°F in Lafayette, LA.

Mild weather replaced previously cold conditions in Alaska, accompanied by some precipitation in southern and western locations. In Bettles, high temperatures reached or exceeded 32°F each day from March 18-23, peaking at 35°F on the 21st. Bettles had not been above the freezing mark since October 18, 2022.

Mar, 26-Apr, 1:  Windy and dry weather dominated the southern High Plains and parts of the Southwest, periodically raising dust and maintaining significant stress on rangeland, pastures, and winter grains. In western Texas, Lubbock reported wind gusts to 50 mph on higher on March 24, 25, 27, and 31. Weekly temperatures averaged 10 to 20°F below normal in the north-central U.S., including much of western Minnesota, northeastern Montana, and the Dakotas. Readings also averaged at least 10°F below normal in scattered locations across California, the Great Basin, and the Intermountain West. In contrast, temperatures averaged more than 5°F above normal in the Southeast, from the western Gulf Coast region to the southern Atlantic Coast. Record-setting warmth dominated the southern Atlantic States, following the previous week’s cold snap. Nevertheless, Southeastern producers continued to assess sensitive crops, such as peaches and blueberries, for signs of freeze injury. On March 26, daily-record highs topped the 90-degree mark in Florida locations such as Leesburg (92°F) and Daytona Beach (91°F). The following day, record-setting highs for March 27 reached 90°F at Jacksonville, FL, and St. Simons Island, GA. West Palm Beach, FL, collected a daily-record high of 91°F on March 28. Late in the week, warmth continued in Florida and expanded across the Deep South. On the last day of March, Fort Myers, FL, posted a daily-record high. By April 1, highs again reached or exceeded the 90- degree mark, setting daily records, in Florida locations such as Melbourne (92°F) and Jacksonville (90°F). St. Simons Island again attained 90°F on April 1. Elsewhere on the first day of April, daily-record highs included 90°F in Lafayette, LA, and 89°F in Houston, TX. In contrast, chilly conditions gripped the northern Plains and much of the West. Yakima, WA, opened the week on March 26-27 with consecutive lows of 21°F, tying a daily record with the initial reading. March 27 featured daily-record lows in dozens of Western communities, including sub-zero readings in Big Piney, WY (-10°F), and Ely, NV (-1°F). Big Piney set another sub-zero, daily-record reading on March 28, with -16°F—and notched 18 days during the month with readings below 0°F, a 21st century record for March (previously, 11 days in 2019). By mid-week, already-cold conditions intensified across the north-central U.S., where daily-record lows for March 29 plunged to -14°F in Aberdeen, SD; -13°F in Bismarck, ND; and -10°F in Brainerd, MN. Late in the week, daily-record minima in California included 12°F (on March 31) at Big Bear Lake and 33°F (on April 1) in Thermal. Elsewhere, April 1 was the last of 143 consecutive days with high temperatures below 40°F in Fargo, ND, the second-longest such streak on record in that location, behind only 152 days from November 10, 1978 – April 10, 1979.

 

 

Jim G. Munley, jr.
http://www.jimmunleywx.com