ChescoWx

Seasonal Snowfall for Western Chester County PA from 1894 to Present

Of course nowhere close to frost here in the peaks of Western Chesco - only made it down to 34.3 with still only 3 days of 32 or below - which is 11 less than normal through today. Warmest November on the books will do that! On this date back in 1995 we received 3.7" of snow which began the snowy winter of 1995-96 which saw Chesco finish with 81.9" of snow. At the time that was the 2nd snowiest winter exceeded only by 1898-99 when 95.0" fell in the county. We would exceed the 80" mark 2 more times with 86.6" in 2009-10 and 80.0" in 2013-14

Through yesterday this November in Western Chester County PA stands at an average temperature of 50.3. We are a lock now for at least the 2nd warmest November on record. The previous #2 was November 1902 at 49.4 This will be only the 2nd time we have finished a November with an average temperature north of 50 degrees - we have an excellent shot at squeaking out the warmest November ever - eclipsing the 50.1 from back in November 1931. Below are the top 10 warmest Novembers on record and the subsequent seasonal snowfall - 4 of these years (in red) were included in my winter forecast analog package for this upcoming winter.

As part of my website refresh I am going back and updating some analytics etc. I will post here and link on the website. Thanks! 1st off Climate Averages and all-time records for Western Chesco

AM low so far was at midnight at 51.8 - Happy Thanksgiving to all of you and your families!!

Updated chart with revised 90 degree analytics - of note in the last 5 years (2016-20) PHL International Airport has recorded 169 days over 90 degrees....while KMQS / KPTW and East Nantmeal Township combined have seen only 121 such days over same time period. With PHL seeing increasing (+11% ) frequency of 90+ days over the last 8 years.... while the burbs are actually seeing 90+ days decreasing at a rate between 35% to 64% over the last 8 years

Hey guys I have now revised and updated my website at http://www.chescowx.com It now has near live webcam updates, updated historical links, new analytics and for those who kept asking it is now mobile friendly!! I will be continuing to update the site with updated rankings and analytical data of some of my older analysis and also some new and hopefully insightful metrics regarding the inland climate of the philly burbs for the last 127 years for the period 1894 to Present. Please visit and let me know if any suggestions or adds etc. Thanks! Paul http://www.chescowx.com

AM Low today 36.9

More info on my winter forecast - In the identified analog years below only 2 of the 10 winter seasons resulted in above average snow seasons...hence why my winter forecast has an 80% likelihood of below normal snow. Below are the analog seasons and the snowfall: 1902/03 - 25.8" / 1913/14 - 54.1" / 1927/28 - 38.5" / 1931/32 - 9.0" / 1935/36 - 34.0" / 1975/76 - 19.0" / 1985/86 - 26.3" / 2001/02 - 11.1" / 2005/06 - 31.4" and 2016/17 - 24.0 Only snowstorms in these analog years >10" were: January 29, 1928 - 20.0"/ February 12, 2006 - 18.0" / March 2, 1914 - 12.0" / February 14, 1914 - 10.4" / February 24, 1914 - 10.4" and February 17, 1903 - 10.0"

Hey guys, Below is my latest climate recap article for the local paper and includes my pass at a winter forecast - let me know what you think and enjoy! Hello again from Paul at the East Nantmeal PA Weather Station (www.chescowx.com). Be sure to follow me on twitter at chescopawxman where I am tweeting daily climate reports, forecast updates and weather and drone photos of our beautiful Township. I hope all of you are staying well and safe! Since the last New Sweetwater Reporter, we have moved from summer into mid-fall. Let’s quickly recap our weather here in the Township. July was a warm month finishing with an average temperature of 77.0 degrees which is 5.0 degrees above normal See the below summer months summary that details our 1st “heat wave” in East Nantmeal Township in the last 2 years. Rainfall was 5.52” or 0.77” above normal. August, finished only slightly above average with a temperature of 73.5 or 1.3 degrees above normal. However, rainfall wise thanks to the impacts of Hurricane Isaias which drenched the township with a new record daily rainfall of 5.83” we finished August with 8.38” of rain or 4.01” above normal. Below is a summer recap for East Nantmeal Township with some of the facts and figures of this past summer season. Summer (June thru August) climate summary for East Nantmeal Township PA. For the summer months (Jun-Jul-Aug) here in East Nantmeal we finished with an average temperature of 73.7 This is the 17th warmest summer since 1894 Of note the 5 hottest summers were all before 1955 (warmest being the summer of 1900 at 75.8 degrees!) Coldest reading - 44.1 on June 1st Warmest reading - 92.0 on July 19th Only our 2nd heat wave (3 straight 90+ days) in the last 8 years!! We have had only 10 heat waves in the last 18 years those being on July 1- 3, 2018 /July 5-7, 2012 / July 21-24, 2011 / July 4-7, 2010 / July 18-20, 2008 / June 7-10, 2008 / August 1-3, 2006 / August 12-14, 2005 / June 24-26, 2003 / August 1-5, 2002 5 days exceeded 90 degrees this summer this represented our most here in the Township in 9 years since the 11 such days back in 2011 A bit surprising for the many warming climate believers…only 4 of the 17 warmest summers have occurred since 1988 and the top 5 all before 1956 and 13 of the 17 warmest summers also occurred prior to 1956 Top 5 warmest summers were (1900 - 75.8 / 1901 - 75.0 / 1944- 75.0/ 1955 - 75.0 and 1943 -74.9) Precipitation wise we received 17.63" of rain - average summer months rainfall is 13.16" (+4.49" above avg.) so a good year for the many farmer in our beautiful township This was the 15th wettest summer on record with the wettest occurring just 2 summers ago in 2018 when 26.29" of rain drenched East Nantmeal Township Finally, a fascinating comparison (see below) that helps highlight the increasing heat island impact that we consistently see at the Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) compared to the more rural airport observation locations in suburban Eastern PA of Coatesville, Reading and Pottstown where we are noting a clear decline in 90+ days – some notable facts out of this data. In just the last 2 years PHL airport has recording 67 days above 90 degrees (the other 3 sites combined over the last 4 years only 61 days!) With 17 years of records for these locations - Note that over the last 8 years a significant drop in the number of 90+ days at the rural sites compared to the prior 9 years However, at the Philadelphia airport - the frequency of 90+ days continues to increase at a fast pace....this disparity between the PHL heat island and suburbia is likely to continue as the heat island impact shows little sign of abating – so as mentioned before take the mentions of heat waves on the local news as a unique feature of the heat island locales in the close in Philadelphia suburbs and not representative of where we live in East Nantmeal Township. The dawn of the month that marks the start of the Autumn season delivered our 1st below normal month in the last 3 months since the back to back below normal months of April and May. September finished with an average reading of 64.4 or (0.6 degrees below normal) – it was also a very dry month with only 2.22” of rain falling…well below our normal 4.74” that fall in East Nantmeal. We did record 2 daily record low temperatures during the month with the 41.1 on the 19th and the 40.2 on the 21st. October was a somewhat normal month with a slightly above average temperature of 55.2 (+1.3) and near normal rain of 4.34” (+0.16 to avg.). We did record our 1st freezing temperature on Halloween morning at 32 degrees this ended our growing season at 174 days since our last freeze on May 10th. These 174 days were 14 days less than our normal growing season for our farmer of 188 days. November has been incredibly warm with even 5 straight days between the 6th and 10th exceeding the 70-degree mark. As I sit here on the 21st of the month I believe we have a good chance to finish in the top-5 warmest Novembers on record! So, what does this mean for our upcoming winter season? Well it is indeed time for my annual winter forecast for Western Chester County PA and specifically for our backyards here in beautiful East Nantmeal. As some may remember my winter forecast for last winter was just as bad as all the professional meteorologist who also forecast a cold and snowy winter. This year I have taken a different approach. I have focused on what we call analog seasons – looking for similar fall months in relation to normal along with an eye to the anticipated La Niña pattern that many find a strong predictor of future weather. With that said I have identified based on our fall patterns 10 of these analog years with what I think will be a somewhat weaker La Niña pattern compared to many of the more moderate professional forecasts I have seen. My 10 analog seasons are in reverse time order 2016/17 – 2005/06 – 2001/02 – 1985/86 – 1975/76 – 1935/36 – 1931/32 – 1927/28 – 1913/14 and 1902/03 With all that in mind below is my winter forecast for Western Chester County PA and specifically for East Nantmeal Township with departures vs. average · November 2020 – Avg. Temp 49.7 (+5.8) w/ no snow (-1.3”) - December 2020 – Avg, Temp at 35.0 (+0.4) w/ Snow of 4.3” (-0.4”) · January 2021 – Avg. Temp at 32.5 (+2.5) w/ Snow of 6.7” (-4.0”) · February 2021 – Avg. Temp at 34.0 (+1.5) w/ Snow of 9.5” (-2.3”) · March 2021 – Avg. Temp at 41.4 (+0.9) w/ Snow of 6.1” (normal avg.) · April 2021 – Avg. Temp 51.4 (+0.1) w/ Snow of 0.3” (-0.7”) To summarize - every month of the winter season is forecast to average warmer than normal temperatures, with all but March averaging below normal snowfall. Total 2020/21 snowfall forecast is 26.9” or 9” below our normal seasonal snow average of 35.9” Now, regarding potential major snowstorms based on the analog years I have identified we have a: · 70% chance of at least one storm at over 6” of snow · 40% chance of . 1 storm exceeding 10” of snow · 20% chance of a storm over 15” · 10% chance of a storm over 20” So, while not likely to be a cold or snowy winter - keep those snow blowers handy and enjoy the holiday season with your family and friends and please stay safe and healthy! All the best - Paul “Some are weather-wise, some are otherwise” Ben Franklin