ChescoWx

We did indeed set the record for latest sub-freezing day in history across almost all long term NWS COOP reporting sites across Chester County today! KMQS and KOQN reached 32 degrees while KPTW could do no better than 30 degrees.

IF some of these records are actually broken tomorrow it will be a truly amazing cold record....the coldest day ever on record so late in any season!!!....incredible - especially in our current warm cycle

Here are the minimum high temperature records for Monday, March 28 from the National Weather Service in Mount Holly. In Western Chester County the record minimum high temperature is 35 in 1996 Allentown 37 in 1996, 1966, 1959 Atlantic City Airport 39 in 1996, 1959, 1956 Atlantic City Marina 37 in 1956 Georgetown 40 in 2015 1982 Mount Pocono 24 in 1937 Philadelphia 35 in 1877 Reading 35 in 1937 Trenton 35 in 1919 Wilmington 37 in 1996

Looks like many of those may be in reach....more stunning is that in many cases it will be coldest high temps so late in the spring on record!

Below are a list of the latest sub-freezing days for multiple locations in Chester and nearby Berks / Lehigh County - all locations with the exception of West Chester and ABE Airport (both would be 2nd latest ever) would (IF we fail to reach 32 degrees tomorrow) record their latest sub-freezing day in recorded weather history!! Western Chesco (Coatesville/ENANT) - March 26, 2014 Phoenixville - March 24, 1896 West Chester - April 1, 1923 (2nd latest ever would be tomorrow - previous 2nd latest was 3/25/40) Chadds Ford - March 19, 1956 Glenmoore - March 22, 2018 Octoraro Lake - March 21, 2018 KMQS Airport - March 17, 2014 Morgantown - March 27, 1955 ABE Airport - tomorrow would be 2nd latest - record is 4/7/82

Yes a high of 30 on the 7th at JFK

Close the coldest ever minimum high for April of 33 was recorded on April 9, 1982

IF (and a big if) the latest 18z NAM is to be believed Monday's currently forecast of a sub-freezing high temperature here in Chester County would mark the latest day in recorded weather history that the thermometer failed to reach 32 degrees in a calendar year! The latest sub-freezing day in Chester County was the 32 degrees back on March 26, 2014. I am not sure of what the record latest sub freezing low max is at PHL or other locations but....something unusual especially in our current warming cycle at least out here in Chester County!

have only see some graupel in NW Chesco with temps topping out at 50.5 here in East Nantmeal.

This is often confusing but hail happens during thunderstorms due to updrafts normally in summer with well above freezing surface temps. Sleet is melted rain that fall through a significant layer of cold freezing temps all the way to ground level - this occurs during winter months with freezing temps at ground level. Graupel is heavily rimed snow pellets. Riming is a process in the atmosphere that acts to stick snow crystals together and then rain or partial melting due to melting in a pretty thick above freezing layer adds an icy outer layer - this can occur even with temps in the 50's near ground level

Neither - graupel

The freezing level is not thick enough actually it is graupel

Some comparative stats to highlight just how warm our winters have been during the current warm cycle here in Chester County PA. Based simply on the overall rankings (128 winter seasons): Winter (Dec-March 2022) 26th warmest winter 33.9 vs. average of 31.4 (+2.5) 30th least snow 20.5" vs. average of 36.0" (-15.5") To underscore how very warm the current warm cycle of local winters have been... of the top 25 warm winters 13 have occurred just since 1980! Top 25 warm seasons By ~40 year cycles: 1900-1939 (7) 1940-1979 (5) 1980 to present (13)

Storm total 0.99" with 0.71" yesterday. Now up to 90% of normal precipitation through yesterday.

Storm total of 0.42" so far in East Nantmeal with 0.14" since midnight.

Beautiful day both in NW Chesco and down the shore! Splits were 62.1/38.8 in Chesco and 62.6/42.4 in Sea Isle City. Through today in Chesco we are running 4.9 degrees above normal for March. Precipitation wise we are 8.54" or 85% of our normal precip of 10.00" exactly through today

I saw some data posted by Adam Joseph from 6 ABC that highlighted the "warming" springs since 1970 at Philadelphia International Airport. I of course could not resist the chance to see what a longer period of raw un-adjusted records back to the 1890's for the 3 longest running Chester County sites might show? Of interest the average temperature changes from the prior decade showed (Coatesville with 6 warmer and 6 colder decades / West Chester 7 colder vs. 5 warmer decades / Phoenixville 6 warmer and 6 colder decades). Overall 2 of the 3 sites show no warming based on trend lines. Of course there can be no doubt that we have been in a warmer cycle since 1970....but failure to show what happened during the prior 7 decades before 1970 may not be painting the most accurate picture. Is climate change real? of course our climate is and will be always changing! But is it simply the normal ebbs and flows of warming vs. cooling cycles? We should never just look at trends since 1970 to make such a call IMHO.

Yesterday's 4.3" of snow broke the daily snow Chester County record for March 12th of 2.0" back in 1896. However, we are only at 64% of normal seasonal snow to date.

Wife measured 3" with round 1 - I can see on cams it is snowing moderately there again. I have had a travel day from hell. I am still on the plane now and in flight to Tampa. This is my 2nd flight from PHL today. Flight #1 left at 7am and made it about 150 miles south before the pilot got on and said due to a smell (later found to be hydraulic fluid ) was causing him to return to PHL. We landed back in Philly at 8am. We then did not leave on another plane until 130 pm with another 20 min in the deicing line. I should be arriving in Tampa only 7 hours behind schedule...fun times!

I am heading out to Phillies Spring Training tomorrow...near record cold in the Clearwater area tomorrow night....upper 30's

Sun angle or not - if S+ and upper 20's will accumulate....

How silly is that?? I have not watch TWC for many years - since they stopped doing weather

Who or what is Stella??

Rain has started to mix with sleet for the first time today here in East Nantmeal. Today's 0.5" of snow is our first measurable snowfall in March this decade! The last time we received measurable snow in March was on March 4, 2019. Of note it snowed each of the 1st 4 days of March in 2019 and we received 11.8" of snow.

0.5" of snow so far temp at 32.5 - 5th largest snow of this entire winter!!