donsutherland1

January 1996: Snowfall in Boston was 18.2" January 2016: Snowfall in Boston was 6.1"

The monthly forecast also has a much warmer than normal March across much of the nation.

Cooler air is now poised to return for a short time starting tomorrow. As that happens, a storm will likely develop and deepen well offshore with the potential to bring some light snow or snow showers to the Northeast, especially eastern New England where a light measurable snowfall remains possible. The New York City Metro area will likely see a cold rain. Afterward, there is strong support on the guidance for an extended period of warmer than normal conditions. Based on the historic data, no significant snowfalls (6" or more) are likely in the major Middle Atlantic cities (Baltimore, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC) through the remainder of the 2019-2020 snow season. There is a greater but still low probability for Boston to see such a snowstorm. As a result, New York City will likely finish winter 2019-2020 with less than 10" snow for the first time since winter 2011-2012 and for only the 10th time on record. Snowfall records go back to winter 1868-1869 (when 25.5" fell from January-March 1869). The ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly was +1.0°C and the Region 3.4 anomaly was +0.5°C for the week centered around February 26. For the past six weeks, the ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly has averaged +0.37°C and the ENSO Region 3.4 anomaly has averaged +0.42°C. Neutral ENSO conditions will likely prevail through March. The SOI was +7.27 today. Today, the preliminary Arctic Oscillation (AO) figure was +1.656. No significant stratospheric warming is likely through March 13, but the upper stratosphere above 5 mb will likely be warm. Wave 2 activity will likely be low. Overall, most of the stratosphere is forecast to remain cold on the EPS into the latter part of the second week of March. On March 4, the MJO was in Phase 4 at an amplitude of 1.793 (RMM). The March 3-adjusted amplitude was 1.887. A sizable majority (>80%) of years during which the AO has been, on average, strongly positive during the first 15 days of February were followed by a warmer than normal March. The preliminary February 1-15 AO average was +2.758. Only 1989 (+3.336) and 1990 (+2.948) had higher AO averages during this period. Recent rapid warming in ENSO Region 1+2 has also typically preceded a warmer than normal March and spring in the Middle Atlantic region. The most recent C3S multi-system blend favors a somewhat warmer than normal spring in the region. A warmer than normal March and spring remain the base case. Based on sensitivity analysis applied to the latest guidance, there is an implied 81% probability that New York City will have a warmer than normal March. The probability that New York City will experience among the 10 warmest March cases on record has increased in recent days.

Perhaps somewhat related: https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2020/03/05/clickbait-weather-forecasts-social-media/?itid=hp_hp-more-top-stories_cwg-clickbait-410pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans From the story: On Wednesday, for example, a number of Facebook pages shared a forecast from the American GFS model showing heavy snow from Washington to Boston next Thursday, eight days into the future, when such predictions are not reliable. Other, more accurate models showed no such snow threat. But with that shaky forecast propagating through social media, several meteorologists felt compelled to confront it. “I will not buy into the hype. I will not post a phantom map,” posted meteorologist Justin Berk, who provides forecasts for Maryland on Facebook. Extreme ideas or solutions should be treated as unlikely to occur unless there is strong evidence for them. That applies to hype about stratospheric warming events, extreme GFS snowfall forecasts, and extreme analogs. The pushback from the meteorological community is welcome.

LGA also set a record high minimum temperature of 49 on March 3.

Today saw readings again reach much above normal levels. However, cooler air could return for a short time late in the week. As that happens, a storm could develop and deepen along the cold front well offshore with the potential to bring a little snow to parts of the Northeast, especially eastern New England where a light measurable snowfall is possible. Afterward, there is strong support on the guidance for an extended period of warmer than normal conditions. Based on the historic data, no significant snowfalls (6" or more) are likely in the major Middle Atlantic cities (Baltimore, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC) through the remainder of the 2019-2020 snow season. There is a greater but still low probability for Boston to see such a snowstorm. As a result, New York City will likely finish winter 2019-2020 with less than 10" snow for the first time since winter 2011-2012 and for only the 10th time on record. Snowfall records go back to winter 1868-1869 (when 25.5" fell from January-March 1869). The ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly was +1.0°C and the Region 3.4 anomaly was +0.5°C for the week centered around February 26. For the past six weeks, the ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly has averaged +0.37°C and the ENSO Region 3.4 anomaly has averaged +0.42°C. Neutral ENSO conditions will likely prevail through March. The SOI was +7.99 today. Today, the preliminary Arctic Oscillation (AO) figure was +2.451. No significant stratospheric warming is likely through March 12, but the upper stratosphere above 5 mb will likely be warm. Wave 2 activity will likely be low. Overall, most of the stratosphere is forecast to remain cold on the EPS into the middle of the second week of March. On March 3, the MJO was in Phase 3 at an amplitude of 1.884 (RMM). The March 2-adjusted amplitude was 1.781. A sizable majority (>80%) of years during which the AO has been, on average, strongly positive during the first 15 days of February were followed by a warmer than normal March. The preliminary February 1-15 AO average was +2.758. Only 1989 (+3.336) and 1990 (+2.948) had higher AO averages during this period. Recent rapid warming in ENSO Region 1+2 has also typically preceded a warmer than normal March and spring in the Middle Atlantic region. The most recent C3S multi-system blend favors a somewhat warmer than normal spring in the region. A warmer than normal March and spring remain the base case. Based on sensitivity analysis applied to the latest guidance, there is an implied 78% probability that New York City will have a warmer than normal March.

The 12z Euro has different solution than the GFS had. I'll leave it at that.

So far, its snowy outcomes have not been mentioned by the NWS. Representative is the extended forecast discussion from Mount Holly: The airmass will moderate as the flow becomes more southwesterly through the weekend and will warm from the 40s on Saturday to upper 50s Sunday and then 60s on Monday and Tuesday. The only hitch in the this part of the extended is that clouds will increase into Tuesday as a low pressure will track up through the Ohio Valley and into New England on Tuesday, dragging a cold front across our area Tuesday afternoon/evening, bringing another round of rain to the region.

The Governor needs to declare a virtual state of emergency ahead of this virtual snowstorm.

The 3/4/2020 run of the 12z showed what would be an unprecedented snowstorm. The model, using the more "conservative" 10:1 ratio, showed 20" or more snow in Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston. The closest storm to such a solution since regular recordkeeping began in the 19th century was the February 2003 President's Day snowstorm: The closest storm that includes the pre-National Weather Service era was the January 14-16, 1831 "Great Atlantic Snowstorm." That historic blizzard dumped 2 feet of snow in Philadelphia, 18"-20" in New York City, and around 2 feet in Boston. Almost certainly, one can expect widespread chatter on Social Media, but such a solution is highly unlikely, if not all but improbable. First, historic March snowstorms that brought 8" or more snow to all of the aforementioned cities typically had a much more expansive cold air mass and much colder air mass available to them. Second, the cold associated with the February 2003 snowstorm was severe even for January. Third, the GFS is alone in depicting what would be an almost unprecedented snowstorm. And a major caveat applies: "Several individual case studies illustrate the model still exhibits a cold bias and may produce excessive snow in the medium range." https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pns19-09gfs_v15_1.pdf

From the memo announcing planned implementation of the FV3-based GFS: Several individual case studies illustrate the model still exhibits a cold bias and may produce excessive snow in the medium range. https://www.weather.gov/media/notification/pns19-09gfs_v15_1.pdf Nevertheless, the decision was made to go ahead despite the persistence of that issue. Bad decision making leads to bad outcomes. Bad outcomes can lead to a loss of confidence in the model's medium- and extended-range solutions. At present, medium-range and extended-range cold shots and snowstorms on the GFS are suspect when no other support is present. It should also be noted that the kind of cold that was present for the March 1956 (2nd snowstorm), 1960, and 1993 snowstorms (magnitude and expanse) is not shown on the GFS, which forecasts a storm similar to those with 10" or more snow in NYC and Boston in the Day 8-9 timeframe. The combination of an absence of support for such a storm and lack of sufficient cold argues strongly that that GFS forecast for a major March snowstorm is likely the product of the bias(es) that remained in place.

Today saw readings again reach much above normal levels. In the South, Atlanta picked up 0.49" rain today bringing its year-to-date precipitation to 20.03". That's the highest figure so early in the year. The previous record was 19.38" in 1990. Cooler air could return for a short time late in the week. As that happens, a storm could develop and deepen along the cold front with the potential to bring a little snow to parts of the Northeast, especially eastern New England where a measurable snowfall is possible. Recent model runs have kept the storm farther offshore lowering the probability of snowfall. Afterward, there is growing support on the guidance for an extended period of warmer than normal conditions. Based on the historic data, no significant snowfalls (6" or more) are likely in the major Middle Atlantic cities (Baltimore, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC) through the remainder of the 2019-2020 snow season. There is a greater but still low probability for Boston to see such a snowstorm. The ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly was +1.0°C and the Region 3.4 anomaly was +0.5°C for the week centered around February 26. For the past six weeks, the ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly has averaged +0.37°C and the ENSO Region 3.4 anomaly has averaged +0.42°C. Neutral ENSO conditions will likely prevail through March. The SOI was +2.11 today. Today, the preliminary Arctic Oscillation (AO) figure was +2.992. No significant stratospheric warming is likely through March 11, but the upper stratosphere above 5 mb will likely be warm. Wave 2 activity will likely be low. Overall, most of the stratosphere is forecast to remain cold on the EPS into the middle of the second week of March. On March 2, the MJO was in Phase 3 at an amplitude of 1.774 (RMM). The March 1-adjusted amplitude was 1.496. A sizable majority (>80%) of years during which the AO has been, on average, strongly positive during the first 15 days of February were followed by a warmer than normal March. The preliminary February 1-15 AO average was +2.758. Only 1989 (+3.336) and 1990 (+2.948) had higher AO averages during this period. Recent rapid warming in ENSO Region 1+2 has also typically preceded a warmer than normal March and spring in the Middle Atlantic region. The most recent C3S multi-system blend favors a somewhat warmer than normal spring in the region. A warmer than normal March and spring remain the base case. Based on sensitivity analysis applied to the latest guidance, there is an implied 74% probability that New York City will have a warmer than normal March.

Final December 2019-February 2020 Temperature Anomalies for North America:

Temperatures rose well into the 50s today in the Middle Atlantic region. During mid-week, high temperatures could reach the 60s as ridging peaks along the East Coast at more than 150 meters above normal. Cooler air could return for a short time late in the week. As that happens, a storm could develop and deepen along the cold front with the potential to bring some snow to parts of the Northeast, especially eastern New England where a measurable snowfall is possible. Afterward, there is growing support on the guidance for an extended period of warmer than normal conditions. Based on the historic data, no significant snowfalls (6" or more) are likely in the major Middle Atlantic cities (Baltimore, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC) through the remainder of the 2019-2020 snow season. There is a greater but still low probability for Boston to see such a snowstorm. The ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly was +1.0°C and the Region 3.4 anomaly was +0.5°C for the week centered around February 26. For the past six weeks, the ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly has averaged +0.37°C and the ENSO Region 3.4 anomaly has averaged +0.42°C. Neutral ENSO conditions will likely prevail through March. The SOI was -7.80 today. Today, the preliminary Arctic Oscillation (AO) figure was +2.814. No significant stratospheric warming is likely through March 10, but the upper stratosphere above 3 mb will likely be warm. Wave 2 activity will likely diminish during the first week of March. Overall, most of the stratosphere is forecast to remain cold on the EPS into the start of the second week of March. On March 1, the MJO was in Phase 3 at an amplitude of 1.496 (RMM). The February 29-adjusted amplitude was 0.971. A sizable majority (>80%) of years during which the AO has been, on average, strongly positive during the first 15 days of February were followed by a warmer than normal March. The preliminary February 1-15 AO average was +2.758. Only 1989 (+3.336) and 1990 (+2.948) had higher AO averages during this period. Recent rapid warming in ENSO Region 1+2 has also typically preceded a warmer than normal March and spring in the Middle Atlantic region. The most recent C3S multi-system blend favors a somewhat warmer than normal spring in the region. A warmer than normal March and spring remain the base case. Based on sensitivity analysis applied to the latest guidance, there is an implied 72% probability that New York City will have a warmer than normal March.

For those who are interested, Coronavirus/COVID-19 Fact Sheets can be found here: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/communication/factsheets.html

For those keeping track of the coronavirus, here's a link to a dashboard created by Johns Hopkins University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering: http://www.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6

Historic warmth in Moscow for winter 2019-2020:

Milder air began overspreading the region today after a brisk start. Temperatures could surge into the 60s during mid-week as ridging peaks along the East Coast at more than 150 meters above normal. Cooler air could return for a short time late in the week. As that happens, a storm could develop and deepen along the cold front with the potential to bring some snow to parts of the Northeast, especially eastern New England where a measurable snowfall is possible. Afterward, there is growing support on the guidance for an extended period of warmer than normal conditions. Based on the historic data, no significant snowfalls (6" or more) are likely in the major Middle Atlantic cities (Baltimore, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC) through the remainder of the 2019-2020 snow season. There is a greater but still low probability for Boston to see such a snowstorm. The ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly was +0.3°C and the Region 3.4 anomaly was +0.6°C for the week centered around February 19. For the past six weeks, the ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly has averaged +0.17°C and the ENSO Region 3.4 anomaly has averaged +0.40°C. Neutral ENSO conditions will likely prevail through March. The SOI was -17.47 today. Today, the preliminary Arctic Oscillation (AO) figure was +1.991. No significant stratospheric warming is likely through March 9, but the upper stratosphere above 3 mb will likely be warm. Wave 2 activity will likely diminish during the first week of March. Overall, most of the stratosphere is forecast to remain cold on the EPS into the start of the second week of March. On February 29, the MJO was in Phase 4 at an amplitude of 0.951 (RMM). The February 28-adjusted amplitude was 0.439. A sizable majority (>80%) of years during which the AO has been, on average, strongly positive during the first 15 days of February were followed by a warmer than normal March. The preliminary February 1-15 AO average was +2.758. Only 1989 (+3.336) and 1990 (+2.948) had higher AO averages during this period. Recent rapid warming in ENSO Region 1+2 has also typically preceded a warmer than normal March and spring in the Middle Atlantic region. The most recent C3S multi-system blend favors a somewhat warmer than normal spring in the region. A warmer than normal March and spring remain the base case. Based on sensitivity analysis applied to the latest guidance, there is an implied 70% probability that New York City will have a warmer than normal March.

There was no evidence of the fabled “March lion” today. After a cold start, temperatures rose into the lower 40s under bright sunshine and a cloudless sky.

March 13-15, 2018 would probably be a better case. March 2001 saw 3.5" in NYC. The March 2018 storm dumped 14.9" in Boston with just a trace in NYC and 0.3" in Newark.

During that month, the Long Island Sound became almost entirely frozen. A photo from Rye, NY (2/21/2015):

This might be useful for illustrating the magnitude of the GFS's cold bias. For comparison, you noted that the 6z GFS has a 3/1-17 mean temperature of 43.0 degrees for NYC. The multi-model blend I use in my sensitivity analyses shows 44.4 degrees for the same period.

During the second half of March, the EPO is much less a factor due to the shorter wave lengths. For example, during the March 16-31, 1981-2019 period, New York City had a mean temperature of 45.1°. During that period, the mean temperature for EPO cases < 0 was 45.0° and the average for those with an EPO of -1.000 or below was 44.7°.

Despite today's chill, New York City is on track to finish February with a mean temperature of 40.1°. That would tie 1954 for the 7th warmest February on record. 2020 was also the fourth year since 2010 where the monthly mean temperature was 40.0° or above and the 10th such year on record. February 2020 also saw near record to record low monthly snowfall in much of the Middle Atlantic and southern New England areas. Monthly snowfall totals through 4 pm included: Allentown: Trace (tied monthly record low) Boston: 0.5" (9th February case with < 1" snowfall and 3rd since 2010) Bridgeport: Trace (tied monthly record low) Islip: 0.0" (old record: Trace) New York City-Central Park: Trace (record: 0.0", 1998) New York City-JFK: Trace (tied monthly record low) New York City-LGA: Trace (tied monthly record low) Newark: Trace (tied monthly record low) Philadelphia: Trace (tied monthly record low) Providence: Trace (tied monthly record low) Starting tomorrow milder air will move into the region. Temperatures could surge into the 60s during the middle of next week as ridging peaks along the East Coast at more than 150 meters above normal. Based on the historic data, no significant snowfalls (6" or more) are likely in the major Middle Atlantic cities through the remainder of the 2019-2020 snow season. There is a greater but still low probability for Boston to see such a snowstorm. The ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly was +0.3°C and the Region 3.4 anomaly was +0.6°C for the week centered around February 19. For the past six weeks, the ENSO Region 1+2 anomaly has averaged +0.17°C and the ENSO Region 3.4 anomaly has averaged +0.40°C. Neutral ENSO conditions will likely prevail through March. The SOI was -16.14 today. Today, the preliminary Arctic Oscillation (AO) figure was +1.557. The preliminary February average was +3.231. Only 1990 (+3.402) and 1989 (+3.279) had February averages of +3.000 or above. The preliminary winter average for the AO was +1.960. 82% days were positive, including 31% that had a figure of +3.000 or above. The exceptional strength of the polar vortex and AO+ highlighted the uncertain nature of linkage, if it exists at all, between a solar minimum and Arctic blocking. No significant stratospheric warming is likely through March 8, but the upper stratosphere above 3 mb will likely be warm. Wave 2 activity will likely diminish during the first week of March. Overall, most of the stratosphere is forecast to remain cold on the EPS into the start of the second week of March. On February 28, the MJO was in Phase 3 at an amplitude of 0.434 (RMM). The February 27-adjusted amplitude was 0.226. A sizable majority (>80%) of years during which the AO has been, on average, strongly positive during the first 15 days of February were followed by a warmer than normal March. The preliminary February 1-15 AO average was +2.758. Only 1989 (+3.336) and 1990 (+2.948) had higher AO averages during this period. Recent rapid warming in ENSO Region 1+2 has also typically preceded a warmer than normal March and spring in the Middle Atlantic region. The most recent C3S multi-system blend favors a somewhat warmer than normal spring in the region. A warmer than normal March and spring remain the base case. Based on sensitivity analysis applied to the latest guidance, there is an implied 67% probability that New York City will have a warmer than normal March. Overall, the Middle Atlantic and southern New England regions will likely see temperatures run 3° to 5° above normal for March.

The 18z run has amnesia and doesn’t remember the snowstorm from the 12z run.