[Michigansnowflake]

Shoot, how about temps highers than the mid 50's?

[baystater]

Blame Canada for temps way below normal : La Crosse Tribune (http://lacrossetribune.com/articles/2009/06/09/news/00lead.txt - broken link)

[daddythreepointoh]

Originally Posted by magellan

Whatever the causes, it sure would be nice to get a full week of temps higher than the low 70's!!

I love it!

[magellan]

Originally Posted by Michigansnowflake

Shoot, how about temps highers than the mid 50's?

No kidding. We're headed up your way in a few weeks and I want it to be warm enough to do some boating/tubing!

I don't mind low 70's, but not when it doesn't get that high until 4 or 5 in the evening. The whole "shorts with a sweatshirt" look gets old.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Originally Posted by Peter B

I would pray to Jesus ad nauseum for a Maunder Minimum. That would be heavenly

No seriously, unless you look forward to millions (a billion?) dead, you don't want that.

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Originally Posted by Cliffie

There are a couple of books on the market at the moment that explain that extreme weather conditions are the norm throughout geological history, and the pleasant weather we've had in our lifetimes is sort of a fluke. If they're right, I suggest everyone buckle their seatbelts.

Correct.

The past 8 or so thousand years have been a gift.

The 20th century was the golden prize.

Now back to reality again.

[Peter B]

The colder, the better. I've got plenty of wood to keep warm, keeps the insects in check, keeps the undesirables inside, that and the fact that more people die from excessive heat than excessive cold by a large margin. I'll take cold, thank you

Originally Posted by BayAreaHillbilly

No seriously, unless you look forward to millions (a billion?) dead, you don't want that.

[michsnowlvr]

I have always been interested in climate data from the past, and have collected data online periodically over the years, but this past year I have done a huge comprehensive study on the weather of the past century. 1907-present at Detroit, MI.....and can tell you that since weather records started in Detroit in 1870, there have always been mild winters, brutal winters, torrid summers, and cool summers.....but the main thing is that the climate tends to go in cycles. We are in generally a cool cycle right now, so for the next several years, expect the sane to generally continue.

Most cities in Michigan had a top 5 or top 10 snowiest winter in BOTH 2007-08 and 2008-09. The past 2 winters gave Detroit more snow (71.7" + 65.7") in back-to-back winters than they had ever seen before. This past winters was bitterly cold to boot, and last summer was very lacking in heat.

So to sum up, the weather Michigan has been seeing the past few years IS colder than average, but i believe its all about climate going in cycles. Remember the mild winters of the 1990s and how everyone screamed global warming? I remember hearing laughable tales of how Michigans climate would be like present-day Kentucky in 100 years. Snowmobiling would become extinct and summers would become deadly. Now look at the 2000s. On pace to be the snowiest decade on record in most Michigan cities, from the Snow Belts of the U.P. to the metropolis of southeast MI.

[michsnowlvr]

Originally Posted by Coldjensens

I lived in MIchigan from 1963 through 1988. I lived in Califronia until 2005 and then returned to Michigan. It is defintely a lot warmer now than it was when I was a kid. The snow used to stay ont eh ground and accumulate pretty much all winter. We always had lots of days below zero and the cold started in November. Now we have warm days on and off all winter. The swno does nto stick around much more than a week or two at a time. And we were still swimming on Thanksgiving.

Compared to the previous three winters this winter was colder, but compared to twenty years ago - much warmer.

This is actually completely false, and there are plenty of weather stats to back this up. As I said in my previous posts, the amount and detail of old weather data is fascinating, and really puts to rest any myths about weather of the past. I chalk it up to our imaginations as kids. This winter was definitely much colder than an average winter, be it 20 years of 100 years ago.

The 1970s were the harshest of winters in Detroits modern history (1870-present), and that falls smack dab in the middle of your first period in MI, so perhaps another reason for your belief. The only decade with harsher winters was the 1880s.

Summers of the 1930s and 1950s were the hottest summers on record, the frequency and extent of the heat has not since been matched in Detroit (except in 1988, but that was just 1 summer, so the frequency part is off).

Winters of the 1940s were the least snowy on record.

Heres some quick snow data for Detroit from the 1930s-present (since, lets face it, no one reading this could possible remember anything pre-1930!). The list will simply go: Decade, the Average snow per season of the 10 winters that decade, and the average amount of days that snow fully covered the ground in a winter (this being snow FULLY covering the ground, not partially in patches, drifts, or piles). While each decade had some harsh winters and some very mild winters, the average shows what, if any, trend dominated that decade.

The least snowy winter? 1936-37 when 12.9" of snow fell.
The most snowy winter? 1880-81 when 93.6" of snow fell.

Snowiest back to back winters? 2007-08 (71.7") and 2008-09 (65.7") when 137.4" fell (9" more than the old record from 1898-99 + 1899-00)

Decade....Avg Snow....Avg Snowcover (Detroit, MI)
1930s............36"...........45 days
1940s............28"...........49 days
1950s............37"...........47 days
1960s............32"...........56 days
1970s............46"...........57 days
1980s............45"...........47 days
1990s............37"...........38 days
2000s............47"...........53 days

Great link: http://www.crh.noaa.gov/dtx/cms.php?n=decadetable

[Swansen]

Man... i wish i had the Tivo on when it was aired, but i can't even remember where i saw it, but global warming doesn't make everywhere warmer, it makes some places colder by changing atmospheric pressure in places. There is a low like right in Ontario, and i was like HA YEAH, i knew there was something going on. SO yeah, MI's climate as of late can be attributed to that. Like last season, the summer was very mild, (it was nice, i loved it) but HOLY DANG, we got a lot of rain, which i also loved, but it molded some farmers crops. However.. i feel our winters have been colder recently. (like last couple years) WAIT... it was on Europe and the UK specifially i think, there is a similiar low pressure area near there, so they have similiar conditions to what we are having, ... only more of it Like they had a record amount of snow last winter.