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Can there be a technically be "Zone 0" in Maine? I would change the upper region, Caribou Country of Maine from "1" to
"0"....Presque Isle, as an area resident once proclaimed,..."gots so cold hare, gat ta deflate yar air pressa & keep it low, or yar gonna bust a tyr on tham roads." I've heard also of area residents using the "out-house" all winter and not the their bathroom, because their pipes freeze and stay frozen until the middle of spring. Maine can be one strange place once you are north of Portland.
I have lived in the Upper Midwest before and the winters that KC and STL experience are a joke in comparison The average temperatures in the winter season have been rising compared with normal over a long period of time, and many winters a snow drought is present, especially in KC.
They may be a joke by comparison, but they still are not mild winters like most of the South gets. In St. Louis at least, we've never had a winter without a noticeable amount of snow (10 inches or above) that I can remember and every winter has been very cold. Again, the temperatures may have been rising, but they still are not the definiton of mild. As DefaultAlias said, Nashville is a perfect example of a mild winter. STL and KC are not Nashville nor are they mild winters IMO. Honestly, a KC, St. Louis, and Cincy winter is not that different from an Indy-Columbus winter. Those cities may get a bit more snow (usually 5 more inches or so), but there really is not a difference other than that. Nothing in comparison to Cleveland and Chicago I'd define as less than 10 inches of snow per winter and hardly ever below 32 degrees fahrenheit in the winter. That's absolutely positively not STL and KC, nor is it Indy or Columbus. A lower Midwestern winter is what these cities typically get and I have relatives in the latter two cities to verify this. Here is another map like Default's backing this up.
I consider a winter to be mild if it never feels like its below 35 degrees not even at the coldest part of night. I think Las Vegas, LA, New Orleans, and San Francisco have mild winters.
There are those who say Washington, D.C. has a mild winter. Our winters here are miserable and unbearable. Yes, we rarely go below 25 degrees, except for maybe a week or two, but that is already too cold for me.
They may be a joke by comparison, but they still are not mild winters like most of the South gets. In St. Louis at least, we've never had a winter without a noticeable amount of snow (10 inches or above) that I can remember and every winter has been very cold. Again, the temperatures may have been rising, but they still are not the definiton of mild. As DefaultAlias said, Nashville is a perfect example of a mild winter. STL and KC are not Nashville nor are they mild winters IMO. Honestly, a KC, St. Louis, and Cincy winter is not that different from an Indy-Columbus winter. Those cities may get a bit more snow (usually 5 more inches or so), but there really is not a difference other than that. Nothing in comparison to Cleveland and Chicago I'd define as less than 10 inches of snow per winter and hardly ever below 32 degrees fahrenheit in the winter. That's absolutely positively not STL and KC, nor is it Indy or Columbus. A lower Midwestern winter is what these cities typically get and I have relatives in the latter two cities to verify this. Here is another map like Default's backing this up.
What a "mild" winter means to various people may differ. Some people think that 30F is fairly mild while others would say that 30F is cold. Besides, the Midwest core receives many more days of subzero temperatures and frequent snowfalls, especially in the lake areas. Also, the urban areas have milder temperatures in the winter as well because of the urban heat island effect. This is especially true when their is an arctic airmass in place with snowcover. The differential between urban areas and rural areas in terms of temperature can be up to 10F difference. I prefer cold winters to mild winters obviously. The invasive species continue to survive "mild" winters in KC because the average winter temperatures are just not that cold anymore for the most part. That is why the habitat range of the armadillos and kudzu continues to move further to the north.
Can there be a technically be "Zone 0" in Maine? I would change the upper region, Caribou Country of Maine from "1" to
"0"....Presque Isle, as an area resident once proclaimed,..."gots so cold hare, gat ta deflate yar air pressa & keep it low, or yar gonna bust a tyr on tham roads." I've heard also of area residents using the "out-house" all winter and not the their bathroom, because their pipes freeze and stay frozen until the middle of spring. Maine can be one strange place once you are north of Portland.
Oh ya, I can relate to the cold temperatures that interior Maine experiences during the winter. In fact, I was visiting northern New England in January 2004 when it was extremely frigid. I was driving through the interior towns of Rumford and Farmington and the temperature was around -15F in the middle of the afternoon as the sun was already beginning to set at around 4PM... The coldest spot in New Hampshire would have to be Berlin, which is located right along the Androscroggin River. They have a temperature sensor at the airport there and it got colder than -30F in March this year! In Vermont the coldest locations are in the Northeast Kingdom in Caledonia, Essex, and Orleans counties. In northern Maine winter can last 6 months out of the year and the areas that have the coldest temperatures are usually in Aroostook County and the isolated towns in the interior of the state.
I consider a winter to be mild if it never feels like its below 35 degrees not even at the coldest part of night. I think Las Vegas, LA, New Orleans, and San Francisco have mild winters.
There are those who say Washington, D.C. has a mild winter. Our winters here are miserable and unbearable. Yes, we rarely go below 25 degrees, except for maybe a week or two, but that is already too cold for me.
Washington, D.C. IMO does not have mild winters. They are capable of getting full-blown blizzards and snow and average around 13 inches per year.
What a "mild" winter means to various people may differ. Some people think that 30F is fairly mild while others would say that 30F is cold. Besides, the Midwest core receives many more days of subzero temperatures and frequent snowfalls, especially in the lake areas. Also, the urban areas have milder temperatures in the winter as well because of the urban heat island effect. This is especially true when their is an arctic airmass in place with snowcover. The differential between urban areas and rural areas in terms of temperature can be up to 10F difference. I prefer cold winters to mild winters obviously. The invasive species continue to survive "mild" winters in KC because the average winter temperatures are just not that cold anymore for the most part. That is why the habitat range of the armadillos and kudzu continues to move further to the north.
Indy and Columbus receive many more days of subzero temperatures and snow than KC...that's bull. They may get more snow, but only a few inches more. Temperature-wise, there's hardly a difference too. And the "Southern" core receives many less days of subzero temperatures and snow than KC. That's a fact. When you can prove to me that KC's winters are just like Little Rock, than i'll accept them as mild. KC and STL are part of the Midwest core, and the climate isn't uniform everywhere you go. You can consider it not part of the Midwest core, but KC is included in it by most sources. KC is in between harsh and mild. I'd also say the same for Indy and Columbus. THe beginnings of a truly harsh winter I'd put around the latitudes of Chicago and Cleveland.
Indy and Columbus receive many more days of subzero temperatures and snow than KC...that's bull. They may get more snow, but only a few inches more. Temperature-wise, there's hardly a difference too. And the "Southern" core receives many less days of subzero temperatures and snow than KC. That's a fact. When you can prove to me that KC's winters are just like Little Rock, than i'll accept them as mild. KC and STL are part of the Midwest core, and the climate isn't uniform everywhere you go. You can consider it not part of the Midwest core, but KC is included in it by most sources. KC is in between harsh and mild. I'd also say the same for Indy and Columbus. THe beginnings of a truly harsh winter I'd put around the latitudes of Chicago and Cleveland.
Occasionally, temperatures will get below zero in the winter in places like KC and STL but it does not happen that often. In cities like Des Moines, Chicago, and Minneapolis the lowest temperature in the winter season can typically be at least -15F or lower. KC and STL winters can be cold, but climate change is definitely affecting the overall temperatures that occur during the winter season. Also, the urban heat island effect means that the coldest temperatures that occur during the winter season are in more rural locations compared with the downtown areas. For example, Midway Airport in Chicago is typically quite a bit warmer than O'Hare airport which is located in the Chicago suburbs. Aurora can get colder than O'Hare because it is located in an exurban area with the temperature sensor in a low-lying area. For the most part areas east of the Rockies that are located south of 40N latitude do not have very harsh winters at all. The difference in the sun angle between the summer and winter seasons is also less significant for areas south of 40N as well. For areas further north the differential between the daylight hours during the summer and winter season becomes more severe. That is why northern areas have such a buildup of arctic air because the daylight hours are short and the long nights allow for excellent radiational cooling, especially over areas that have a snowpack! If you want more information about weather and climate just ask
Washington, D.C. IMO does not have mild winters. They are capable of getting full-blown blizzards and snow and average around 13 inches per year.
This is true, and it's awesome when DC gets blizzards. I've lived here all my life and we've had plenty of snowstorms that dumps more than a foot, even 2 feet, especially in the suburbs.
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