BIG Myth: My Area Doesn't Get Snow Like We Used To (snowing, records)
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Dan, thank you for always having such good info. I was actually considering finding you and DM-ing you again for your expert opinion. Some of your years of heavy snowfall seem to coincide with mine except I don't have the facts or figures like you do. 1962 was a very snowy year for us and so was 1968/1969.
Would you be able to find out the amount of snowfall for your area in 1996/1997? Also, the amount for that season for southeastern So. Dak? It seemed like it snowed every other day that year so I was surprised it wasn't on the list.
Jammie
I was going to link to Mitchell's coop data through the High Plains Climate Center...but when I checked for snowfall many years the coop station at Mitchell had incomplete data...i.e. the observer failed to write down his/her observation (temp/snowfall, etc). The official Mitchell coop recorded 20.0 inches of snow 96-97 winter....but that was with many days with no report. So not trustworthy. There is a coop to your east in Alexandria and he/she repoted 72.10 inches and that report contained minimal missing days. Sioux Falls reported 63.70 inches for that winter.
For your two winters in the 60s... 61-62 winter Mitchell coop reported 55.0 inches and for 68-69 repoted 58.5 inches. Alexandria coop site repoted 80.3 inches in winter of 61-62 and 61.2 in winter of 68-69.
Snowfall records are the most incomplete of any data out there. Measuring snowfall can be very tricky and all depends on where the oberver measures it and when. So that could account for the variation.
As for Fargo....96-97 reported 110 inches and Grand Forks had 98.7 inches both records.
Dan, thank you SO much. Yes, the report from Alex would seem to be the most accurate for that winter. It was SO snowy. Guess my only consulation there was that we got less then Fargo did.
Our lightest year of snow that I remember, based on my own observations and estimates was somewhere around 30".
Our heaviest year of snow I remember was around 70."
That heavy year was not fun. The snow banks were so high a few weeks, (chest high or about 4 feet-plus) we couldn't shovel it, or should I say, couldn't lift the shovel high enough to dump the snow.
Thankfully we have a snow blower which could throw most of it over the banks... and onto the neighbour's driveway.
Our lightest year of snow that I remember, based on my own observations and estimates was somewhere around 30".
Our heaviest year of snow I remember was around 70."
That heavy year was not fun. The snow banks were so high a few weeks, (chest high or about 4 feet-plus) we couldn't shovel it, or should I say, couldn't lift the shovel high enough to dump the snow.
Thankfully we have a snow blower which could throw most of it over the banks... and onto the neighbour's driveway.
I hear you....many a year our two car driveway opening magically becomes one car opening by the end of winter. Nothing harder than trying to shovel the snow/ice pack left behind by the city plow....and if you dont get it right away it becomes an iceberg. Most years when backing out of the driveway the mounds of snow are so high you cant see whats coming down the street til you hit the road....one of the reasons I got a CR-V my first winter here as it sits higher than a car. Usually though the city does go around at times and tries to scoop up the snowbanks on the side of the road to keep viewing good at intersections. Oh fun.... good exercise though. Some of my neighbors go with snow clearing services...problem is they tend to dump the snow on someone's elses side of the road....
One thing to remember up here as that we dont get a lot of snowfall in the winter as compared to many Great Lakes areas....but what we get just stays on the ground and accumulates and blows around as it rarely gets above 32F during DJF.
The number of ski areas in CT have dwindled to one or less in the last 5 years. Reason; milder winters and less snow. Even in northern New England ski areas have diminished.
This is a weird observation on my part. I used to buy snowmobiles every other year. In the years I had a new one, we'd hardly get snow to be excited. On the years I haven't had one, we'd get dumped. Ok, this is a dumb post...
This is a weird observation on my part. I used to buy snowmobiles every other year. In the years I had a new one, we'd hardly get snow to be excited. On the years I haven't had one, we'd get dumped. Ok, this is a dumb post...
No, it's not a dumb post. It's a funny post and it sounds like your luck is just like mine.
Skytrekker, is there a way you can find a comparison for us to see? If not, Dan may be able to help you find the actual variations you're referring to.
OK, I dont live in the USA but in England, how ever I think this theory is totaly rubbish. If you just google about and you will notice alot of scientists have realised they were supporting a theory that was incorrect.
I have watched to videos about global warming: one supporting it, and one against it.
they are called- algores inconvenient truth (supports it)
- the global warming swindle (against it)
there is also an experiment you can try for if you think the earth will flood and we will lose land if all the ice melts.
you need:
A glass of water (pretty full, and a clear glass helps)
ice cube (decent size so you will notice the change in water level)
a marking pen (to mark the water level)
ok here is what you do:
1. put your ice cube in the water.
2. mark the water level with your marking pen.
3. leave the glass in the shade in a warm spot, to speed up process.
4. go do some thing for a while and check after about 30 mins (leave it longer if the ice has till not completely melted)
5. check the water level.
conclusion: you will notice that the water level has droped. Please dont messege me saying that it is N/A as there is more ice in the ocean, just stop and think how much water there is also, and also if you are thinking "what about the ice above the water?" my answer is that although its out the water its still maeing the water level rise as the water is holding it up. reason being is ice is just water thats frozen with air traped inside.
please comment i like the subject, and like to discuss my views with every one. please note i dont have alot of time to do research and every thing as im pretty busy with college and sports and going out with mates and being a teenager (^.^)
Last edited by ROFL =D; 11-03-2009 at 08:43 AM..
Reason: didnt finnish post
Melting ocean ice will not cause the sea levels to rise, for the reasons you just said. But what if glaciers/ice caps on land melted and their water flowed into the sea? Another method of sea level rise is that warmer water takes up very slightly more volume than cooler water (water is densest at 4°C)
Well, you may be on to something, but, as a child, (aged 5 to 12) from what I and my friends and family who lived in the same region of the Pacific Northwest would say is that no, we do not get hte snowfall that we got when we where young. Now I am not saying that we used to have massive snowfall. But every year for at least two to three weeks we would have enough snow to be able to sled. Everyone in my neighborhood had a sled. I am not talking about those plastic pieces of crap either. I am talking about a twin railed sled with a wooden deck. Today, my kids and their friends don't know what that is. Never seen one nor rode one. Yet every winter we would have enough snow to justify sledding which amounted to between 6 to 12 inches of snow annually. And no, I have no reports to show the validity of my statement, but if there are records that date back 35 to 40+ years ago then you will have to just trust what I am saying to be true, or don't. I really don't care, my memories are mine and mine alone. But I do believe that winters around my area are not like they used to be when I was a child. Do I blame that in global warming? No, I think that the planet is cyclic and that it is just a change that is happening and will continue to happen. But I would like to see our winter return to what they where. Those where some great days, being outside sledding and getting into snowball wars with all the kids in the neighborhood. Not sitting in your room playing Xbox or PlayStation or whatever. We where outside for most of the day.
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