Thursday, March 9, 2017

march in the himalayas... (pm.09.mar.17)>

Thursday's stats:

Low temp: 37.9F (3.3C)
High temp: 47.3F (8.5C)
Precipitation: 0.23" (6mm)

In case you were wondering, this is about as cold as it ever gets in March, with temps today much more typical of mid- to late January.  We've got a near record-breaking cold air mass in place from central Asia into the western Himalayas, and it won't loosen its grip for another couple of days, at least.

The moisture supply for this weather system is not extremely impressive, but with a warm, springtime air mass in the lower levels across the plains to our south coupled with very cold air aloft to our north and northwest, what little moisture is available is going to be squeezed out easily -- in the form of numerous periods of rain and snow showers during the next 48 hours or so.  The coldest temps might be yet to come, which means we could continue to see an uncommonly low rain/snow line over the coming weekend.

Too often I hear people say that by March, winter is over.  That's along the same lines as "by September, monsoon is over".  Most of us who really pay attention to the weather around here know that both of those statements are usually dead wrong.