• Anderson (Lauderdale County)
Huntsville International Airport (Madison County)
• Lynchburg (Moore County, TN)
• Moulton (Lawrence County)
• Muscle Shoals (Colbert County)
• Owens Crossroads (Madison County)
• Union Grove (Marshall County)
• Valley Head (DeKalb County)
• West Point (Cullman County)
• Winchester (Franklin County, TN)
December
December was forecast to be slightly colder than normal with near normal precipitation; however, we did forecast that it would be a bit snowy with 3.3” forecast. December was also forecast to be the warmest, with respect to normal, of the three winter months.
As we look back, December’s temperatures were indeed the least below normal versus January and February with the average temperature being only 1.0 degree below normal. That compares quite well with the forecast of 1.2 degrees below normal. The forecast also worked out well with regards to the number of days forecast to have a high temperature of 45 degrees or less.
December ended up being the wettest of the three winter months with precipitation averaging 1.59” above normal. The forecast was much drier with the expected difference versus normal being 0.5” below normal.
Regarding snowfall, the month started out on a white note with snow greeting those of you who attended the WAAY 31 Christmas Parade but the remainder of the month saw few if any additional flakes. The average total snowfall across the Valley for the month was just 0.5”. The forecast had called for 3.3”
January
January was forecast to be cold and it definitely was! We began the new year with a high temperature in the low 40s but it would be another ten days before we would top the 40 degree mark again. January 2-10 saw temperatures that averaged just 24 degrees and was the coldest start to a new year, ever! The coldest temperature recorded at Huntsville International Airport was 13 and at the Northwest Regional Airport in Muscle Shoals it was 11. Several locations, though, did see a few morning low temperatures drop below 10 degrees. The cold hold would remain through January 12th before a thaw set in. The thaw lasted for much of the remainder of the month with the warmest day topping out at 69. But the damage was still done and the average monthly temperature still ended up 3.4 degrees below normal. That compared quite well against the forecast of 4.3 degrees below normal.
January was forecast to be a rather dry month being 2.6” below normal. It was slightly drier than normal but not as dry as the forecast was anticipating. The official average across the Valley was 0.16” below normal.
The snowfall forecast was also rather close. The forecast called for 0.5” of snowfall with the actual Valley average being 1.1”.
January 2010 also saw the first ever recorded tornado during the month of January within 50 miles of Huntsville. In fact, the tornado went right through the 5-Points district of Huntsville and was captured on the WAAY 31 Towercam.
February
February was forecast to be the coldest month of the winter with regards to normal and that was the case. The average monthly temperature was 6.5 degrees below normal and that was just 0.4 of degree colder than forecast!
The month was also forecast to be on the drier side of normal (0.2” below normal) and it was (1.42” below normal). Even though it was drier than normal, we saw our fair share of snowfall during the month. The first occurred as a bit of a surprise on February 8th. This system delivered a narrow swath of accumulating snow from Lauderdale County to northern Madison County. Several reports of 3” to 6” were recorded in Lauderdale County.
National Weather Service
A more southern system delivered snow on the 12th across portions of Cullman, Marshall and DeKalb counties.
National Weather Service
More snow arrived for Valentine’s Day into President’s Day with another 1” to 3” falling across much of the Valley.
In total, the average Valley snowfall for the month was 2.1” while the forecast called for 3.7”. Again this is based on the average of just a few locations. Many of us in the Valley saw more than 2” of snow this February.
In total, the average Valley snowfall was 3.6” compared to the 7.6” forecast; however, we did see snow just a couple days late, arriving on March 2. The average snowfall for the 2nd of March was 2”. Add that to the 3.6” and the winter snowfall total would go within 2” of the forecast. Here is the official Valley amounts used from the National Weather Service:
There you have it, a look back at Winter 2009-2010 and the Storm Force 31 Winter Forecast. We will let you be the final graders of how we did.
Dale Bader / Meteorologist, Storm Force 31
