Virus can also sicken weather forecasts
Our snowfall season across the Inland Northwest is winding down, especially in the lower elevations. As of the weekend, Cliff had measured a total of 69.6 inches of snow for the 2019-20 season. That’s only 0.2 inches from the seasonal normal of 69.8 inches.
Despite having a relatively “normal” snowfall season in Coeur d’Alene, many mountain locations were a little above average, as much of the moisture fell as snow while the lower elevations saw more rain. At Silver Mountain, the seasonal total was close to 250 inches. At Lookout Pass, over 400 inches of snow was reported for the season.
It was another one of those odd winters across the Inland Northwest. Cliff’s records say that in terms of length, this was the longest one in recorded history. Our first snow came on Sept. 28, 2019 as 0.6 inches fell. So far, we’ve had measurable snowfall as late as the 5th of April, and there is a slight chance for a few snowflakes toward the end of the month.
It was one of those seasons where we had above-normal snowfall in September and October and again in late March and early April. The mid-January time frame was the other occasion when we had a bunch of snow. The rest of the season, conditions were generally warmer than normal.
For the rest of this week, conditions are looking drier than normal across much of the Northwest. Overall, April’s precipitation should be near to below the average of 1.77 inches as we see some storms arriving toward the end of the month.
May’s weather should be drier and warmer than normal. The upcoming summer of 2020 is expected to be similar to last year’s. Precipitation should once again be a little below average, but there will be some days in June that produce afternoon and evening thunderstorm activity.
The conditions we’re living in are certainly unprecedented weatherwise and otherwise. We’re seeing worldwide lockdowns and lots of uncertainty. The coronavirus has also had other impacts on the weather and our environment.
GROUNDED DATA
For example, the grounding of most major airlines could impact the quality and the number of weather observations and forecasts of computer models. Many of the commercial airlines carry meteorological instruments that would constantly take readings when the plane is airborne. With most airplanes cruising at around 30,000 to 40,000 feet above ground, the data helps with critical jet stream observations.
The jet stream directs our storms and is one of the active portions of our atmosphere. Using aircraft data, it’s like having thousands of extra weather balloons taking temperature, wind, humidity and other observations, especially in difficult areas like the open oceans.
Last year, there was an average of about 102,000 flights per day worldwide. In the U.S. alone, the National Weather Service says commercial airlines were taking more than 250 million weather observations per year. According to the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather, “aircraft reports are second only to satellite data in their impact on forecasts.”
With most people living in industrial countries, the virus has resulted in the slowing or even shutting down of many transportation systems and other human activities. Researchers have recently discovered a drop in “seismic noise,” which is the hum of vibrations in the Earth’s crust.
According to an article in Nature.com, in addition to earthquakes and other natural events, the vibrations from moving vehicles and industrial machines will cause our planet’s crust to move. The effects of this phenomenon are extremely small, but they often produce background noise, which hinders the ability of seismologists to detect other signals at the same frequency.
According to the Royal Observatory of Belgium, there was a 33 percent drop in noise levels late last month. The reduction of the “noise” may help scientists to better locate seismic activity.
With fewer cars, buses and trucks on the roadways, plus the closing of factories and other factors, we’ve also seen much less air and noise pollution. In some of the most heavily polluted cities in the world, harmful pollutants have dropped over 70 percent since the lockdowns began.
In some places like India and China, pollution levels were so bad that the sky would consistently be mostly brown. However, many of these areas are now seeing blue skies thanks to the drop in pollution.
Scientists also believe that our oceans are quieter as well. The docking of cruise ships and other vessels has likely reduced the noise in our oceans. Nature.com also had an article stating that stress-hormone levels in marine creatures go up with increased maritime traffic, so it appears they’re getting a break, at least for a while.
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Contact Randy Mann at randy@longrangeweather.com