February snow fizzled; here’s what’s ahead
What a difference a year makes here in North Idaho.
Last February, every storm that moved through our region brought snow. This was unusual as we often see some rain mixing into these systems, especially in February. By the time February 2019 was finished, Cliff measured a record-breaking 56 inches of snow. But this year, only 10 inches of snow had fallen last month.
The normal snowfall for February in Coeur d’Alene is 11.9 inches, so despite the big drop from a year ago, we’re pretty close to normal. For the season, however, we need another 9 inches to make the seasonal snowfall average of 69.8 inches.
Conditions looked to be on track for another year with above-normal snowfall in North Idaho. But weather patterns over the Far West suddenly changed after the first of the year as storms were either pushed to our east or didn’t have a lot of moisture when they moved through the Inland Northwest.
Our snow season tapered off and part of the reason may be due to the early start when we had record snowfall in September and October. Also, storms were too warm, so much of the moisture fell as rain rather than snow. Sea-surface temperatures in the waters of the Pacific Ocean were mostly warmer than normal.
In terms of rain and melted snow for February 2019, about an inch and a quarter fell, compared to a normal of 2.17 inches. Despite the below-normal precipitation last month, over 7 inches of moisture has fallen in Coeur d’Alene since the start of 2020, which is about an inch above the average.
Unfortunately, conditions have been much drier for the residents of California. For the first time in recorded history, both San Francisco and Sacramento did not receive any measurable rainfall in February. The second month of the year is normally one of the state’s wettest months as California depends on the late fall and winter season for the majority of its precipitation. During the late spring, summer and often the early fall, very little if any moisture falls across the state as the large Pacific high pressure system dominates the western U.S.
In Sacramento, the last time it was this dry in February was in 1899, when only 0.04 inches of rain fell. The last measurable rainfall in the Sacramento area was Jan. 26. Farther to the north, Redding has also been bone dry with no measurable moisture for February. However, there was a storm that moved through the southern part of the state last month as Los Angeles received about .35 inches of rain.
In the Sierra Nevada mountains, the year started off with snow packs only slightly below normal. But, as the dry weather pattern moved in, the snow pack has now dropped to about 50 to 60 percent of normal.
In the lower elevations, seasonal rainfall totals that began from July 2019 until now have been close to only 50 percent of normal. In some areas, like Sacramento, it’s less than 50 percent.
In Southern California, thanks to a series of storms late last year, moisture totals are down about 33 percent, compared to about 50 percent in the northern portion of the state.
Despite the recent decline of rain and snow across the Golden State, reservoir levels are still good as the 2018-19 moisture season was above average levels. However, many are hoping they don’t see a repeat or the return to conditions similar to the worst drought on record, which lasted from 2011 to 2017 and led to many new water regulations and rationing. The dry conditions have also increased the concerns of another bad fire season in California as the forests and grasslands are drying out.
Although February was exceptionally dry across much of the Far West, there is hope for some moisture in March. The upcoming “full moon” lunar phase of March 9 does look promising for some much-needed rain and mountain snow in California.
Much of our snow this season did fall during the “full moon” lunar cycles. The one in January dropped the bulk of our winter’s snowfall as Coeur d’Alene received over 31 inches. This upcoming full moon lunar cycle is expected to bring some snow to the Inland Northwest, but it won’t be close to January’s total. Then, conditions are likely to turn milder once again as Cliff and I don’t expect to see much more snow, at least in the lower elevations, after the middle of the month.
By the way, the March 9 full moon will be a supermoon, which is the moon’s closest point to the Earth in its monthly orbit. During this time, the moon is slightly brighter and larger than a typical full moon.
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Contact Randy Mann at randy@longrangeweather.com