Climate is what we expect; weather is what we get
The climate of our area could be described as 鈥淢oderate Continental.鈥� We are far enough inland to see only modest influences from the ocean and most of our weather arrives as cold dry air from Canada or warm moist air from the Gulf of Mexico. The battle for dominance of these two air masses creates most of our weather here in Southwestern Pennsylvania. The battles between the two contrasting air masses keep it interesting and ever changing 鈥� a little of everything without an abundance of any one particular type of weather.
Winters are moderately cold and snowy, however occasional invasions of warmer moist air from the south thaws the cold and melts away the snow. While we do have our share of cold winter days, we do not experience the long brutal winters of the more northern states.
Summers are moderately warm with a few periods of hot and humid weather, interspersed with cooler dry fronts from the north that chase away any hot and humid periods that want to overstay their visit. While the area does have some hot days, it is never as intense and long as the blazing heat and humidity of summers in the southern states.
Spring and fall are truly delightful here in Southwestern Pennsylvania with very comfortable pleasant days and cool nights. To watch the unfolding of spring and the fall foliage spectaculars are to truly experience the joy of living in our region.
On an annual basis, our average daytime temperature is 60 degrees. Winter daytime temperatures average 40 degrees, while spring and fall are 60 degrees and summer 80. Morning lows average 40 degrees on an annual basis with temperatures of 20 degrees in the winter, 40 in the spring and fall and 60 in the summer. These are the average climate temperatures for the area. This is what we expect from a climate standpoint. Of course, on any given day our temperatures can end up being 20 degrees warmer or colder than these averages and this is what we get in the day to day battle of the contrasting air masses.
On rare occasions, we get some extreme temperatures and these also go into the making of our climate. In our area, it蘑菇视频 been as cold as 22 below zero and as warm as 102. Temperatures above 100 are rare as are temperatures below -10.
All in all, compared with most other places, we have a fairly comfortable climate 鈥� not too hot or cold. I like to call it the 鈥淐omfort Zone鈥�.
The coming week should see temperatures close to the normal of 41 degrees for the high and 20 for the low. We could be warm enough for a bit of rain rather than snow.