Winter to attempt a comeback
After a very mild December with temperatures averaging 4.7 degrees above normal, January has also been on the warm side.
Last weekend temperatures in our area topped out in the low to mid 70s with 74 degrees reported as the high in places like Uniontown and Morgantown and 70 degrees in the mountains. The nice mild air stayed around most of the past week, but winter is tired of playing nice and wants to get back to normal.
Average temperatures for the area are 38 degrees for the high and 21 for the morning low, respectively. In the mountains, averages are highs of 33 and lows of 16 degrees. So where has all the cold air been hiding? Alaska and northern Canada have kept a lid on the Arctic cold as temperatures of 20 to 30 below zero were still being recorded last week. It蘑菇视频 still dark over this region almost 24 hours a day and the cold air just continues to build up. To reach us, it needs a transport system and this is where the jetstream comes into play.
During most winters the jetstream is able to reach up and pull down a dome or mound of this Arctic cold air and that is when we hear about the Polar Vortex coming to visit.
We are looking for some colder air to return to Southwestern Pennsylvania this weekend and to stay around for a week or two. But at this time, the air, while colder, is not expected to be Arctic in nature, just more Canadian with temperatures over the next 10 days in the 20s and 30s for highs and teens and 20s for morning lows.
Precipitation should be in the form of snow, but amounts are forecast to be below average for middle and late January. The Climate Prediction Center蘑菇视频 three- to four-week forecast has us with below normal temperatures and below normal precipitation into early February.
While the mild weather of the past week is nice, the downside is that any plants that start to emerge will be quickly harmed by the returning cold. Winter is certainly not over and we can get plenty of cold and snow through the end of March, sometimes even into April.
Last year was a warm year over much of the planet, with Europe recording its warmest year on record. Same for Australia where the heat has helped to fuel the fires that have devastated a large part of the country. Ten out of 12 months in 2019 saw above normal temperatures in the Uniontown area.
Our scientists at NOAA advise us that the oceans of our planet have also just experienced one of the warmest years in the past 30 years. Oceans have warmed by almost a degree in the past 25 years. The oceans are absorbing the equivalent energy and heat from 3 billion atomic bombs over the last 25 years. Researchers and health officials are confident more people will get sick and many will die as regions such as the U.S. West see bigger more intense wildfires.
While the warmer planet is not the direct cause of the fires, storms and floods, the intensity of these events is certainly enhanced by the additional energy caused by the warmer air and water.