Document text
Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 4, 2006 March was colder and wetter than usual By BILL KETTLER Mail Tribune March and February must have decided to swap places this year. The third month of the year usually provides some hope that winter is on the way out in Southern Oregon, but this year March was actually colder and wetter than February. A blanket of Arctic air settled over much on North America during March, and Medford finished the month with an average daily high temperature of just 53 degrees, compared to an average daily high of 56.1 degrees in February. There were just five days during March 2006 when afternoon temperatures climbed to at least 60 degrees, compared to 11 days of 60-plus temperatures in February, which included one positively spring- like day of 70 degrees on Feb. 9. March’s warmest day came on the 23rd, when the thermometer crept up to 68 degrees. Advertisement While March was miserable for most people except skiers and snowboarders, it was still considerably warmer than March 1917, the coldest March in Medford’s 94 years of recorded weather data. In that year, the average temperature for the month was just 39.9 degrees, compared to 42.7 degrees for March 2006. March this year was wetter and grayer than February, too. Rainfall for the month measured 2.19 inches, and there were 15 days when measurable rain fell. February’s rain totaled just 1.94 inches, and there were only eight days when measurable rain fell. Meteorologists attribute the cool, damp March to La Ni�a, the weather phenomenon that is characterized by unusually cold ocean temperatures in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. It’s the opposite of El Ni�o, when ocean temperatures are warmer than average in the equatorial Pacific. La Ni�a winters tend to be cooler and wetter in the Northwest, while El Ni�o winters are warmer and drier. Both conditions tend to have less influence on Southern Oregon weather during the summer, said George Taylor, state climatologist. Taylor said warmer, drier days will return as the northern hemisphere tilts toward the sun. "It’ll happen any month now," he quipped, acknowledging March’s decidedly unspring-like performance. "I don’t know what else to say." March’s rainfall pushed Medford’s precipitation for the calendar year to 9.25 inches, which is 2.83 inches (44 percent) above average. Rain for the "water year" (which begins Sept. 1 and ends Aug. 31) through March 31 totaled 22.99 inches, 8.74 inches (61 percent) above average. Taylor did offer hope that spring could be warmer and drier than last year, if and when it finally arrives. He noted that in recent years there has been an alternating pattern of spring weather: wet- and-cool one year; warm-and-dry the next. "It’s happened since at least 2000," he said. Since spring 2005 was notably cool and damp, Taylor said, there’s a good chance spring 2006 could be warm and dry. Reach reporter Bill Kettler at 776-4492, or e-mail March was colder and wetter than usual ">[email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Absinthe Supply Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Computer Security Discount Hotel Reservations online casinos news Debt Consolidation California Casinos GMAT Windermere Van Vleet Deep Muscle Stimulator Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Hammocks Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Online Casino Fundraisers Sudoku Online Casinos Canada King of Spirits Email Security Advertisement s Advertisement