January 2014 Revisited

January 2014 was much like January 2013:  Boring.  In fact, I'm starting to think we should just skip January entirely from here on out, if this boring pattern persists.  Here's the boring summary for this January:

Above average: Temperature
Average or near: Solar radiation
Below Average: Wind, rainfall, snowfall

We moved back into the very familiar lately "warmer than average" category this month.  My station's average temperature of 37.2° was way warmer than the long term January average of 33.6°, and warmer than the more recent (2001-2013) average of 36.4°. The official average temperature in Hood River, recorded at HOXO, was 36.7°. 

The maximum temperature (at my station) was 54°, and the low temp was 23°. Official Hood River highs and lows (at HOXO) were 54° and 20°.

January continued the Ridiculously Resilient Ridge of high pressure pattern which started in December.   This continued the ridiculously low snow pack in the mountains; putting the snow-water equivalent for the Hood basin at around 20% of average.  And the ridiculous ridge gave us a ridiculously long Gray Inversion event, lasting 11 days, from 1/18 through 1/28.  That was ridiculously insane, and not in a good way.

In spite of the long inversion, solar radiation averaged 91 Ly/day, compared to an average January of 87 Ly/day.

The 24 hour average wind speed (for the month) at my weather station was 1.4 mph, compared to an average January wind speed of 2.0 mph.  The peak wind gust was 37 mph on the 11th.  Wind speeds at other less sheltered locations (like the Waterfront) were, of course, higher. 

Barometric pressure peaked at 30.72", and the low barometric was 29.53".

Regarding rainfall, my station received 3.82", while HOXO recorded 3.11".  An average January receives 5.10", and our water-year-to-date precipitation continued to slip even further behind than in December.

To accentuate the boring tediousness of the month even more, we received no measurable snowfall, whereas an average January receives 14.6" of snow.

And the icing on the boring cake that was January 2014?  Check this out:  there were absolutely no weather records set during the month.  Is that boring, or what?

These monthly summaries use data from my weather station located near May and Rand Streets in Hood River. To view my weather station's data for January 2014, click here.

For official Hood River data, and historical averages/records, the data comes from both the manually read NOAA station at MCAREC, and HOXO, the automated station located right next to MCAREC.

Ok, so it was a boring month, weather-wise.   But that didn't stop me from dreaming of sailing away to warmer places.   Well done, Brian Wilson and crew.

But there's another, better reason for this classic Beach Boys sailing-related song video.   I'm posting this (late, as usual) on May 8th, when the annual Oregon Offshore Race is going on, and as usual, local favorite "Velocity", skippered by local weather enthusiast TomK, is being cheered on.   

Hood River Weather Chat Guidelines

The Hood River Weather chat room materialized out of nothingness (into something-ness) in December, 2008.   From Day One, the participants have been remarkably civil and polite, compared to a lot of other chat forums.   That's been very much appreciated, but it's probably useful to post some guidelines as to what the chat room is for, and which topics and/or behavior are off-limits.   This is an evolving document, and it's subject to revision and clarification as the need arises.  So, here's the guidelines:

1)  The Hood River Weather forum is intended to be a friendly, informational, non-confrontational space where people can discuss weather, recreation, local events, and most other items of local interest, as long as discussions stay civil and respectful.   However, subjects such as partisan politics, religion, and anything else that can (or does) turn into an shouting match, are strongly discouraged.  Posts that stretch that too much might be deleted and those users might be banned for a period of time.


2)  The weather forum is not a place to personally attack other people in the chat room, or to criticize/attack specific local people, companies, or public/private entities.   If you disagree with something, please phrase your comments in such a way as to not be attacking.  Simply provide another view, or a constructive suggestion, without criticizing the original comment or person that made the comment.   Also, if you have a complaint about a public or private entity or regulation, don't use the chat room for that.  Please contact those people directly.
  
In other words, be kind, considerate, and respectful, as you would like to be treated yourself.

3)  One of the biggest strengths of this forum is the ability to insert informational links.  Those doing so are encouraged to provide a few words explaining what the link is for; just providing the link without explanation can result in folks not clicking on it.

Along the same lines, it's suggested that comments be succinct and to the point; they are much more likely to be read that way.

4)  During times of interesting weather, especially when hazardous conditions are likely occurring, please keep comments mostly focused on the weather, road reports, and other public safety information.   Also, if reporting conditions at your location, please specify the general location.

5)  Thanks for following these guidelines!

Tending to chat rooms, and herding cats...

December 2013 Revisited

December 2013 was:

Above average: Solar radiation
Average or near: Wind
Below Average: Temperature, rainfall, snowfall

December's are usually cold, but this one was COLD.  My station's average temperature of 34.3° was colder than the long term December average of 35.7°, and colder than the more recent (2001-2012) average of 35.4°. The official average temperature in Hood River, recorded at HOXO, was 33.7°. 

The maximum temperature (at my station) was 57°, and the low temp was 1°. Official Hood River highs and lows (at HOXO) were 57° and 0°.

This December was notable in that a Ridiculously Resilient Ridge of high pressure planted itself offshore early in the month, and diverted nearly all moisture to the north for the rest of the month.   These ridges have been way too common the past few winters. They often result in inversions, and aren't good for increasing much needed snowpack.

Solar radiation averaged 96 Ly/day, compared to an average December of 73 Ly/day.

The 24 hour average wind speed (for the month) at my weather station was 1.7 mph, compared to an average December wind speed of 1.8 mph.  The peak wind gust was 30 mph on the 21st.  Wind speeds at other less sheltered locations (like the Waterfront) were, of course, higher. 

Barometric pressure peaked at 30.69", and the low barometric was 29.77".

Regarding rainfall, my station received 3.13", while HOXO recorded 2.98".  An average December receives 5.85", and our water-year-to-date precipitation continued to slip even further behind than in November.

Hood River received it's first measurable snowfall of the season on the 6th, when 2.0" fell, in the middle of the Arctic Blast.   An average December receives 8.6" of snow.

There were 2 local weather records set in December.  On the 1st, we were deluged with 2.23" of warm rain from the tropics, soundly breaking the old record of 1.07" set in 1942.   The warmth and the rain didn't last long though, as the Arctic Blast air moved in, setting a new low temperature record of 4° on Dec 4th.   The previous record was 9° in 2009.

These monthly summaries use data from my weather station located near May and Rand Streets in Hood River. To view my weather station's data for December 2013, click here.

For official Hood River data, and historical averages/records, the data comes from both the manually read NOAA station at MCAREC, and HOXO, the automated station located right next to MCAREC.

One of the more stressful yet strangely compelling tasks in life is getting ready for Christmas Day.   Between the putting up of decorations, sending cards (you still do that?), and trying to figure out who to buy stuff for, and what they might possibly want, it's all enough to drive one to drink, not to mention eat a lot.

However, there's actually a deeper meaning to Christmas, one that involves actual joy and celebration, as Paul Simon reminds us in this song, as only Paul Simon can do.

And here's a short "making of" video, explaining some of what went into the making of. 

November 2013 Revisited

November 2013 was mostly average, except when it wasn't:

Above average: Nothing
Average or near: Temperature, wind, solar radiation
Below Average: Rainfall, snowfall

After a cooler than average October, temperatures got more average in November.  In fact, almost exactly average.   My station's average temperature of 41.8° was just slightly warmer than the long term November average of 41.5°, and even closer to the more recent (2001-2012) average of 41.6°. The official average temperature in Hood River, recorded at HOXO, was 41.1°. 

The maximum temperature (at my station) was 64°, and the low temp was 19°. Official Hood River highs and lows (at HOXO) were 64° and 17°. 

Solar radiation averaged 123 Ly/day, compared to an average November of 117 Ly/day.

The 24 hour average wind speed (for the month) at my weather station was 1.5 mph, compared to an average November wind speed of 1.6 mph.  The peak wind gust was 32 mph on the 2nd.  Wind speeds at other less sheltered locations (like the Waterfront) were, of course, higher. 

Barometric pressure peaked at 30.83", and the low barometric was 29.38".   The high barometric was tantalizingly close to a record, at least for my station.  We get our highest pressure readings during massive winter season inversions, and this was no exception.   The highest reading for my station was 30.84" back in January 2009, during another massive temperature inversion.

Regarding rainfall, my station received 3.74", while HOXO only managed 2.84"  An average November receives 5.31", and our water-year-to-date precipitation started to slip even further behind than in October.

There was no measurable snowfall in November.   An average November receives 2.7" of snow.

There were no local weather records set in November.

These monthly summaries use data from my weather station located near May and Rand Streets in Hood River. To view my weather station's data for November 2013, click here.

For official Hood River data, and historical averages/records, the data comes from both the manually read NOAA station at MCAREC, and HOXO, the automated station located right next to MCAREC.

What made this November really special was that Thanksgiving and the start of Hanukkah happened on the same day.   This apparently hasn't happened since time immoral, or maybe not quite that long, but definitely quite a while. 

So, I searched around for a video celebrating this blessed coincidence of celebrations, and came up with this one.   Hopefully it will help bring people of all cultures and creeds together, or at least offend them equally. 

October 2013 Revisited

October 2013 was different, like this:

Above average: Solar radiation
Average or near: Nothing
Below Average: Temperature, wind, rainfall

Well, it had to happen sooner or later.   After 13th consecutive months of above average temperatures, the streak ended in October.  My station's average temperature of 50.0° was cooler than the long term October average of 51.2°, and cooler than the more recent (2001-2012) average of 51.3°. The official average temperature in Hood River, recorded at HOXO, was 49.2°. 

The maximum temperature (at my station) was 75°, and the low temp was 29°. Official Hood River highs and lows (at HOXO) were 74° and 28°. 

Solar radiation averaged 269 Ly/day, compared to an average October of 242 Ly/day.

The 24 hour average wind speed (for the month) at my weather station was 1.3 mph, compared to an average October wind speed of 2.1 mph.  The peak wind gust was 30 mph on the 27th.  This was the least windy October since at least 2001.  Wind speeds at other less sheltered locations (like the Waterfront) were, of course, higher. 

Barometric pressure peaked at 30.52", and the low barometric was 29.80".

Regarding rainfall, the month started out with a bang, and fizzled out from there.  The high daily amount was on October 1st:  0.49" at my station, and 0.53" at HOXO.  For the month, my station received 0.98", while HOXO only managed 0.84"  An average October receives 2.24", so this was a very dry month.

However, even though it was a very dry month, it was a very colorful one.  The fantastic Indian Summer weather provided a nice display of Fall foliage, as evidenced here.

There were no local weather records set in October.

These monthly summaries use data from my weather station located near May and Rand Streets in Hood River. To view my weather station's data for October 2013, click here.

For official Hood River data, and historical averages/records, the data comes from both the manually read NOAA station at MCAREC, and HOXO, the automated station located right next to MCAREC.

October... travel season begins to kick into high gear, as many locals decide they would rather be somewhere warmer.  I can increasingly relate...

And speaking of traveling, especially by air, the above video was produced by Virgin America Airlines, apparently as an onboard safety video.   Definitely over the top, but pretty entertaining... at least for the first few viewings...