March 2002 Saint Cloud Weather Summary
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This Month's Daily Statistics
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DATE: 1 April 2002
SUBJECT: Even when we’re cold, we’re not that cold
March 2002 St. Cloud weather summary
March in Saint Cloud was the first real winter month. The average temperature of 18.6 degrees at the Saint Cloud Municipal Airport was nearly 10 degrees colder than normal. This made March 2002 the 8th coldest March in the 121 years of Saint Cloud records and the coldest March since 1965. The average high of 28.0 degrees and the average low of 9.2 degrees would be more typical of February 20 or 21 than of March. The high temperature on March 3 only reached 3 degrees, breaking the daily record by 7 degrees and making March 3, 2002, the 4th coldest March daily high temperature ever. There were also 6 days with a below zero low during March 2002. The normal number of below zero days in March is 3.5.
What made this March different from the earlier months? We had cold spells at the end of every month since November that persisted into the early portion of the following month. The key difference was having a snow cover and adding to it. When the early March arctic air finally receded, we got another 3.5 inches in new snow cover on the 8th and 9th. Then, when that snow finally melted, we got walloped by the March 14 storm. This storm produced 10.4 inches at Selke Field and 15-20 inches elsewhere in central Minnesota.
The March snowfall, thanks to these storms, totaled 19.8 inches, more than 10 inches above normal. This made March 2002 the 5th snowiest March in the 102 years of Saint Cloud snowfall records. It was the snowiest March since 1985. However, those 4 Marches that rank ahead of March 2002 had incredible snowfalls, topped by March 1965, the snowiest month in Saint Cloud history with 51.7 inches. March 2002 was also the snowiest month in Saint Cloud since January 1996 (21.9 inches).
The heavy March snowfall brings the seasonal snowfall total to 48.7 inches, more than 5.5 inches above normal through March. We are now above the average cold season snowfall of 45.5 inches, despite the mild winter.
While the Twin Cities didn’t make it, March 2002 was also the coldest month of this winter. It was colder than January (which had temperatures typical of March) by more than 2 degrees. This is the first time in the 120 winters in Saint Cloud records that March has been the coldest month of the cold season. January has been the coldest month 78 times (65.0%), February was the coldest month 26 times (21.7%), and December was the coldest month 16 times (13.3%).
The melted precipitation was officially 1.51 inches. However, there was a problem with that total. The sleet and freezing rain during the storms of March 5-6 and March 8-9 were not included in the total melted precipitation. The SCSU accumulated precipitation during those two storms were .85 inch while the official reading recorded only .36 inches. So, perhaps half an inch of melted precipitation was lost during these storms.
However, even when Saint Cloud records are cold this year, they are not that cold. The 6 below zero days in March brings the seasonal total to only 12 days. That is still 4 fewer days with below zero temperatures than any previous cold season. So, we have an excellent chance to break the 1997-1998 record for the fewest cold season below zero days. While March 2002 has been the coldest month of the winter, this would be only the second cold season in which our coldest temperature had an average temperature above 18 degrees. The mildest minimum reading was the winter of 1930-31 when December 1930, the coldest month of that winter, had an average temperature of 19.4 degrees.
Also, the coldest low temperature for this season so far has been –9 degrees, set on January 18 and tied on March 1st and 3rd. Before this winter, the mildest winter season daily low temperature was also during the winter of 1930-31 when the lowest temperature was –13, set on November 30 and December 1. So, we have never had a winter without at least one low of –10 or colder. The odds are good that we will do it this winter.
Finally, the five-month average temperature (November 1 through March 31) for this cold season is 26.1 degrees. That is the second warmest November through March average temperature. The warmest? Just two years ago during the non-winter of 1999-2000 when the average temperature was 26.2 degrees. Note also that all four of the mild winters we’ve had during the past five years are in the top 10. So, even when we are cold, we are not that cold.
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MARCH 2002 STATISTICS MAR 2002 NORMAL
TEMPERATURE (°F)
Average High 28.0 37.6
Average Low 9.2 19.1
Average Temp 18.6* 28.4
Warmest high temperature 47 on the 27th
Coldest high temperature 3 on the 3rd (broke record—see below)
Mildest low temperature 33 on the 28th
Coldest low temperature -9 on the 1st and 3rd
Daily Record Temperatures
Daily cold high: 3 on the 3rd (old record: 10 in 1916)
Daily cold average: -3 on the 3rd (old record: 1 in 1916)
*8th coldest March; coldest March since 1965 (see table below)
MELTED PRECIP (in) 1.51 1.50
Most in 24 hours 0.79 on the 14th
SNOWFALL (in) 19.8** 9.8
Most in 24 hours 10.4 on the 14th (broke record—see below)
Daily record snowfall: 10.4 on the 14th (old record: 7.4 inches
in 1957)
Seasonal Snowfall (Oct-Mar) 48.7 43.1
**5th snowiest March on record; snowiest March since 1985
ST. CLOUD SNOWFALL(IN)
OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY TOTAL
1999-2000 0.0 1.1 4.5 10.8 8.4 T 3.3 0.0 28.1
2000-2001 0.0 10.6 16.2 5.4 17.8 6.6 56.6
2001-2002 0.5 11.8 2.8 3.5 10.3 19.8 48.7
NORMAL 0.5 6.8 8.9 10.1 7.0 9.8 2.3 0.1 45.5
ST. CLOUD TEMPS--MARCH (122 YEARS; AVG = 27.1 F; SDEV = 5.5 F) WARMEST COLDEST 43.0 F 1910 14.9 F 1899 37.8 F 1918 15.0 F 1888 37.5 F 2000 15.7 F 1965 37.3 F 1973 17.6 F 1960 36.7 F 1946 18.1 F 1951 36.3 F 1902 18.4 F 1943 36.0 F 1911 18.5 F 1923 36.0 F 1968 18.6 F 2002 8TH COLDEST 35.7 F 1987 18.8 F 1975 35.5 F 1981 19.0 F 1940 ST. CLOUD SNOWFALL--MARCH (103 YEARS; AVG = 8.3 IN; SDEV = 7.5 IN) SNOWIEST DRIEST 51.7 IN 1964-1965 0.0 IN 1924-1925 36.0 IN 1916-1917 TRACE 1901-1902 28.1 IN 1950-1951 TRACE 1902-1903 22.8 IN 1984-1985 TRACE 1909-1910 19.8 IN 2001-2002 5TH SNOWIEST TRACE 1980-1981 19.4 IN 1974-1975 TRACE 1999-2000 17.7 IN 1907-1908 0.1 IN 1967-1968 16.1 IN 1994-1995 0.2 IN 1920-1921 15.7 IN 1951-1952 0.3 IN 1972-1973 15.5 IN 1919-1920 0.4 IN 1908-1909
HIGHEST AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR COLDEST MONTH OF THE WINTER (121 YEARS)
19.4 DEGREES DEC 1930 (1930-1931)
18.6 DEGREES MAR 2002 (2001-2002) 2ND WARMEST
17.8 DEGREES JAN 1987 (1986-1987)
17.0 DEGREES DEC 1989 (1989-1990)
16.8 DEGREES FEB 1942 (1941-1942)
ST. CLOUD TEMPS--FEWEST LOW TEMPERATURES OF 0 DEG OR LOWER
COLD SEASON (NORMAL = 43 days)
12 2001-2002 Through March 31
16 1997-1998
17 1986-1987
22 1918-1919
22 1941-1942
29 1908-1909
29 1990-1991
29 1998-1999
30 1931-1932
30 1982-1983
31 1937-1938
31 1943-1944
31 1957-1958
WARMEST NOVEMBER THROUGH MARCH AVERAGE TEMPERATURES (121 YEARS ON RECORD)
26.2 DEGREES 1999-2000
26.1 DEGREES 2001-2002 2ND WARMEST ON RECORD
25.9 DEGREES 1930-1931
25.6 DEGREES 1881-1882
25.6 DEGREES 1986-1987
25.0 DEGREES 1997-1998
24.6 DEGREES 1918-1919
24.6 DEGREES 1919-1920
24.6 DEGREES 1941-1942
24.4 DEGREES 1980-1981
24.3 DEGREES 1913-1914
24.0 DEGREES 1998-1999
Send comments to: raweisman@stcloudstate.edu