Meteorological Spring

In Utah we Meteorologists divide up the year by seasons. We don't use the astronomical calendar (you know, March 21st...June 20th...etc). It just doesn't work for us here in Utah. The coldest months are November, December and February. By March 1st, the sun angle is high enough that we see a significant warming of the average temperatures. So, today, March 1st, is the beginning of spring in Salt Lake City and many other cities throughout Utah.

We even divide up our records by these seasons: spring is March, April and May. summer is June, July and August. fall is September, October and November. winter is December, January and February. See: http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/slc/climate/slcclimate/SLC/seasonalrecords.php.

Thus, today, March 1st is really the first day of Spring. And, after a long and cold winter, doesn't it feel good to say it is spring already? I can hardly wait to take my mountain bike for a ride in the foothills above my home in Bountiful. But, alas, there is still too much snow on the trails. So, I guess it really isn't spring in the mountains. Well, at least it felt good to think about spring for a moment.

January 31st Snow Storm

A storm system this morning has been dropping snow from Salt Lake City northward along the Wasatch Front. As expected, it has produced 1 to 3 inches of snow; but with cold road surfaces, the snow is causing some slushy and snow packed conditions. Improving weather is expected early this afternoon, as the storm moves into Idaho and Wyoming. Here is a picture from my roof top camera looking north.