The family weatherman (so cool to have a meteorologist in the fold) says winter is over. If that's true, then what a way for old, man winter to go out - a beautiful white blanket for a couple of days followed by melting and milder temperatures that transition to spring. You shouldn't count your daffodils before they sprout, but this once I'll be a believer. I'm putting the snow shovel away.
I thought it would be fun to gather some winter statistics. Many people (me included) think the winter of 2013-2014 was one of the most miserable seasons ever. It was colder than the usual winter with more snaps of extreme cold. Also, there was more snow than usual. However, the winter of 1978-1979 was the coldest in United States history. Highway crews couldn't manage to clear Route 38, and it was covered by a layer of ice until spring thaw. I worked at Burlington County College back then, and I remember sliding to and from work for a couple of months.
The biggest snow fall in Philadelphia area history occurred from January 6-8, 1996. We got 31 inches during the three day blizzard. I got three days off work.
So, what was the lowest temperature recorded in this area - just the temperature without wind chill factored into things? According to the National Weather Service, the coldest recorded official temperature was -7° Fahrenheit at Philadelphia International Airport in 1984.
Our creative juices must have been frozen in 1979, 1984, and 1996. It wasn't until 2009 that someone coined the word snowpocalyse. Then came snowmageddon in 2011.
So, here's to spring, a nice, average spring, with no record breaking and no new vocabulary.
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