February 2023 Climate Review for Northern and Eastern Maine

...FEBRUARY 2023 CLIMATE NARRATIVE FOR NORTHERN/EASTERN MAINE...

FEBRUARY 2023 WAS SLIGHTLY COLDER THAN AVERAGE ACROSS FAR NORTHERN
MAINE, AND SLIGHTLY ABOVE AVERAGE ACROSS THE REMAINDER OF THE
REGION. PRECIPITATION WAS BELOW AVERAGE. SNOWFALL WAS BELOW 
AVERAGE, EXCEPT ACROSS FAR NORTHERN MAINE WHERE IT WAS NEAR TO 
SLIGHTLY ABOVE AVERAGE.

THE REGION AS A WHOLE AVERAGED FROM 1 TO 2 DEGREES BELOW AVERAGE 
ACROSS THE FAR NORTH AND FROM 1 TO 2 DEGREES ABOVE AVERAGE ACROSS
THE REMAINDER OF THE AREA.

THE MONTH WAS CHARACTERIZED BY ALTERNATING SPELLS OF ABOVE AND
BELOW AVERAGE TEMPERATURES. THERE WAS A BRIEF COLD SNAP ON THE 3RD
INTO THE 4TH, AND TEMPERATURES WERE WELL BELOW AVERAGE THE LAST 6
DAYS OF THE MONTH. FEBRUARY WAS COLDER THAN JANUARY 2023 BY 4 TO 
7 DEGREES. ON AVERAGE FEBRUARY IS COLDER THAN JANUARY ABOUT ONCE 
EVERY 3 TO 4 YEARS. 

TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH RANGED FROM 25 TO 50 PERCENT OF
AVERAGE FROM SOUTHEAST AROOSTOOK COUNTY SOUTH TO THE COAST, AND
FROM 50 TO 90 PERCENT OF NORMAL FROM THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS NORTH
TO THE NORTH WOODS AND SAINT JOHN VALLEY.

ONLY 0.64" OF LIQUID PRECIPITATION WAS OBSERVED AT HOULTON, MAKING
IT THE 3RD DRIEST FEBRUARY SINCE 1948. AT MILLINOCKET WHICH HAS 
WEATHER RECORDS THAT DATE BACK TO 1903, IT RANKED AT THE 7TH 
DRIEST FEBRUARY ON RECORD. FINALLY, AT BANGOR THE TOTAL OF 1.17" 
OF LIQUID PRECIPITATION RANKED AS THE 6TH DRIEST SINCE 1925.

SNOWFALL WAS BELOW AVERAGE ACROSS THE REGION, EXCEPT FROM AROUND
PRESQUE ISLE/CARIBOU NORTH WHERE TOTAL SNOWFALL WAS NEAR TO
SLIGHTLY ABOVE AVERAGE. IN CARIBOU, 28.1" OF SNOW WAS OBSERVED FOR
THE MONTH, WHICH WAS 2.8" ABOVE AVERAGE. AT BANGOR, 10.5" OF SNOW
WAS OBSERVED WHICH WAS 7" BELOW AVERAGE.  

AT THE START OF THE MONTH, THE SNOW DEPTH RANGED FROM 2 TO 3 FEET 
ACROSS NORTHERN AREAS WITH LOCALLY AROUND 4 FEET ACROSS THE 
HIGHEST TERRAIN, AND FROM 6 TO 12 INCHES ALONG THE COAST. BY THE 
END OF THE MONTH, THERE WAS LITTLE CHANGE TO THE SNOW DEPTH ACROSS 
THE NORTH; BUT AMOUNTS IN BANGOR AND ALONG THE COAST WHERE 
GENERALLY 6 INCHES OR LESS. THE SNOW WATER EQUIVALENT ACROSS 
NORTHERN AREAS RANGED FROM 6 TO 10 INCHES BY THE END OF THE MONTH,
WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS ACROSS THE HIGHER TERRAIN. 

THE MOST SIGNIFICANT EVENT OF THE MONTH OCCURRED ON THE 3RD INTO
THE 4TH WHEN WIND CHILLS LOWER THAN 40 BELOW WERE OBSERVED ACROSS
NORTHERN AND EASTERN MAINE. THE LOWEST WIND CHILL OBSERVED WAS AT
FRENCHVILLE AT -61F, AND THIS WAS THE LOWEST WIND CHILL OBSERVED 
AT FRENCHVILLE SINCE WEATHER RECORDS BEGAN AT THE AIRPORT IN 1996.
THE LOWEST WIND CHILL AT CARIBOU OF -52F WAS THE LOWEST SINCE THE
1980S, AND IN BANGOR THE LOWEST WIND CHILLS OF -47F WAS THE 
LOWEST SINCE 2005. AT CARIBOU, THERE WERE 50 CONSECUTIVE HOURS 
DURING THE COLD SNAP WITH ACTUAL AIR TEMPERATURES BELOW ZERO. IN 
ADDITION, THE STRONG WIND PRODUCED BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW, 
ESPECIALLY ACROSS THE OPEN AREAS OF AROOSTOOK COUNTY WHERE SOME 
SECONDARY ROADS WERE CLOSED DUE TO DRIFTING, AND U.S. 1 FROM 
CONNOR NORTH WAS CLOSED FOR A TIME DUE TO DRIFTING. THERE WERE
SEVERAL REPORTS OF CRYOSEISMS OR FROST QUAKES DURING THE COLD 
SNAP.

THE CLIMATE PREDICTION CENTER'S OUTLOOK FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH 
2023 INDICATES THAT THE ODDS ARE TILTED TOWARD BELOW AVERAGE 
TEMPERATURES. THERE ARE CURRENTLY NO STRONG CLIMATE SIGNALS THAT 
POINT TOWARD IT BEING UNUSUALLY WET (SNOWY) OR DRY.

NORMAL MARCH TEMPERATURES FOR THE 1991-2020 PERIOD INDICATE THAT 
THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURES RISE SIGNIFICANTLY DURING THE MONTH. AT 
THE START OF THE MONTH, THE AVERAGE HIGHS ARE IN THE UPPER 20S 
ACROSS THE FAR NORTH AND RISE TO NEAR 40 DEGREES BY THE END OF 
THE MONTH. AVERAGE LOWS RISE FROM THE UPPER SINGLE DIGITS TO THE
LOW 20S BY THE END OF THE MONTH. DOWNEAST, THE AVERAGE HIGHS RISE
FROM THE MID 30S TO THE MID 40S, AND AVERAGE LOWS RISE FROM THE 
TEENS THE UPPER 20S. THERE IS ON AVERAGE, 21.4 INCHES OF SNOW AT 
CARIBOU, AND 15.2 INCHES AT BANGOR. A LITTLE OVER AN HOUR AND A
HALF OF DAYLIGHT IS GAINED DURING THE MONTH OF MARCH. DAYLIGHT
SAVINGS TIME BEGINS THIS YEAR ON SUNDAY, MARCH 12TH.