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°(Click on the links in the gray box below to quickly jump to sections located farther down the page)

Monthly Narrative

Tri-Cities & Ord Details
& Monthly Extremes
Graphs, Tables, Maps Drought Monitor Graphics

Monthly Precipitation &
Snowfall Tables & Archive of Monthly Reviews


* Please Note: All climate data presented here are preliminary and have not undergone final quality control by the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI). Therefore, these data are subject to revision. Final and certified climate data can be accessed at: WWW.NCDC.NOAA.GOV

 February 2016 Weather/Climate Web Stories

Feb. 1-2: Major Winter Storm/Blizzard Strikes The Area


(Click HERE for archive to all web stories)


 

February 2016 Climate And Weather Review For South Central Nebraska
And Portions Of North Central Kansas

The following narrative focuses on climate and weather highlights for the month of February 2016 across the NWS Hastings coverage area, encompassing 24 counties in south central and central Nebraska, and 6 counties in north central Kansas. Click here for a map of this coverage area. The temperature and precipitation data presented here are largely based on the NWS Cooperative Observer network, along with data from a handful of automated airport sites. All climate averages and "normals" presented here are based on the official NCDC 1981-2010 normals.
 

TEMPERATURES...Unfortunately, due to time constraints, no Temperature narrative was written for February 2016

 

(Please look farther down the page for more information on February 2016 temperatures and extremes, including detailed breakdowns for Grand Island, Hastings, Kearney and Ord.)


PRECIPITATION/FLOODING...Unfortunately, due to time constraints, no Precipitaton/Flooding narrative was written for February 2016

(Please look farther down the page for more information on February 2016 precipitation/snowfall and extremes, including rankings of wettest and driest locations, percent-of-normal plots, and a detailed breakdown for Grand Island, Hastings, Kearney and Ord. In addition, the link on the far upper right of this page contains an archive of monthly/annual precipitation and snowfall totals for around 70 locations.)


DROUGHT STATUS (see images at bottom of page)...Unfortunately, due to time constraints, no Drought Status narrative was written for February 2016
 

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS/HIGH WINDS (for all official/finalized storm reports please refer to NCDC Storm Data)...Unfortunately, due to time constraints, no Severe Thunderstorm narrative was written for February 2016

- Number of Severe Thunderstorm Warning polygons issued by NWS Hastings in February 2016: 0 (Same as February 2015)
- Number of Tornado Warning polygons issued by NWS Hastings in February 2016: 0 (Same as February 2016) 
- Number of confirmed tornadoes within the NWS Hastings coverage area in February 2016: (Same as February 2016)

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February 2016 Climate Details For Grand Island, Hastings, Kearney and Ord...Along With Temperature/Rainfall Extremes Mainly From NWS Cooperative Observers and Automated Airport Sites


Click on the link below for February 2016 climate summaries specifically for Grand Island, Hastings, Kearney and Ord

Grand Island - Hastings - Kearney - Ord

 ...A FEW OF THE HOTTEST HIGH TEMPERATURES DURING FEBRUARY 2016
(All data from NWS cooperative observers or automated airport sites.)
87 degrees...4 WNW Plainville, KS (18th)
85 degrees...Webster Dam, KS (18th)
83 degrees...Beloit, KS (18th)
81 degrees...Smith Center, KS (18th) - Red Cloud (18th, 27th)
80 degrees...Superior (18th)
78 degrees...Beaver City (27th) - Franklin (18th, 27th)

...A FEW OF THE COOLEST LOW TEMPERATURES DURING FEBRUARY 2016
(All data from NWS cooperative observers or automated airport sites.)
1 degree......6 NNW Oxford (4th)
2 degrees....Beaver City (4th) - Ord Airport ASOS (4th) - Lexington Airport AWOS (4th)
4 degrees....Holdrege (4th) - Canaday Steam Plant (6 SE Lexington - 4th)
5 degrees...Cambridge (4th) - Superior (4th)
6 degrees...Edison (4th) - Harlan County Lake (4th) - NWS Hastings (4th) - Burr Oak, KS (4th) - Smith Center, KS (4th)
7 degrees...2 W Genoa (4th) - Gothenburg (4th) - Ravenna (4th)

...A FEW OF THE HIGHEST MONTHLY RAINFALL TOTALS DURING FEBRUARY 2016
(
All data from NWS cooperative observers or automated airport sites, unless indicated)
1.86 inches...Grand Island Airport ASOS (Hall County)
1.84 inches...Willsonville (Furnas County)
1.72 inches...St. Paul (Howard County)
1.58 inches...Holdrege (Phelps County)
1.57 inches...NWS Hastings (Adams County)
1.53 inches...Central City (Merrick County)
1.50 inches...Phillipsburg, KS (Phillips County)
1.38 inches...8 S Elwood (Gosper County)
1.36 inches...Beaver City (Furnas County)
1.31 inches...Superior (Nuckolls County)

...A FEW OF THE LOWEST MONTHLY RAINFALL TOTALS DURING FEBRUARY 2016
(
All data from NWS cooperative observers or automated airport sites, unless indicated)
0.30 inch...Hebron (Thayer County)
0.38 inch...Beloit, KS (Mitchell County)
0.41 inch...Glen Elder Dam, KS (Mitchell County)
0.58 inch...2 SW Alton, KS (Osborne County)
0.65 inch...4 WNW Plainville, KS (Rooks County) - 3 W Gresham (York County)
0.66 inch...Greeley (Greeley County)
0.72 inch...Ionia, KS (Jewelly County) - Bruning (Thayer County)
0.73 inch...Hubbell (Thayer County)
0.75 inch...Jewell, KS (Jewell County) - Canaday Steam Plant (6 SSE Lexington - Gosper County) - 6 ESE Clay Center (Clay County)

...A FEW OF THE HIGHEST MONTHLY SNOWFALL TOTALS DURING FEBRUARY 2016
(
All data from NWS cooperative observers, unless indicated)

18.6 inches...Grand Island (Hall County)
18.0 inches...Wilsonville (Furnas County)
16.5 inches...Holdrege (Phelps County)
16.0 inches...NWS Hastings (Adams County)
15.6 inches...8 S Elwood (Gosper County)
15.0 inches...Minden (Kearney County) - Beaver City (Furnas County)
14.8 inches...Cozad (Dawson County)
14.3 inches...4 SW Blue Hill (Webster County) - St. Paul (Howard County)
13.6 inches...Greeley (Greeley County) - Loup City (Sherman County)

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Various graphs and tables depicting February 2016 climate data for
South Central Nebraska and North Central Kansas:

* Please Note: These data are preliminary and have not undergone final quality control by the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC). Therefore, these data are subject to revision. Final and certified climate data can be accessed at WWW.NCDC.NOAA.GOV

Click Image For Larger Version
Grand Island Temperature Summary: Observed daily
maximum and minimum temperatures are connected by blue
bars. Area between normal maximum and minimum temperatures
is shaded green. Red bars connect record high temperatures. Blue
bars connect record low temperatures.
Hastings Temperature Summary: Observed daily maximum
and minimum temperatures are connected by blue bars. Area
between normal maximum and minimum temperatures is shaded
green. Red bars connect record high temperatures. Blue bars
connect record low temperatures.

 

 
Grand Island Precipitation Summary: Green line indicates cumulative observed precipitation for February 2016. Brown line indicates "normal" February precipitation based on 30-year data from
1981-2010.
Hastings Precipitation Summary: Green line indicates
cumulative observed precipitation for February 2016. Brown line indicates "normal" February precipitation based on 30-year data from
1981-2010.

 

 

Grand Island (Regional Airport) - February 2015 - February 2016
  Feb. 2015 Mar. Apr. May June July Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb.
Average High (F) 36.3 60.4 64.8 69.4 82.6 87.3 84.2 82.2 69.0 53.2 41.0 35.8 45.6
Average Low (F) 11.4 27.2 39.8 48.8 60.4 63.9 60.4 59.1 44.3 32.7 23.5 18.3 25.0
Average Temperature (F) 23.8 43.8 52.3 59.1 71.5 75.6 72.3 70.6 56.6 43.0 32.2 27.0 35.3
Departure from Normal (F) -5.3 +4.4 +1.7 -2.1 +0.2 -0.6 -1.7 +5.5 +4.4 +4.9 +5.5 +1.9 +6.2
 
Precipitation (inches) 0.70 0.16 2.14 3.69 5.67 2.58 1.24 3.33 1.28 2.84 1.88 0.32 1.86
Departure from Normal +0.02 -1.64 -0.39 -0.72 +1.37 -0.82 -1.88 +1.10 -0.58 +1.67 +1.25 -0.21 +1.18
 
Snowfall (inches) 11.1 0.6 0.8 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 5.6 2.4 4.6 18.6
Departure from Normal +4.8 -4.8 -0.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 -0.1 -1.0 +2.5 -2.7 -1.9 +12.3

 

 

Hastings (Municipal Airport) - February 2015 - February 2016
  Feb. 2015 Mar. Apr. May June July Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb.
Average High (F) 37.7 61.0 64.8 69.3 82.3 86.6 83.6 83.3 69.5 53.7 41.7 36.6 45.4
Average Low (F) 12.9 27.8 41.3 50.0 61.7 65.0 61.3 60.3 45.4 33.2 24.4 19.2 24.9
Average Temperature (F) 25.3 44.4 53.1 59.6 72.0 75.8 72.4 71.8 57.5 43.5 33.0 27.9 35.2
Departure from Normal (F) -4.6 +4.5 +2.4 -1.7 +0.2 -1.3 -1.9 +6.2 +4.9 +4.8 +5.4 +1.9 +5.3
 
Precipitation (inches) 0.34 0.20 3.55 3.86 8.05 4.13 2.15 1.12 1.53 2.03 2.18 0.35 1.57
Departure from Normal -0.15 -1.59 +0.99 -0.71 +4.25 +0.39 -1.15 -1.44 -0.46 +0.74 +1.57 -0.06 +1.08
 
Snowfall NWS Office (inches) 5.4 0.8 Trace 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 4.2 4.6 5.5 16.0
Departure from Normal -1.1 -4.4 -1.2 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 -0.2 -1.0 +1.6 -1.5 -0.5 +9.5

 

 

Kearney (Regional Airport) - February 2016 - February 2016
(*All data from NWS coop observer with daily 24-hour obs taken around 7 AM. As a result, data may vary slightly from true "calendar day" averages)
  Feb. 2015 Mar. Apr. May June July Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb.
Average High (F)* 38.6 59.7 63.5 69.1 80.6 87.0 82.9 82.9 68.3 53.2 41.5 37.2 45.7
Average Low (F)* 11.6 23.9 38.1 47.1 59.1 62.1 59.4 58.1 41.8 30.6 22.5 17.8 24.1
Average Temperature (F)* 25.1 31.4 50.8 58.1 69.9 74.6 71.1 70.5 55.1 41.9 32.0 27.5 34.9
Departure from Normal (F)* -3.0 -6.3 +2.1 -1.4 +0.1 -0.1 -1.5 +7.0 +4.2 +4.9 +6.1 +2.9 +6.8
 
Precipitation (inches) 0.49 0.07 3.14 2.85 7.08 2.36 2.47 2.27 0.97 3.25 1.05 0.40 0.98
Departure from Normal -0.06 -1.72 +0.91 -1.33 +3.15 -0.92 -0.61 +0.20 -1.07 +2.23 +0.48 -0.09 +0.48
 
Snowfall (inches) 5.6 0.5 Trace 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 4.5 1.7 4.0 11.0
Departure from Normal +0.5 -4.1 -1.8 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 -0.2 -0.7 +1.4 -1.8 -0.4 +5.9

 

 

Ord (Evelyn Sharp Field Airport) - February 2015 - February 2016
(*Winter precipitation data may include coop observer reports due to automated airport equipment under-measuring snowfall liquid equivalent)
  Feb. 2015 Mar. Apr. May June July Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb.
Average High (F) 37.5 60.7 64.3 67.8 81.9 88.0 83.8 81.3 66.9 52.2 39.4 36.0 45.9
Average Low (F) 9.2 21.9 37.3 45.9 57.9 60.6 57.1 55.7 40.5 28.6 18.5 16.1 21.8
Average Temperature (F) 23.4 41.3 50.8 56.9 69.9 74.3 70.5 68.5 53.7 40.4 29.0 26.0 33.9
Departure from Normal (F) -4.4 +3.6 +2.0 -2.4 +0.7 -0.1 -2.5 +4.9 +4.1 +4.1 +4.1 +1.4 +6.1
 
Precipitation (inches)* 0.57 0.03 2.71 2.98 3.27 2.68 2.13 3.90 1.05 3.16 0.69 0.30 0.85
Departure from Normal +0.13 -1.42 +0.12 -0.83 -0.85 -0.29 -1.03 +1.46 -0.88 +2.09 +0.10 -0.07 +0.45
 
Snowfall (Coop Observer) 8.3 Trace 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 5.5 10.5 5.3 12.0
Departure from Normal +2.3 -5.9 -1.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 -1.1 +0.2 +3.1 -1.5 +6.0

 

 

Smith Center, KS (Cooperative Observer) - February 2015 - February 2016
(*All data from NWS coop observer with daily 24-hour obs taken around 7 AM. As a result, data may vary slightly from true "calendar day" averages)
  Feb. 2015 Mar. Apr. May June July Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb.
Average High (F)* 40.9 61.8 68.0 71.6 86.2 90.6 87.3 87.4 71.8 56.9 44.9 39.3 49.8
Average Low (F)* 13.7 28.6 40.4 48.7 61.2 64.7 60.6 60.2 44.2 31.6 24.0 18.6 24.0
Average Temperature (F)* 27.3 45.2 54.2 60.2 73.7 77.7 74.0 73.8 58.0 44.3 34.5 29.0 36.9
Departure from Normal (F)* -4.7 +3.6 +1.7 -3.5 -0.3 -2.0 -3.2 +5.6 +3.2 +3.9 +5.7 +1.3 +4.9
 
Precipitation (inches) 0.58 0.57 0.89 6.34 2.68 4.80 5.48 1.13 1.26 1.26 1.78 0.61 0.98
Departure from Normal 0.0 -1.30 -1.38 +2.42 -0.93 +0.93 +2.18 -0.91 -0.62 +0.04 +1.12 +0.12 +0.40
 
Snowfall (inches) 1.7 2.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.8 3.3 5.5 8.6
Departure from Normal -2.4 -0.1 -0.6 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 -0.2 -0.4 -1.0 +0.1 +1.8 +4.5

 

 Most of the following images depicting February 2016 Precipitation and Temperatures are courtesy of the High Plains Regional Climate Center:

* Please note: These maps are a "best-approximation" of actual measured values, and data reflected on these maps may not exactly match actual values due to the effects of interpolation and "smoothing" used to create the maps. In addition, some "bullseyes" may be a result of missing data.

Click Images For Larger Version

Nebraska: February 2016
Measured Precipitation (Inches)
Kansas: February 2016
Measured Precipitation (Inches)
Nebraska: February 2016
Percent of Normal Measured Precip.
Kansas: February 2016
Percent of Normal Measured Precip.
 
NWS Hastings Area: February 2016 Total "Observed" Precipitation
Based On AHPS Precipitation Analysis Including Radar Data

While the precipitation images above are based strictly on gauge-measured data, this image on the left utilizes an "Observed" multisensor approach created by River Forecast Centers. Hourly precipitation estimates from WSR-88D NEXRAD radar are compared to ground rainfall gauge reports, and a bias (correction factor) is calculated and applied to the radar field. For much more information on these types of images, and to create your own precipitation maps, please visit the following site: https://water.weather.gov/precip/

   
Nebraska: February 2016  Temperature Departure 
from Normal (F)
Kansas: February 2016
Temperature Departure 
from Normal (F)

 


 

The following drought category images, current as of March 1, 2016, are courtesy of the
U.S. Drought Monitor (see narrative above for more details):

Click Images For Larger Version

Nebraska - U.S. Drought Monitor as of March 1, 2016 Kansas - U.S. Drought Monitor as of March 1, 2016

 

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For more climate related information, check out the following websites:

 



This page was composed by the staff at the National Weather Service in Hastings, Nebraska.