February Summary

This month started out dry but chilly with daily lows in the teens and 20s. Most of the rest of the month would be warm, with three main periods of unusual warmth. The first was from the 7th to the 9th (average temperatures 15-25 degrees above normal), the second was from the 19th to the 23rd (highs mostly in the 60s and 70s, and Bowling Green hit 80 on the 23rd), and the 27th-28th (average temperatures again 15-25 degrees warmer than normal).

Four Wind Advisories were issued by NWS Louisville during the month. On the 9th winds gusted as high as 71 mph in Franklin County!

Despite the warmth and the windy storm systems, there were only two isolated instances of severe convective weather in February. The first was a report of 1" hail near Tompkinsville, and the other was a swath of thunderstorm winds that were estimated at speeds up to 90 mph that caused sporadic tree and structural damage around Russell Springs, both on the 16th. Record rains also fell that day, leading to mostly minor flooding.

A particularly interesting facet of this month's weather was the fact that no measurable snow fell at any of the three main climate sites (Bowling Green, Lexington, and Louisville). Looking at CoCoRaHS data, only one observer reported more than a trace of snow, with a grand total of 0.1" in Shelby County. (Please join CoCoRaHS today to help us measure rain and snow!)

	Average Temperature	Departure from Normal	Precipitation	Departure from Normal	Snow	Departure from Normal
Bowling Green	49.1°	+8.0°	3.17"	-0.90"	T	-2.9"
Frankfort	45.3°	+7.5°	2.87"	-0.53"
Lexington	46.9°	+9.4°	3.72"	+0.08"	T	-4.5"
Louisville Ali	47.4°	+7.9°	2.70"	-0.71"	T	-4.1"
Louisville Bowman	45.2°	+6.5°	2.90"	-0.37"

Records

9th: High of 72° at Frankfort, high of 74° at Lexington
15th: High of 75° at Louisville
16th: Rainfall of 1.78" at Bowling Green, rainfall of 2.50" at Lexington, rainfall of 1.95" at Louisville
22nd: High of 79° at Bowling Green, warm low of 60° at Bowling Green, high of 75° at Frankfort, high of 77° at Lexington, high of 77° at Louisville
23rd: High of 80° at Bowling Green, high of 76° at Frankfort
27th: High of 78° at Bowling Green, high of 73°at Frankfort, high of 74°at Lexington, high of 75° at Louisville

Warmest February on record at Lexington
2nd warmest February on record at Bowling Green
3rd warmest February on record at Louisville
4th warmest February on record at Frankfort

Sunrise in Louisville

Sunrise over Louisville on the 21st. John Gordon