Sunday, January 6, 2019

BLUE HILL METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATORY
MILTON, MASSACHUSETTS
ELEVATION 635 FEET, 10 MILES SSW OF BOSTON, MA

DAILY DISCUSSION AND CLIMATE SUMMARY
SUNDAY, JANUARY 6, 2019
ALL TIMES ARE IN EASTERN STANDARD TIME

CLEARING SKIES FOLLOW FREEZING RAIN EVENT…

This morning’s observations began with substantial remains of last night’s
freezing rain event.  The characteristic glaze ice that is produced by
freezing rain had coated many surfaces in and around the blue hills this morning.
This lasted until temperatures finally eclipsed the freezing point
at 8 A.M, kicking off a warming trend that continued into the afternoon hours.
Temperatures continue to be unseasonably high for the month of January, and the past
48 hours seem to reflect this quite well.  Temperatures ran into the 40s for the
past 3 days, with highs of 41 F, 43 F, and 42 F, in their respective order.  At the
time of the 1 P.M. observation today, the maximum temperature ran at 41 F, already
7 degrees above normal.  Today’s weather also brought forth a hazy morning despite
clearing from the fog sometime overnight.  Haze cleared by the time of the
1 P.M. observation, with a substantial layer of altocumulus persisting into
the afternoon hours.  Pressure continues a net rising trend in the wake of yesterday’s
storm, with a diurnal peak observed around 10 A.M. this morning.  Wind speeds remain
modest, but yesterday’s shift to northwesterly winds should help cycle in some
colder air as the day progresses.     

Today’s Observations:

7 A.M.
Weather: Broken altocumulus, haze
Temperature: 31F; Dew Point: 30F; Wind: W at 11G15 kts
Sea-level pressure: 29.73 ins. Hg, rising, then more quickly
Visibility: 20 miles
6-hr Max temp: 31F
6-hr Min temp: 30F
24-hr Precip: 1.15 ins.
24-hr snowfall: 0.0 ins.
Snow depth: 0 ins.
BHO SA 1155 E100 BKN 20 067/31/30/2711G15/973/
HZ ALQDS/ 8070/ 70115 53018 10031 20030 

10 A.M.
Weather: Broken altocumulus, haze
Temperature: 37F; Dew Point: 31F; Wind: W at 8G16 kts,
Sea-level pressure: 29.79 ins. Hg, rising, then more slowly
Visibility: 20 miles
3-hr Precip: 0.00 ins.
BHO SA 1455 E100 BKN 20 088/37/31/2808G16/979/ HZ ALQDS/ 8070/ 51021

1 P.M.
Weather: Scattered cumulus, few altocumulus
Temperature: 40F; Dew Point: 32F; Wind: WNW at 14G23 kts
Sea-level pressure: 29.78 ins. Hg, decreasing, then increasing
Visibility: 35 miles
6-hr Max temp: 41F
6-hr Min temp: 31F
6-hr Precip: 0.00 ins.
6-hr snowfall: 0.0 ins.
Snow depth: 0 ins.
BHO SA 1755 E55 SCT 35 084/40/32/3014G23/978/
FEW AC/ 8180/ 55004 10041 20031

SUMMARY FOR SATURDAY, JANUARY 5, 2019 

TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)
MAX…..41   NORMAL…..34
MIN…..32   NORMAL…..18
MEAN….37   NORMAL…..26

DEPARTURE FROM 30-YEAR NORMAL…………………..+11
TOTAL DEPARTURE FOR THE MONTH…………………..+48 [+9.4 DEGREES/DAY]

HEATING DEGREE DAYS (SEASON JUL TO JUN)
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR YESTERDAY…………..28   DEPARTURE……..-11
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE MONTH………….145   DEPARTURE……..-48
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE SEASON………..2441   DEPARTURE……..-56
TOTAL HEATING UNITS LAST SEASON TO DATE……2384   DIFFERENCE…….+57

PEAK GUST AND AVERAGE WIND SPEED (MPH)
PEAK WIND GUST FOR YESTERDAY………………..26 NE  AT  2:52 P.M.
                   AERO…………………….25 NNW AT  4:18 P.M.
                   ASOS…………………….27 NE  AT  2:53 P.M.
                   DAVIS……………………26 NE  AT  2:52 P.M. RMY 27
FASTEST MILE FOR YESTERDAY………………….17 N   AT  4:18 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE ASOS AVERAGE……………….17 N   AT  8:18 P.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS AVERAGE………………18 N   AT  8:18 P.M.
AVERAGE WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION…………..12.5 NE
                   ASOS…………………..10.6
                   DAVIS………………….10.1 N [2 deg.]   

PRECIPITATION (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST)
TOTAL PRECIPITATION 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M….1.15  DEPARTURE…….+1.01
                         ASOS…………..1.18
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH……….2.01  DEPARTURE…….+1.29
                         ASOS…………..2.02
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE YEAR………..2.01  DEPARTURE…….+1.29
                         ASOS…………..2.01 

SNOWFALL (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST)
TOTAL SNOWFALL 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M………..0.0  DEPARTURE……..-0.6
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE MONTH……………Trace  DEPARTURE……..-2.8
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE SEASON…………….7.7  DEPARTURE…….-11.1

PRELIMINARY CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR JANUARY CALENDAR DAY DATA
DATE: MAX/MIN/MEAN/DEP/PRECIP/SNOW/SUN(MIN.)/SUN(%)/PEAK GUST/AERO/RMY GUST
AERO: Aerovane wind recording system gust
RMY:  R.M. Young wind gust recording system
TSTM: Thunderstorm day (thunder heard some time during day)
….: Data not yet available, records not finalized
M:    Missing data

01/01 54/29/42/+15/…./0.0/…/..        53 W   AERO 53 W   RMY 54
01/02 34/24/29/+2/…./…/…/..         22 NW  AERO 22 NW  RMY N/A
01/03 42/28/35/+9/0.01/T/…/..          28 WNW AERO 30 WNW RMY 30
01/04 43/30/37/+11/…./…/..            29 SW  AERO 29 SW  RMY 29
01/05 41/32/37/+11/1.19/…/…/..        26 NE  AERO 25 NNW RMY 27

01/06 Low temp since midnight is 30F; normal low is 18F

DAILY EXTREMES
Temperature and precipitation records back to 1885, and
wind records back to 1940 (e = estimated):

RECORDS FOR JANUARY 6
HIGH 66F IN 2007
LOW -14F IN 1896
PRECIP 3.10 INS. IN 1889 [RECORD FOR MONTH] SNOWFALL 7.5 INS. IN 1893
PEAK GUST 70 MPH WNW IN 1959

RECORDS FOR JANUARY 7
HIGH 60F IN 1930
LOW -8F IN 2018
PRECIP 1.97 INS. IN 1977
SNOWFALL 16.0 INS. IN 1977
PEAK GUST 74 MPH NW IN 1968

TODAY’S REPORT PREPARED BY:  Nate Iannuccillo