Friday, February 2, 2024

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

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2024
ALL TIMES ARE IN EASTERN STANDARD TIME (EST)
SUNRISE: 0657E
SUNSET:  1659E

ANOTHER CLOUDY AND COOL DAY ON BLUE HILL TODAY….

Cloudy conditions remain in the area for another day. There
were some brief breaks in overcast in the early morning hours,
however, more clouds continued to move through, giving us an
overcast sky through most of the day.

With the absence of sunshine, temperatures have slowly climbed
into the upper 30’s which is around normal for this time of
year. The low winds and higher dew point have made being outdoors
more tolerable as there is no frigid cold air in the area.

The wind during the overnight hours were generally from a WSW
direction and shifted to a NNW and northerly flow by the daytime.
Wind speeds have been very light through the day with an average
speed of only around 6mph. The peak gust so far occurred just
after midnight at 13mph.

Visibility has been limited to only about 10 miles all day due
to fog and hazy conditions.

The maximum temperature so far today is 38F degrees, which is
3 degrees above the normal high of 35F. The minimum temperature
so far since midnight is 34F degrees, which is 16 degrees above
the normal low of 18F.

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PRELIMINARY STATS FOR JANUARY 2024

TEMPERATURE, Deg. F
Avg. Max. 36.4 [+1.7] Avg. Min. 24.0 [+5.7] Mean      30.2 [+3.7] 24-hour corrected mean: 29.8
Max. for month: 57F on the 13th
Min. for month: 10F on the 20th and 21st

HEATING DEGREE DAYS
Total heating units:   1070 [-123] Total for the season:  2965 [-438] Total for last season: 2823

COOLING DEGREE DAYS
Total cooling units:    000 [ 000] Total for the season:   000 [ 000] Total for last season:  000

PRECIPITATION, Inches
Total: 9.24 [+4.74] Greatest in 24 hrs: 2.88 on the 9th-10th

SNOWFALL, Inches
Total: 20.6 [+2.0] Greatest in 24 hrs: 13.2 on the 6th-7th

WIND, mph
Avg. uncorrected wind speed: 11.2 mph
Avg. corrected wind speed:   11.7 mph
Prevailing wind direction:   Northwest [18%] Peak gust and direction:  70 SSE on the 10th

SUNSHINE:
Campbell-Stokes card minutes: 5880 of a possible 17130, or 34%
Astronomical total minutes: 6056 of a possible 17652, or 34%

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Today’s Observations:

7 A.M.
Weather: Overcast stratus, few breaks in overcast distant
NNE-E-ESE
Temperature: 34F; Dew Point: 33F; Relative Humidity: 92%
Wind: NW @ 6 kts, wind light
Sea-level pressure: 1011.0 mb; 29.85 in. Hg: falling, then rising
Visibility: 10 miles, thin fog, hazy
6-hr Max temp: 36F
6-hr Min temp: 34F
24-hr Precip: 0.00 inches
24-hr Snowfall: 0.0 inches
Snow Depth: 1 inch
BHO SA 1155 E18 BKN 10 110/34/33/3106/985/ FEW BINOVC DSNT NNE-E-ESE
THN F ALQDS HAZY WND LGT/ 8/6// 4/001 53002 10036 20034

10 A.M.
Weather: Overcast stratus, precipitation very light
Temperature: 35F; Dew Point: 35F; Relative Humidity: 96%
Wind: NNW @ 5 kts, wind light
Sea-level pressure: 1012.0 mb; 29.88 in. Hg: rising, then more rapidly
Visibility: 10 miles, thin fog, hazy
3-hr Precip: 0.00 inches
3-hr Snowfall: 0.0 inches
BHO SA 1455 E20 OVC R-10 120/35/35/3305/988/ PCPN VRY LGT THN F ALQDS
WND LGT/ 8/6// 53010

1 P.M.
Weather: Overcast stratus
Temperature: 38F; Dew Point: 36F; Relative Humidity: 86%
Wind: N @ 5 kts, wind light
Sea-level pressure: 1011.1 mb; 29.86 in. Hg: falling unsteadily
Visibility: 10 miles, thin fog
6-hr Max temp: 38F
6-hr Min temp: 34F
6-hr Precip: Trace
6-hr Snowfall: 0.0 inches
Snow Depth: 1 inch
BHO SA 1755 E20 OVC 10 111/38/36/3505/986/ THN F ALQDS WND LGT/
8/6// 4/001 57009 6000/ 10038 20034

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SUMMARY FOR THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2024

TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)
MAX…….40   NORMAL…..35
MIN…….30   NORMAL…..17
MEAN……35   NORMAL…..26

DEPARTURE FROM 30-YEAR (1991-2020) NORMAL…………+9
TOTAL DEPARTURE FOR THE MONTH……………………+9 [+8.8 DEGREES/DAY]

HEATING DEGREE DAYS (SEASON: JUL 2023 THRU JUN 2024)
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR YESTERDAY……………30  DEPARTURE……..-9
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE MONTH……………30  DEPARTURE……..-9
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE SEASON…………2995  DEPARTURE……-447
TOTAL HEATING UNITS LAST SEASON TO DATE…….2864  DEPARTURE……+131

PEAK WIND GUST (MPH):
Note: Instruments designated #1 = Main Tower, #2 = South Tower,
F420C, Contacting, Merlin, and Richards are all Main Tower.
E=Estimated

F420C (Official)……….E25 SW   @  10:33 A.M.
VECTOR #1 (1-Sec)……….24 SW   @  10:55 A.M.
VECTOR #2 (1-Sec)……….25 SW   @  10:55 A.M.
DAVIS #1……………….23 WSW  @  10:04 A.M.
DAVIS #2 ………………23 SW   @  10:24 A.M.
RMY #1 (Instantaneous)…..26 WSW  @  10:04 A.M.
RMY #2 (Instantaneous)…..26 SW   @  10:55 A.M.
MERLIN…………………24 WSW
RICHARDS (C5C) (Inst)……14      @  10:04 A.M.

FASTEST MILE:
CONTACTING ANEMOMETER/OFFICIAL………………20 SW   @  10:19 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE VECTOR #1 AVERAGE…………..19      @  10:57 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE VECTOR #2 AVERAGE…………..20      @  10:57 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS #1 AVERAGE……………19 SW   @  10:57 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS #2 AVERAGE……………20 SW   @  10:57 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RMY #1 AVERAGE……………..18 SW   @  10:57 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RMY #2 AVERAGE……………..20 SW   @  10:57 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RICHARDS (C5C) AVERAGE………17      @  11:01 A.M.

AVERAGE WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION:
CONTACTING/OFFICIAL…….8.0 SW [193 total miles] VECTOR #1……………..8.4
VECTOR #2……………..8.8
DAVIS #1………………8.0 SW
DAVIS #2………………8.5 SW
RMY #1………………..8.4 SW
RMY #2………………..8.8 SW
RICHARDS (C5C)…………8.4

PRECIPITATION (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST):
TOTAL PRECIPITATION 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M……..0.00 DEPARTURE…..-0.14
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH…………..0.00 DEPARTURE…..-0.14
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE YEAR (2024)……..9.24 DEPARTURE…..+4.60

SNOWFALL (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST):
TOTAL SNOWFALL 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M…………..0.0 DEPARTURE……-0.7
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE MONTH………………..0.0 DEPARTURE……-0.7
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE SEASON (2023-2024)……20.9 DEPARTURE…..-13.5

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PRELIMINARY CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR FEBRUARY CALENDAR DAY DATA
DATE: MAX/MIN/MEAN/DEP/PRECIP/SNOW/SUN(MIN)/SUN(%)/PEAK GUST/VEC1/RMY GUST
PEAK GUST: F420C (Official)
VEC1: Vector #1 1-second gust
RMY:  R.M. Young #1 wind gust recording system (Instantaneous)
TSTM: Thunderstorm day (thunder heard some time during day)
….: Data not yet available, records not finalized
M:    Missing data

2/1   40/30/35/+9/0.00/0.0/…/..         25 SW  VEC1 24 SW  RMY 26

2/2 The low since midnight is 34F, the daily normal low is 17F

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PRELIMINARY CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR JANUARY CALENDAR DAY DATA
DATE: MAX/MIN/MEAN/DEP/PRECIP/SNOW/SUN(MIN)/SUN(%)/PEAK GUST/VEC1/RMY GUST
PEAK GUST: F420C (Official)
VEC1: Vector #1 1-second gust
RMY:  R.M. Young #1 wind gust recording system (Instantaneous)
TSTM: Thunderstorm day (thunder heard some time during day)
….: Data not yet available, records not finalized
M:    Missing data

1/1   37/25/31/+2/0.00/0.0/296/54         15 N   VEC1 14 N   RMY 15
1/2   39/19/29/+1/0.00/0.0/550/100        17 WNW VEC1 17 WNW RMY 17
1/3   42/25/34/+6/0.00/0.0/347/63         20 WNW VEC1 21 WNW RMY 21
1/4   42/21/32/+4/T/T/237/43              37 NNW VEC1 36 NNW RMY 39
1/5   32/17/25/-3/0.00/0.0/542/98         40 NW  VEC1 39 NW  RMY 39
1/6   34/24/29/+1/0.11/0.2/022/04         36 E   VEC1 36 E   RMY 36
1/7   33/21/27/0/0.84/13.0/000/00         38 ENE VEC1 37 ENE RMY 42
1/8   32/21/27/0/0.00/0.0/406/73          28 NW  VEC1 28 NW  RMY 31
1/9   40/23/32/+5/0.98/T/000/00           46 SE  VEC1 49 SE  RMY 46
1/10  53/41/47/+20/1.90/0.0/201/36        70 SSE VEC1 69 SSE RMY 75
1/11  43/35/39/+12/0.00/0.0/162/29        45 WNW VEC1 43 WNW RMY 47
1/12  47/33/40/+13/0.00/0.0/533/95        29 SE  VEC1 28 ESE RMY 28
1/13  57/36/47/+21/1.72/0.0/146/26        47 ESE VEC1 51 ESE RMY 49
1/14  39/22/31/+5/0.02/0.4/328/58         53 WNW VEC1 52 WNW RMY 54
1/15  31/17/24/-2/T/T/475/84              30 WNW VEC1 29 WNW RMY 30
1/16  34/19/27/+1/0.61/3.2/000/00         36 NW  VEC1 33 NW* RMY 31*
1/17  25/13/19/-7/0.00/0.0/529/93         29 NW  VEC1 28 W*  RMY 27*
1/18  26/13/20/-6/0.00/0.0/069/12         30 WSW VEC1 30 WSW RMY 29
1/19  27/16/22/-4/T/T/000/00              31 NW  VEC1 30 NW  RMY 34
1/20  20/10/15/-11/0.05/0.7/172/30        30 NW  VEC1 30 NW  RMY 31
1/21  25/10/18/-8/0.00/0.0/513/89         30 NW  VEC1 31 NW  RMY 32
1/22  37/13/25/-1/0.00/0.0/416/72         35 SW  VEC1 35 SW  RMY 36
1/23  38/30/34/+8/0.07/0.5/006/01         30 WSW VEC1 30 WSW RMY 31
1/24  39/29/34/+8/0.40/0.7/000/00         26 S   VEC1 26 S   RMY 26
1/25  50/38/44/+18/0.18/0.0/088/15        35 SW  VEC1 34 SSW RMY 36
1/26  40/35/38/+12/0.69/0.0/000/00        23 ESE VEC1 23 ESE RMY 23
1/27  36/33/35/+9/0.06/0.0/000/00         20 NNE VEC1 20 NNE RMY 19
1/28  35/31/33/+7/0.70/0.6/000/00         33 NNE VEC1 33 NNE RMY 35
1/29  34/29/32/+6/0.13/0.9/018/03         38 N   VEC1 38 N   RMY 39
1/30  30/21/26/+/0.06/0.4/000/00          26 ENE VEC1 26 ENE RMY 28
1/31  32/23/28/+2/0.00/0.0/000/00         14 SW  VEC1 13 SW  RMY 14

* Reading impacted by icing

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JANUARY DAILY RECORDS TO DATE

1/13: RECORD PRECIPITATION OF 1.72 INS,
BEATS PREVIOUS RECORD OF 1.54 INS SET IN 1979

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

RECORDS FOR FEBRUARY 2
HIGH 55F IN 1951, 1973
LOW -12F IN 1961
PRECIP 1.91 INS. IN 1999
SNOWFALL 16.5 INS. IN 2015
PEAK GUST 92 MPH SW IN 1970

RECORDS FOR FEBRUARY 3
HIGH 58F IN 1991
LOW -11F IN 2023
PRECIP 2.14 INS. IN 1970
SNOWFALL 7.0 INS. IN 1913
PEAK GUST 102 MPH S IN 1970 [RECORD FOR MONTH]

TODAY’S REPORT PREPARED BY: Amanda Joly