Friday, January 8, 2016

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

DAILY DISCUSSION AND CLIMATE SUMMARY
FRIDAY, JANUARY 8, 2016
ALL TIMES ARE IN EASTERN STANDARD TIME

THICKENING CLOUDS BUT REMAINING DRY TODAY

The temperature fell to only 28F at the summit this morning, well above
average.  A thickening stratocumulus cloud cover has made for a slow rise
in temperatures, with a high so far of 40F, which is also above average.
Winds have shifted from north to east, with the ocean component adding
some moisture to the air after very low dew point and humidity values over
the past couple days.  Despite the clouds, dry weather has prevailed, and no
measurable precipitation was recorded in the first week of the new year.
That will likely change in the coming days, as heavy rain and near record
warmth is forecast for later in the weekend.

Today’s Observations:

7 A.M.
Weather: Broken stratocumulus, smoke layer along horizon N-NNE and SE-S
Temperature: 29F; Dew Point: 25F; Wind: N at 10 kts
Sea-level pressure: 30.26 ins. Hg, steady then rising
Visibility: 30 miles, hazy
6-hr Max temp: 31F
6-hr Min temp: 28F
24-hr precip: 0.00 ins.
24-hr snowfall: 0.0 ins.
Snow depth: Trace
BHO SA 1155 E20 BKN 30 246/29/25/0110/026/ K LYR ALG HRZN N-NNE AND SE-S
HAZY/ 8/5// 53009 10031 20028

10 A.M.
Weather: Overcast stratocumulus, break in overcast along horizon SE-S
Temperature: 32F; Dew Point: 27F; Wind: N at 8 kts
Sea-level pressure: 30.28 ins. Hg, rising slightly
Visibility: 25 miles, except 45 miles SE-S, hazy
BHO SA 1455 E20 OVC 25 254/32/27/0108/028/ BINOVC ALG HRZN SE-S
HAZY VSBY SE-S 45/ 8/5// 53008

1 P.M.
Weather: Scattered stratocumulus, overcast stratocumulus (higher layer)
Temperature: 40F; Dew Point: 32F; Wind: E at 11 kts
Sea-level pressure: 30.26 ins. Hg, falling slightly
Visibility: 30 miles, except 20 miles NW-NNE, 45 miles ENE-S, hazy
6-hr Max temp: 40F
6-hr Min temp: 29F
BHO SA 1755 15 SCT E20 OVC 30 248/40/32/0811/026/ BINOVC ALG HRZN SSE-S
HAZY VSBY NW-NNE 20 ENE-S 45/ 8/5// 56006 10040 20029

SUMMARY FOR THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2016

TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)
MAX…..43   NORMAL…..34
MIN…..25   NORMAL…..18
MEAN….34   NORMAL…..26

DEPARTURE FROM 30-YEAR NORMAL…………………..+8
TOTAL DEPARTURE FOR THE MONTH…………………..+13 [+1.7 DEGREES/DAY]

HEATING DEGREE DAYS (SEASON JUL TO JUN)
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR YESTERDAY…………..31   DEPARTURE……….-8
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE MONTH………….258   DEPARTURE………-13
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE SEASON………..1914   DEPARTURE……..-661
TOTAL HEATING UNITS LAST SEASON TO DATE……2333   DIFFERENCE…….-419

PEAK GUST AND AVERAGE WIND SPEED (MPH)
PEAK WIND GUST FOR YESTERDAY……………….21  SW  AT   1:32 A.M.*
ASOS……………………21  SW  AT  12:10 A.M.
DAVIS…………………..19  N   AT  12:21 A.M. RMY N/A
FASTEST MILE FOR YESTERDAY…………………16  SW  AT  12:21 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE ASOS AVERAGE………………16  SW  AT  12:23 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS AVERAGE……………..15  SW  AT  12:16 A.M.
AVERAGE WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION…………..9.6  NNE
ASOS………………….10.1
DAVIS………………….8.8  NNW [343 Deg.] *last of several occurrences…

PRECIPITATION (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST)
TOTAL PRECIPITATION 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M….0.00  DEPARTURE……-0.14
ASOS…………..0.00
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH………TRACE  DEPARTURE……-1.00
ASOS…………..0.00
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE YEAR……….TRACE  DEPARTURE……-1.00
ASOS…………..0.00

SNOWFALL (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST)
TOTAL SNOWFALL 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M……….0.0  DEPARTURE…….-0.5
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE MONTH…………….0.2  DEPARTURE…….-3.7
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE SEASON……………1.5  DEPARTURE……-18.4

PRELIMINARY CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR JANUARY CALENDAR DAY DATA
DATA REPORTED:
DATE: MAX/MIN/MEAN/DEP/PRECIP/SUN(MIN.)/SUN(%)/ PEAK GUST/RMY 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

1/1   37/29/33/+6/0.00/0.0/…/..           29 W   RMY 29
1/2   37/27/32/+5/0.00/0.0/…/..           31 W   RMY N/A
1/3   41/27/34/+8/0.00/0.0/…/..           28 W   RMY 29
1/4   30/10/20/-6/T/T/000/00                29 NNW RMY 29
1/5   23/4/14/-12/0.00/0.0/…/..           28 NNW RMY N/A
1/6   43/17/30/+4/0.00/0.0/…/..           24 SW  RMY 24
1/7   43/25/34/+8/0.00/0.0/…/..           21 SW  RMY N/A

1/8 low since midnight is 28F; normal low is now 18F

DAILY RECORDS FOR JANUARY 2016

None so far.

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

RECORDS FOR JANUARY 8
HIGH 65F IN 2008
LOW -8F IN 1968
PRECIP 1.70 INS. IN 1958,1979
SNOWFALL 12.5 INS. IN 1996
PEAK GUST 77 MPH NNW IN 1958

RECORDS FOR JANUARY 9
HIGH 62F IN 1937
LOW -9F IN 1968
PRECIP 3.00 INS. IN 1956
SNOWFALL 10.0 INS. IN 1904
PEAK GUST 101e MPH SE IN 1978 [RECORD FOR MONTH]

TODAY’S REPORT PREPARED BY: Jonathan O’Brien