Saturday, February 1, 2025

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

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2025
ALL TIMES ARE IN EASTERN STANDARD TIME (EST)
SUNRISE: 0657E
SUNSET:  1659E

SNOWY START TO FEBRUARY ON THE OBSERVATORY’S 140TH ANNIVERSARY…

The storm system that moved into the area yesterday afternoon is
finally making its exit. Here on the hill it rained until about
midnight, when temperatures dropped below freezing. Freezing rain/
drizzle lasted through 4:30am, resulting in a thin glaze of ice
on all surfaces. Light snow began thereafter, continuing through 1pm.
Storm total liquid precipitation is 0.86″, with much of that falling
yesterday. All of the snow accumulation has occurred today, with a total
of 0.3″.

Temperatures today were highest at midnight, with a high of 32F, and
continued to fall until rising slightly by early afternoon. We are
now in the low 20s. The air remained saturated through late morning.

Winds have increased as well, with flow now out of the north-northwest
wrapping in the cold air. The average speed to this point is about 9mph.
The peak gust occurred right after 11am, with a speed of 28mph.

Visibility today has been poor, limited by falling snow and fog. As the
intensity has let up, views now extend 10-40 miles depending on the sector.

The maximum temperature for today is 32F degrees, which is 3 degrees
below the normal high of 35F. The minimum temperature since midnight
is 22F degrees, which is 5 degrees above the normal low of 17F.

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PRELIMINARY STATS FOR JANUARY 2025

TEMPERATURE, Deg. F
Avg. Max. 33.1 [-1.6] Avg. Min. 18.3 [ 0.0] Mean      25.7 [-0.8] 24-hour corrected mean: 25.5
Max. for month: 47F on the  1st
Min. for month:  2F on the 22nd

HEATING DEGREE DAYS
Total heating units:   1211 [+018] Total for the season:  3143 [-260] Total for last season: 2966

COOLING DEGREE DAYS
Total cooling units:      0 [ 000] Total for the season:     0 [ 000] Total for last season:    0

PRECIPITATION, Inches
Total: 2.35 [-2.15] Greatest in 24 hrs: 0.79 on the 31st

SNOWFALL, Inches
Total:  8.4 [-10.2] Greatest in 24 hrs: 5.7 on the 19th-20th

WIND, mph
Avg. uncorrected wind speed: 13.9 mph
Avg. corrected wind speed:   14.2 mph
Prevailing wind direction:   West-Northwest [30%] Peak gust and direction:  65 WNW on the 28th

SUNSHINE:
Campbell-Stokes card minutes: 10764 of a possible 17130, or 63%
Astronomical total minutes: 11110 of a possible 17686 or 63%

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Today’s Observations:

7 A.M.
Weather: Broken stratus fractus, overcast nimbostratus,
very light snow and fog
Temperature: 29F; Dew Point: 29F; Relative Humidity: 100%
Wind: N @ 12G18 kts
Sea-level pressure: 1008.1 mb; 29.77 in. Hg: rising, then more rapidly
Visibility: 5 miles, fog
6-hr Max temp: 32F
6-hr Min temp: 29F
24-hr Precip:  0.83 inches
24-hr Snowfall: 0.1 inches
Snow Depth: Trace
BHO SA 1155 E4 BKN 10 OVC 5S-F 081/29/29/3612G18/977/ PCPN VRY LGT
THN GLZ ALL SFCS TOTAL NEW SNW PST 24 HRS 0.1 INS/ 8/72/ 4/000 53036
70083 10032 20029

10 A.M.
Weather: Broken stratus fractus, overcast nimbostratus, light snow and fog
Temperature: 28F; Dew Point: 28F; Relative Humidity: 100%
Wind: N @ 8G17 kts
Sea-level pressure: 1013.3 mb; 29.92 in. Hg: rising rapidly
Visibility: 3 miles, fog
3-hr Precip:  0.01 inches
3-hr Snowfall: 0.1 inches
BHO SA 1455 E4 BKN 15 OVC 3S-F 133/28/28/3608G17/992/ PRESRR
TOTAL NEW SNW PST 3 HRS 0.1 INS/ 8/72/ 52052 6001/

1 P.M.
Weather: Broken stratus fractus, overcast nimbostratus,
very light snow
Temperature: 23F; Dew Point: 20F; Relative Humidity: 88%
Wind: NNW @ 10G21 kts
Sea-level pressure: 1018.2 mb; 30.07 in. Hg: rising, then more slowly
Visibility: 40 miles, 20 N-E, 10 E-SE, 20 SE-SSW, thin fog N-E-SSW
6-hr Max temp: 29F
6-hr Min temp: 22F
6-hr Precip:  0.03 inches
6-hr Snowfall: 0.3 inches
Snow Depth: Trace
BHO SA 1755 E20 BKN 25 OVC 40S- 182/23/20/3410G21/007/ THN F N-E-SSW
PCPN VRY LGT VSBY 20 N-E 10 E-SE 20 SE-SSW TOTAL NEW SNW PST 6 HRS 0.3 INS/
8/72/ 4/000 51049 6003/ 10029 20022

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SUMMARY FOR FRIDAY, JANUARY 31, 2025

TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)
MAX…….40   NORMAL…..35
MIN…….23   NORMAL…..17
MEAN……32   NORMAL…..26

DEPARTURE FROM 30-YEAR (1991-2020) NORMAL…………..+6
TOTAL DEPARTURE FOR THE MONTH…………………….-21 [-0.8 DEGREES/DAY]

HEATING DEGREE DAYS (SEASON: JUL 2024 THRU JUN 2025)
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR YESTERDAY……………33  DEPARTURE……..-6
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE MONTH………….1211  DEPARTURE…….+18
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE SEASON…………3143  DEPARTURE……-260
TOTAL HEATING UNITS LAST SEASON TO DATE…….2966  DEPARTURE……+177

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

F420C (Official)………..31 SSW  @   09:19 A.M.
VECTOR #1 (1-Sec)……….31 SSW  @   07:29 A.M.
VECTOR #2 (1-Sec)……….30 SSW  @   09:19 A.M.
DAVIS #1……………….35 S    @   07:29 A.M.
DAVIS #2 ………………35 S    @   06:03 A.M.
RMY #1 (Instantaneous)…..32 SSW  @   09:19 A.M.
RMY #2 (Instantaneous)…..33 SSW  @   09:19 A.M.
MERLIN………………….M
RICHARDS (C5C) (Inst)…..OTS

FASTEST MILE:
CONTACTING ANEMOMETER/OFFICIAL………………23 SSW  @   09:48 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE VECTOR #1 AVERAGE…………..23      @   09:48 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE VECTOR #2 AVERAGE…………..23      @   09:48 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS #1 AVERAGE……………23 S    @   08:10 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS #2 AVERAGE……………25 S    @   03:54 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RMY #1 AVERAGE……………..22 SSW  @   09:48 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RMY #2 AVERAGE……………..23 SSW  @   06:05 A.M.
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE RICHARDS (C5C) AVERAGE……..OTS

AVERAGE WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION:
CONTACTING/OFFICIAL……..12.8 SSW [308 total miles] VECTOR #1………………13.2
VECTOR #2………………13.5
DAVIS #1……………….13.1 S
DAVIS #2……………….13.7 S
RMY #1…………………13.0 S
RMY #2…………………13.7 S
RICHARDS (C5C)…………..OTS

PRECIPITATION (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST):
TOTAL PRECIPITATION 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M……..0.83 DEPARTURE…..+0.69
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH…………..2.35 DEPARTURE…..-2.15
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE YEAR (2025)……..2.39 DEPARTURE…..-2.11

SNOWFALL (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST):
TOTAL SNOWFALL 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M…………..0.1 DEPARTURE……-0.6
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE MONTH………………..8.4 DEPARTURE…..-10.2
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE SEASON (2024-2025)……21.1 DEPARTURE…..-12.6

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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    47/36/42/+13/0.55/0.0/000/00       44 W   VEC1 45 W   RMY 44
1/2    42/31/37/+9/T/T/534/97             60 W   VEC1 60 WNW RMY 63
1/3    36/26/31/+3/0.00/0.0/446/81        48 W   VEC1 48 W   RMY 51
1/4    29/22/26/-2/0.00/0.0/453/82        43 NW  VEC1 43 NW  RMY 48
1/5    32/18/25/-3/0.00/0.0/088/16        39 WNW VEC1 39 WNW RMY 40
1/6    23/15/19/-9/0.00/0.0/000/00        31 NNW VEC1 31 NNW RMY 31
1/7    24/11/18/-9/T/T/450/81             43 WNW VEC1 42 WNW RMY 47
1/8    27/14/21/-6/0.00/0.0/550/99        48 WNW VEC1 48 WNW RMY 52
1/9    25/13/19/-8/T/T/223/40             46 NW  VEC1 47 NW  RMY 51
1/10   40/19/30/+3/0.00/0.0/560/100       39 NW  VEC1 39 NW  RMY 42
1/11   30/21/26/-1/0.12/1.7/000/00        25 NW  VEC1 26 NW  RMY 28
1/12   36/19/28/+1/0.00/0.0/556/99        35 NNW VEC1 35 NNW RMY 39
1/13   39/26/33/+7/0.00/0.0/192/34        26 WNW VEC1 27 WNW RMY 27
1/14   32/20/26/0/0.00/0.0/537/95         44 WNW VEC1 44 WNW RMY 45
1/15   29/16/23/-3/0.00/0.0/504/89        37 NW  VEC1 37 NW  RMY 38
1/16   30/13/22/-4/T/T/301/53             20 W   VEC1 20 SSW RMY 20
1/17   35/16/26/0/T/T/410/72              20 S   VEC1 20 SSW RMY 20
1/18   44/27/36/+10/0.26/0.0/046/08       36 S   VEC1 37 S   RMY 39
1/19   43/27/35/+9/0.51/4.6/276/48        26 N   VEC1 28 NNW RMY 29
1/20   27/9/18/-8/0.08/1.1/460/80         32 NW  VEC1 32 NW  RMY 36
1/21   18/6/12/-14/0.00/0.0/173/30        21 W   VEC1 21 WNW RMY 21
1/22   21/2/12/-14/0.00/0.0/545/94        20 NNW VEC1 20 NNW RMY 20
1/23   30/12/21/-5/0.00/0.0/413/71        29 SW  VEC1 29 SW  RMY 30
1/24   32/14/23/-3/0.00/0.0/507/87        21 W   VEC1 22 WNW RMY 22
1/25   29/11/20/-6/0.00/0.0/504/86        26 W   VEC1 26 W   RMY 27
1/26   39/21/30/+4/0.00/0.0/453/77        48 W   VEC1 48 W   RMY 50
1/27   38/22/30/+4/0.00/0.0/590/100       38 SW  VEC1 40 SW  RMY 42
1/28   36/22/29/+3/T/T/504/85             65 WNW VEC1 65 WNW RMY 68
1/29   47/19/33/+7/0.04/1.0/250/42        56 WNW VEC1 56 WNW RMY 59
1/30   26/16/21/-5/T/T/585/98             35 WNW VEC1 35 NW  RMY 35
1/31   40/23/32/+6/0.79/0.0/000/00        31 SSW VEC1 31 SSW RMY 32

2/1 The low since midnight is 23F, the daily normal low is 17F.

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JANUARY DAILY RECORDS TO DATE

NONE.

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

RECORDS FOR FEBRUARY 1
HIGH 65F IN 1989
LOW -9F IN 1920
PRECIP 1.86 INS. IN 2021
SNOWFALL 12.7 INS. IN 2021
PEAK GUST 66e MPH SSW IN 1951

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

TODAY’S REPORT PREPARED BY: Joshua Polen/Matt Douglas