DECEMBER 2003
HIGHLIGHTS
DEC 29-30TH
- MORE SNOW FOR SOUTHERN MANITOBA
A
slow moving low pressure system brought more snow to southern Manitoba
on the 29th to 30th, giving about 10 to 15 cm of snow to Winnipeg
and the Red River
valley. This was in the wake of the storm system that dropped 20 to 30 cm of
snow over southwestern Manitoba
and the central interlake over the weekend. The
snow developed midday
Monday and continued Monday night before tapering off Tuesday morning.
Although snow amounts were substantial, the snow itself was quite dry and
fluffy with minimal water content. For example, in Winnipeg,
the 15 cm of snow melted to about 5 mm water equivalent giving snow:water ratios of 30:1 with this event.
Snowfall
amounts between noon
Dec 29th and 8 am
Dec 30th
Winnipeg:
New Snow SOG
(snow on ground as of 8 am Dec 30)
Charleswood (Rob's Obs).......
13 cm 18 cm
Fort
Whyte....................
12.6 cm 16 cm
Winnipeg
Ft Rouge............. 17 cm 30 cm
Steinbach..................... 12 cm 20 cm SOG
Carman........................ 12 cm
Portage....................... 15 cm
Miami/Morden..................
12 cm 25 cm SOG
More snow is possible by the end of the week over southern Manitoba before a turn to colder weather for the weekend into next week
with temperatures back into the minus 20s and minus 30s likely.
FRI DEC 26 - STORM TAKING TRACK FURTHER WEST -
HEAVIEST SNOW EXPECTED WEST OF WINNIPEG
The weekend storm system is taking shape over the central
U.S. Rockies this morning and latest guidance indicates that the storm will
track over eastern North Dakota into Lake of the Woods by Sunday. On this
track, the heaviest snow and strongest winds from this system are expected to
occur west of Winnipeg over
southwestern Manitoba and
southern Saskatchewan
Saturday into Sunday. 10 to 20 cm of snow is likely in these areas by late
Sunday with strengthening northerly winds producing poor visibilities in snow
and blowing snow late Saturday into Sunday. Areas from the Red
River valley and east including Winnipeg will
see less snow from this system, and precipitation may even mix with some rain
or ice pellets on Saturday. About 5 to 10 cm of snow is possible through the Red
River valley by Sunday, with less amounts further east
and higher amounts west. Travelers
should be aware of potentially poor traveling conditions this weekend
especially in areas between Regina and Winnipeg. Consult latest forecasts and warnings
from Environment
Canada and
the US National Weather Service for latest details on this developing storm
system.
WED DEC 24 - MILD AND DRY THROUGH BOXING DAY.. THEN POTENTIAL SNOWSTORM FOR THE WEEKEND
Dry and mild conditions are expected across southern
Manitoba over
Christmas and Boxing Day before a potential snowstorm moves in for the upcoming
weekend. Other than local morning
fog across the Red River Valley and
southeastern Manitoba,
weather conditions should not be a factor for holiday travelers across southern
Manitoba
through Boxing Day. Temperatures will be well above normal for the period with
daily highs close to the freezing mark in Winnipeg, and a
few degrees above freezing over areas with little snow cover such as the Morden-Winkler area.
The quiet weather pattern however is expected to change this weekend as
a low pressure system from Colorado moves
northeastward into the Dakotas by
late Saturday. Snow from this
system is expected to spread over southern Manitoba from
the southwest during the day Saturday, possibly becoming heavy Saturday night
into Sunday before tapering off Sunday night. In addition strong northerly
winds are possible with this system on Sunday which may create problems with
blowing and drifting snow. This
system has the potential to be the season’s first significant snowstorm
with 10 to 20 cm of snow possible over portions of southern Manitoba which
has seen very little in the way of snowfall so far this winter. Holiday
travelers should be aware of potential travel problems due to snow this weekend
across southern Manitoba and
southeastern Saskatchewan and
monitor forecasts through the week on this developing situation.
SUN DEC 21 - RECORD MILD WEATHER OVER SOUTHERN
MANITOBA
Even though winter officially starts early Monday
morning, the weather was more like the first day of spring across southern
Manitoba on Sunday as temperatures soared above the freezing mark. A mild
westerly flow tapped above normal temperatures from Western
Canada into Manitoba
setting several record highs across the south. Among the record highs
established today Dec 21..
SITE......HI....PREVIOUS
RECORD
Gimli.....4.7 2.0 1985
Gretna....4.3 1.7 1962
Sprague...5.5 2.8 1919
Winnipeg’s
official high of +4.3C came within 0.1C of tying the record high of +4.4C for
the date set back in 1899. Provincial hot spot honours
on Sunday went to McCreary east of the Riding Mountains with a
high of 7.6C. Slightly cooler
weather is expected for Monday and Tuesday but temperatures will remain above
normal before another surge of unseasonably mild air moves in for Christmas
with highs once again expected to reach or exceed the freezing mark.
Note:
Environment Canada’s
Day 3 to 5 long range forecast has shown a noticeably cold bias most of this
month which has generally been above normal. Day 3 to 5 temperature forecasts are
running an average of 5 to 8 degrees too cold this month, and sometimes errors
have been 10 degrees or more too cold.
Consider that on Friday, EC was forecasting a high of -5C for Sunday
(actual high +4C). Similarly,
Saturday’s forecast was calling for a high of -16 for Winnipeg on Tuesday
which will likely be closer to -6.
EC’s FOCN12
long range forecast, which
uses a different temperature algorithm than the current long range forecast,
has been much better at predicting Day 3 to 5 temperatures, and is recommended
as a better option to use during abnormally warm or cold spells.
SAT DEC 20 - MILD WEATHER TO CONTINUE FOR CHRISTMAS
The
current mild weather over southern Manitoba is
expected to continue into the Christmas holidays as a large mass of mild
Pacific air persists over the Prairies.
Temperatures Sunday are forecast to climb above freezing over Southern
Manitoba before
a brief cooldown on Monday and Tuesday, although
temperatures should remain above normal. Milder air will once again return to
southern Manitoba for
the latter half of the week, with well above normal temperatures likely for
Christmas Day.
NOVEMBER 2003 HIGHLIGHTS
SAT NOV 15 - DENSE FOG OVER RED RIVER VALLEY TONIGHT
Mild temperatures, a melting snow pack and light winds
have led to the development of widespread dense fog through the Red
River Valley
tonight which is expected to persist through Sunday morning. Dense fog
developed over northern North
Dakota early
Saturday morning and slowly spread northward through the Red River Valley on
Saturday reaching Winnipeg by
late afternoon. Widespread visibilities near zero tonight through Sunday
morning will make for hazardous travelling conditions
through the Red
River valley. In addition, locally icy road conditions
are possible as temperatures drop below freezing tonight after today’s
thaw.
SAT NOV 8 - COLD SNAP SETS RECORD LOWS ACROSS SOUTHERN MANITOBA
8 new record lows were set across Manitoba
Saturday morning as an unseasonably cold airmass
settled over the Prairies. Winnipeg’s
low of -20.6C eclipsed the previous low for the day of -20.4C set back in 1966.
The coldest reading was a record temperature of -26.3C at Sprague in
southeastern Manitoba. The
cold snap comes exactly one month after a record warm spell was producing
temperatures of 27C or higher across southern Manitoba. Milder temperatures are
expected to move across Manitoba on
Sunday and Monday with temperatures returning to more seasonable values.
OCTOBER 2003 HIGHLIGHTS
MON OCT 27 -
WINTER WEATHER WALLOPS WINNIPEG
A strong low
pressure system tracking in from central Saskatchewan brought an early taste of
winter to Winnipeg and much of Manitoba on Monday. Snow spread into
western Manitoba early Monday morning and
into the Winnipeg area by 7:30 am. Snow became heavy by midday with gusty southeast winds
up to 50 km/h making for miserable conditions. West of Winnipeg, the snow
changed to rain in Portage, Brandon and Dauphin where accumulations were lower.
By the time the snow tapered off in the evening, some 10 to 15 cm of heavy wet
snow had fallen in the Winnipeg area, not a record for
October, but a significant snowfall for this early in the year. The storm was
also accompanied by the lowest barometric pressure of the year in Winnipeg as the center of the storm
passed over the city in the evening with a minimum pressure of 986 mb.
Some snowfall observations
from October 27 2003 around Winnipeg
Winnipeg Airport....................
N/A (see note below)
Winnipeg Ft
Rouge................... 13 cm
Winnipeg Fort Whyte Center.......... 11 cm
Winnipeg Fort
Whyte................. 14 cm
Winnipeg Charleswood................
13 cm
Steinbach...........................
14 cm
Starbuck.............................
8 cm
NOTE:
As
of Jan 1st, 2003.. snowfall
is no longer measured at YWG airport. Instead, any
snow that falls in the precipitation gauge is melted and recorded. This however
is a very poor measure of actual snowfall depth. For example, in this storm,
the YWG airport precipitation gauge measured only 5
mm of melted snow. This was much less than the snow that actually fell, which
in this case was on the order of 10 to 15 cm across the city.
This unfortunately is a
disturbing trend across many sites in Canada. Official snowfall
observations at many major sites are not being supported because of lack of
funding. In Winnipeg, this means that 130 years
of continuous snowfall measurements since 1872 are no longer being taken.
In addition, snow on the ground is no longer recorded as well. It’s a
shame that a cold weather country like Canada cannot find a way to
support snowfall measurements.
THU OCT 9 - WARM
SPELL SETS DURATION RECORD AT WINNIPEG
The
week long warm spell over Southern Manitoba has set a record in Winnipeg for
the longest consecutive stretch with temperatures of 25C or higher in October.
Thursday’s high of 26.5C in Winnipeg was the 4th day in a row with high temperatures of
25C or more, the longest such string in Winnipeg since records began in 1872. The previous record
was 3 days in a row set back in October 1914 (Oct 1/2/3 - 29.4/25.6/27.8) and
again in October 1943 (October 3/4/5 - 27.8/27.2/28.3). Honourable
mention goes to October 1963 when a 4 day stretch of 25C weather between
October 14th and 17th was interrupted with a high of 24.4C on the 16th.
This week’s warm spell - official highs from Winnipeg airport
Mon Oct 6........ 25.8C
Tue Oct 7........ 27.1C
Wed Oct 8........ 27.4C (record high - previous record 26.7C 1975)
Thu Oct 9........ 26.5C
The 25C streak will likely end at 4 days as cooler
air is expected over Southern Manitoba on Friday with highs around 17C forecast
for Winnipeg, still 5 degrees above normal for this time of year.
TUE OCT 7 -
SUMMER WARMTH SETS RECORDS OVER SOUTHERN MANITOBA
Brilliant sunshine
and light winds allowed temperatures to soar into the upper twenties across
southern Manitoba today with a couple of localities near the US border topping
the 30 degree mark (Emerson 30.6C, Gretna 30.1C) Temperatures in Winnipeg hit 27.1C, just
shy of the 28.3C record set back in 1920. Five localities in Manitoba however did break record highs today including..
HI.....OLD RECORD
Pinawa 27.9 22.0 1980
Melita 27.1 18.8 1997
Gretna 30.1 24.4 1960
Pilot Mound 27.2 26.1 1960
Sprague 28.4 27.2 1920
Click here for 4 pm southern Manitoba temperature map.
The sunny warm weather is expected to continue
through Thursday, before a cold front crosses the region Friday which will
usher in more seasonable temperatures in the mid teens for the upcoming
Thanksgiving weekend. In the meantime, the sunny warm weather is allowing for a
brilliant display of fall colours in and around the Winnipeg area. (Photo 1, photo 2)
SUN OCT 5 -
SUMMER-LIKE WARMTH SPREADS OVER PRAIRIES
A mild Pacific
airmass spread sunny and warm conditions across the
Prairies today with temperatures in the mid 20s over most of Alberta and Saskatchewan. Winnipeg had a sunny and mild Sunday with highs near 21C.. and Monday should be even warmer
as the warmth over Alberta and Saskatchewan spreads east. This will allow temperatures to climb
to 25C in Winnipeg, not a record for the day but some 10 degrees above
normal. Compare this to last October when Winnipeg was greeted with the season’s first snowfall of 3 cm on October 5th, leading to the city’s
coldest October on record. Temperatures in the 20s should continue through
Wednesday in Winnipeg before cooler conditions spread in by the end of
the week.
OCT 2 - MILDER
WEATHER EXPECTED NEXT WEEK
After 2
weeks of below normal temperatures, a change in the weather pattern by early
next week should bring a return to milder weather over southern Manitoba. A
strong upper ridge over BC that has been maintaining sunny warm weather over
the west will finally break down allowing milder air to finally make its way
eastward into southern Manitoba. Temperatures should finally rebound in the mid to
upper teens through next week.
SEP 2003
HIGHLIGHTS
SEP 29 - COLD AIRMASS BRINGS FIRST FLURRIES OF SEASON
A northwest flow of cold air over
Manitoba
produced the first snowflurries of the season
in Winnipeg
and parts of the Red River
valley today. Scattered showers developed by midday mixing at times with wet snowflurries
as temperatures struggled near 8 degrees.. some 7 degrees below normal for this time of year. The cold weather is expected to continue
on Tuesday and Wednesday before a brief warmup on
Thursday. However, by Friday another storm system will intensify over northwest
Ontario
ushering in another surge of below normal temperatures for next weekend. Long
range guidance is finally pointing to a return to near or above normal
temperatures over southern Manitoba
during the second week of October.
SEP 23 - GET READY FOR BLAST
OF COLD AIR
It won't take long for Mother Nature to usher in
fall-like weather now that the autumnal equinox has arrived. A low pressure
system will cross southern Manitoba tonight and intensify over Northwestern Ontario on Wednesday. This
will cause strong north winds to develop over Southern Manitoba on Wednesday on the
backside of the low, ushering in unseasonably cool temperatures in the single
digits along with a few gusty showers. Winds will be especially strong through
the morning and midday hours as a cold front
pushes through with gusts to 70 or 80 km/h possible making temperatures feel
even colder. A ridge of high pressure building in on Thursday will bring
clearing skies and lighter winds. However another weather system is expected to
track into Southern
Manitoba
on Friday which will bring another surge of unseasonably cold air for the
upcoming weekend that may even produce the season's first snowflakes over parts
of Southern
Manitoba.
Welcome to fall.
SEP 23 - FIRST DAY OF FALL
BRINGS FIRST FROST
Fall officially arrived at 5:47 am CDT this morning, and was
greeted by the season's first frost in the Winnipeg area, as well as much of
the Red
River
valley. A low of -0.8C was recorded at YWG airport,
(-0.7C at Rob's Obs in Charleswood)
The first frost on average in Winnipeg usually occurs around Sept
22nd. Last fall, the first frost came a couple
of days later on September 25th, but was followed by the coldest October on
record.
AUG 2003
HIGHLIGHTS
SUN AUG 31 - AUGUST 2003
SECOND HOTTEST ON RECORD IN WINNIPEG
August
2003 will finish as the second hottest August on record in Winnipeg since records began in
1872. Officially, the mean monthly temperature at Winnipeg Airport was 21.6C..
edging past August 1961 (21.5C) as the second hottest
August on record, second only to August 1983 when a monthly average of 22.5C
was recorded. Up to the 26th,
August 2003 was actually on pace to be the hottest on record in Winnipeg, but a
cool spell at the end of the month dropped the monthly average to 2nd place honours. Daily temperatures were above normal every day
from the 4th to the 25th, with an 8 day stretch between August 13th and 20th
that saw daily highs well above the 30 degree mark (maximum 35.9C on the 19th).
The hot dry weather had many residents enjoying outdoor recreational activities
well into the end of August and also led to one of the earliest harvests on
record in southern Manitoba.
THU AUG 28 - HEAVY RAIN HITS
PORTIONS OF SOUTHERN MANITOBA
After
weeks of hot and dry weather, substantial rain finally fell over Winnipeg and much of southern Manitoba late Wednesday into
Wednesday night. A low pressure system tracking across North Dakota spawned numerous showers
and thunderstorms which produced widespread rain across southern Manitoba. The Winnipeg area received the bulk of
the rain with 51 mm recorded at the airport and 55 mm at the Forks by 7 am Thursday morning. This was the heaviest rainfall of the
year around Winnipeg, and helped ease the
rainfall deficit that has developed this summer. Up to the yesterday, rainfall
for August was a meager 15 mm in Winnipeg.. which
usually averages about 75 mm in August. Elsewhere across southern Manitoba generally 30 to 50 mm of
rain was recorded Wednesday night although radar indicated a swath of 50 to 75
mm southeast of Morris. Unfortunately most of the rain stayed to the south and
east of drought stricken Brandon, which received only 4 mm
of rain Wednesday night. Brandon has only received about 15 mm of rain this
month, after seeing only 6 mm of rain all of July.. its
second driest July on record.
Rainfall
amounts recorded Wednesday night across the Red River valley..
Winnipeg The
Forks .......... 55 mm
Winnipeg Airport............. 51 mm
Charleswood (Robs Obs).......
50 mm
Whyte
Ridge.................. 47 mm
Winnipeg South (Fort Rouge)..
46 mm
Steinbach.................... 40 mm
Carman....................... 35 mm
Gretna....................... 28
mm
Selkirk...................... 27 mm
Portage La Prairie........... 24 mm
Starbuck..................... 21 mm
MON AUG 25 - COOLER WEATHER
TO END HOT AUGUST
After
nearly an entire month of above normal temperatures, the weather pattern is
expected to change this week with a shift to below normal temperatures. Daytime highs by the weekend will be
around the 20 degree mark, with overnight lows in the single digits.. a sharp contrast to the
unusually long stretch of hot weather this month which has seen daily highs in
the upper twenties and low to mid thirties. As of today, the average
temperature this month in Winnipeg has been 23.1C.. which would stand as the hottest August on record if the
month ended today. The monthly mean
temperature is likely to drop a degree or so over the next week.. which would still put August
2003 as one of the top 5 hottest Augusts on record in Winnipeg since records began in 1872.
Top 5 hottest Augusts in Winnipeg (since 1872)
YEAR MEAN TEMP
1. 1983...... 22.5C 17 days 30C or greater
2. 1961...... 21.5C 17 days 30C or greater
3. 1949...... 21.3C 12 days 30C or greater
4. 1955...... 21.3C 11 days 30C or greater
5. 1984...... 21.0C 14
days 30C or greater
TUE AUG 19 -
MORE RECORDS FALL AS HEAT WAVE CONTINUES
Temperatures climbed
above the 30 degree mark for the 7th consecutive day in Winnipeg today.. peaking with a record high of 35.9C at Winnipeg Airport.. eclipsing the previous
record for the day of 33.9C set in 1919. It was even hotter at the Forks downtown with a high
of 36.3C - the highest temperature recorded at the site since it opened in
1999. Relief from the heat is in sight however. After one more day of 30 degree
temperatures Wednesday, a cold front is expected to push through Winnipeg Wednesday night ushering in cooler air for Thursday
and Friday with temperatures in the mid twenties - a refreshing change from the
past week.
SUN AUG 17 -
RECORD HEAT IN SOUTHERN MANITOBA
Record
temperatures were set across most of southern Manitoba on Sunday as a very warm
airmass moved over the area from Saskatchewan (see
table below). The hottest temperatures were recorded over southwestern Manitoba where temperatures climbed into the upper 30s,
including a 39.0C reading in Dauphin. Winnipeg airport hit a high of 35.5C, just 0.1C off the
record for the date (35.6C in 1945), but the hottest temperature in the city
since June 1995 when a 37.8C reading was registered.
RECORD TEMPERATURES FOR MANITOBA.
AS OF: 09 PM CDT Sunday, August 17, 2003
DAY REC REC NEW/
STATION MAX MAX YEAR TIE
---------------- ----- ----- ---- ----
Brandon 37.9 36.1 1945 NEW
Berens River 31.9 31.1 1949 NEW
Dauphin 39.0 33.9 1931 NEW
Gimli 33.6 32.0 1995 NEW
Gillam 33.3 30.6 1976 NEW
Island Lake 32.7 30.6 1976 NEW
Pinawa 33.4 33.0 1983 NEW
Melita 37.2 32.7 1996 NEW
Gretna 34.8 31.1 1973 NEW
Fisher Branch 35.8 32.5 1995 NEW
SAT AUG 16 -
HEAT WAVE CONTINUES OVER PRAIRIES
The hot and dry
conditions that have prevailed for much of August so far over the Prairies
continued today with temperatures well into the 30s again over much of Manitoba and Saskatchewan. The
heat was especially intense over southern Saskatchewan where temperatures reached the 40 degree mark in a
few localities (see below). At least 15 record highs were set today across
southern Saskatchewan including the following..
RECORD TEMPERATURES FOR SASKATCHEWAN.
AS OF: 07 PM CST Saturday, August 16, 2003
DAY REC REC NEW/
STATION MAX MAX YEAR TIE
---------------- ----- ----- ---- ----
Elbow 40.9 39.4 1961 NEW
Kindersley 40.0 35.0 1970 NEW
Leader 40.0 36.7 1949 NEW
Swift Current 38.8 35.6 1961 NEW
Saskatoon 38.6 36.7 1961 NEW
Assiniboia 38.4 37.2 1961 NEW
North Battleford 38.3 35.0 1909 NEW
Weyburn 37.9 36.7 1961 NEW
Rosetown 37.6 37.2 1961 NEW
Regina 37.5 37.2 1961 NEW
Nipawin 37.2 32.2 1934 NEW
Maple Creek 37.0 35.6 1970 NEW
Melfort 36.6 35.6 1961 NEW
Prince Albert 36.5 33.9 1949 NEW
Estevan 36.1 35.6 1958 NEW
THU AUG 14 - HOT
DAY ACROSS SOUTHERN MANITOBA
Sunny
skies and relatively low humidity allowed temperatures to soar into the 30s
across southern Manitoba on Thursday making it one of the hottest days in
several years. Temperatures at Winnipeg Airport hit 35.3C, not a record for the day, but the
hottest temperature in the city since a 35.4C reading in June 1996. It was also the hottest August
temperature in Winnipeg since a 37.1C reading back in August 1991. The
hottest temperature in the province on Thursday was 36.5C at Carberry, just east of Brandon. The
hot weather is expected to continue into the middle of next week with daily
high temperatures near or above 30 degrees.
WED AUG 13 -
HOTTEST DAY OF SUMMER TOMORROW?
The
prolonged stretch of above normal temperatures continues over Southern Manitoba with temperatures near or above 30 degrees over the
past week. And things look even hotter for Thursday as a southwest flow taps a
very warm airmass over southern Saskatchewan and northern Montana and pumps into southern Manitoba. Temperatures of 32 to 35 degrees are likely over
southern Manitoba on Thursday, especially over the southwest portion
of the province. These values may be the hottest temperatures of the summer
(Winnipeg’s highest so far is 32.5C set last week). Temperatures will
feel even hotter on Thursday due to the strong sunshine and lighter winds.. unlike Wednesday when
considerable cloudiness and gusty south winds made the 30 degree temperatures
more bearable in Winnipeg.
JULY 2003
HIGHLIGHTS
SUN JUL 27 - DRY
WEATHER CONTINUES OVER SOUTHERN
MANITOBA
It’s been a dry summer over much of southern Manitoba, including the Winnipeg area. While some areas in the south saw significant
rainfall in June, Winnipeg missed most of the heaviest activity with only
about 66% of normal rainfall falling during June, normally the wettest month of
the year. Showers and thunderstorms
have been even less pronounced in July, with frequent stretches of dry weather
occasionally broken by scattered shower actitivy. The result is that July
rainfall in Winnipeg is well below normal, with only 32 mm of rain so
far this month at my site, less than half the normal of 70 mm for July. And the outlook does not look promising
for those needing rain. The problem is a strong persistent ridge of high
pressure that is dominating the weather pattern over western North America, which is leading to extreme heat and dryness over
the Rockies. This
has resulted in numerous forest fires over the Rockies and interior valleys. This high pressure ridge is effectively
blocking any significant storm systems from moving in over the Prairies, thus
keeping Saskatchewan and Manitoba dry as well. The only precipitation systems
affecting the eastern Prairies are systems coming in from the northwest, which
tend to have limited moisture associated with them. One such system is expected
to move over Manitoba on Tuesday which will bring some shower or
thunderstorm activity to southern and central Manitoba. However, precipitation will be scattered and of
short duration, which will not alleviate the overall dryness of the summer.
Beyond that, the dry pattern is expected to continue into the first part of
August as the west coast ridge remains intact. (Click here for 5-10 day precipitation outlooks for Canada)
MON JUL 14 -
BASEBALL SIZE HAIL, TORNADOES STRIKE SOUTHERN
MANITOBA
Severe
thunderstorms developed over southern Manitoba Monday afternoon producing some significant severe
weather, especially over the southern Red River Valley. A supercell thunderstorm developed south of Portage La
Prairie around 2 pm and tracked southeastward over the Winkler, Altona and Gretna areas by 3 pm. Very
large hail struck Altona with hailstones the size of
baseballs causing significant damage to vehicles and crops. The storm then
spawned a tornado that hit the town of Gretna near the North Dakota border. The tornado, ranked as an F-1, uprooted
several large trees and ripped off a portion of a roof. The F scale (named
after tornado researcher Ted Fujita), ranks tornado strength on a scale from 0
(weakest) to 5 (strongest). The
severe storms once again missed Winnipeg, with just some scattered thunderstorms and brief
heavy rain and small hail reported in the city.
JUNE 2003 HIGHLIGHTS
MON JUN 30 - HOT CANADA DAY ON TAP
Canada Day should prove to be a hot one over
southern Manitoba as a
southerly flow develops ahead of a low pressure system moving through central Manitoba. Temperatures will likely rise into the
low 30s over much of Southern Manitoba with
35 degrees possible over the Morden-Emerson
area. Tuesday night may see some Canada day
fireworks develop courtesy of Mother Nature as a cold front triggers some
thunderstorms over southern Manitoba. More
thunderstorms are possible on Wednesday as a warm humid airmass
remains over the area before cooler and drier air moves in for the end of the
week.
SUN JUN 15 - HEAT AND HUMIDITY
TRIGGER LOCALLY SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS
A hot
and humid airmass over southern Manitoba
produced the season’s first 30 degree temperatures over the Red River
valley, along with the season’s first outbreak of severe thunderstorms
late Sunday. Sunday’s
high was 30.3 degrees at Winnipeg
airport, accompanied by 18 degree dewpoints that gave
humidex values in the 35C range. The provincial hot
spot was Emerson at 31.2C. The heat and humidity allowed some late day
thunderstorms to quickly develop across southwestern Manitoba, which
moved into the Red River valley
Sunday evening. Once
again however, the city of Winnipeg
escaped the strongest thunderstorm activity with most of the action occurring
just north and south of the city. Grape sized hail and strong wind gusts were
reported with some of the heaviest thunderstorms Sunday evening.
SAT JUN 14 - WINNIPEG’S FIRST 30 DEGREE DAY SUNDAY?
A southerly flow of warm and somewhat humid air is
forecast to affect the Red
River valley on Sunday, which will likely
produce the area’s first 30 degree temperatures this year. Some early
morning showers are possible on Sunday as a weakening frontal system from
western Manitoba moves
across the area. These will quickly move eastward leaving a summer-like Sunday
over the Winnipeg area
with sunshine and some clouds along with temperatures rising to the 30 degree
mark by mid-afternoon. There is another chance of showers and thunderstorms
Sunday night over the Winnipeg area
as a frontal system passes across southern Manitoba.
MON JUN 9 - UNSETTLED WEATHER MOVES OVER SOUTHERN MANITOBA
June is traditionally the wettest month over
southern Manitoba, and this
month appears to be shaping up no differently. This past weekend was marked
with locally heavy rainfall across the Red
River valley, with up to 50 mm over the western Red
River valley on Friday, and over 30 mm over the south end
of Winnipeg on
Saturday. Monday saw a system bring
another rainfall over southern Manitoba with
up to 23 mm of rain reported over the Morden area,
but only 2-5 mm over Winnipeg. June
is the wettest month of the year on average over southern Manitoba as the storm track moves
across the southern Prairies and taps increasingly more humid air from the
south. Another system is expected
to bring more showers across southern Manitoba
Wednesday afternoon and evening before drier and warmer air moves in by the
weekend.
MAY 2003 HIGHLIGHTS
SUN MAY 25 -
THUNDERSTORMS POSSIBLE OVER RED RIVER VALLEY TUESDAY EVENING
A brisk southerly flow of warm air will develop over
southern Manitoba on Monday and continue Tuesday. Tuesday will be
windy and warm with highs likely reaching the upper twenties over the Red River valley.. with the possibility of the season’s first 30C
temperatures over southern Manitoba. By evening however a cold front approaching from
the west will give the threat of thunderstorms with locally gusty winds and a
possibility of some hail. Drier weather will return for Wednesday and Thursday
with temperature remaining above normal.
SAT MAY 24 -
SUNNY WARMER WEATHER ON THE WAY
Sunny and warm
conditions are forecast to move over Manitoba by Sunday which should last for
much of the upcoming week before showers and thunderstorms move in by the end
of the week. Temperatures are expected to climb into the mid twenties on Sunday
with upper twenties possible by Tuesday.
SUN MAY 18 -
SIGNIFICANT RAIN FALLS OVER
WINNIPEG/RED RIVER VALLEY
A low pressure system tracking along a frontal
boundary over southern Manitoba brought significant rainfall to Winnipeg and southeastern Manitoba on Sunday, with rainfalls of over 50 mm in some
places. The rain began in earnest around 5-6 am and fell at a moderate intensity throughout the
morning before tapering off by late afternoon. At my site in Charleswood, 40 mm of rain fell, the bulk of it between 7 am and 1 pm when 29 mm of rain was recorded. An accumulation graphic from my
site shows the rainfall distribution through the day. Although the rain was beneficial for an area in need
of rain, the timing was less than ideal for those wishing to take advantage of
outdoor activities for the long Victoria Day weekend. Some rainfall amounts for the day up to 7 pm included...
Winnipeg airport ............ 39.5 mm
Winnipeg Forks .............. 41.0 mm
Winnipeg South............... 41.3 mm
Steinbach....................
47.8 mm
Starbuck.....................
30.8 mm
Portage La Prairie...........
12.6 mm
Miami........................ 37.0
mm
Carman.......................
33.8 mm
Morden....................... 22.4 mm
Gretna....................... 19.8 mm
Emerson......................
58.5 mm
Pilot Mound..................
25.0 mm
Gimli........................ 11.0 mm
Pinawa....................... 29.2 mm
Kenora....................... 20.8 mm
SAT MAY 17 -
THUNDERSTORMS POSSIBLE OVERNIGHT?
A low pressure system developing over
the Dakotas will spread an area of showers and thunderstorms over southeastern Manitoba including the Red River valley overnight and Sunday morning. Locally heavy rain is likely with this
system with amounts of 15 to 30 mm possible over all of southeastern Manitoba, including Winnipeg. The rain would be beneficial for southern Manitoba which has been quite dry this spring. Winnipeg for example has only seen about 10 mm of rain so
far this month.
APRIL 2003 HIGHLIGHTS
SUN APR 27
– SYSTEM BRINGS MUCH NEEDED RAIN, THUNDERSTORMS TO SOUTHERN MANITOBA
A low pressure system moving
over southern Manitoba brought some much needed
rain to Winnipeg and the Red River Valley today along with the
season’s first thunderstorms. Morning thunderstorms brought heavy rain
and pea size hail to southwest Winnipeg around 9
am,
with a peak rainfall rate of 53 mm/hr recorded at my site at 9:10
am. The rainfall was the first significant
rain of the season over Winnipeg, which has seen only three
days of measurable precipitation this month, all in the form of snow. Rainfall amounts from today included..
Winnipeg airport .......... 17.5 mm
Winnipeg Forks............. 17.0 mm
Winnipeg south ............ 12.0 mm
Starbuck .................. 16.2 mm
Portage La Prairie......... 25.0 mm
Carman .................... 8.4 mm
Steinbach.................. 7.6 mm
SUN APR 20 - NICE WEEK ON TAP.. UNLESS YOU WANT RAIN
A nice stretch of sunny mild weather is forecast for
the upcoming week as a blocking ridge of high pressure in the upper atmosphere
dominates the weather pattern over Saskatchewan and Manitoba. This high pressure ridge is expected to
keep any precipitation bearing systems away from southern Manitoba for the next 5 days at
least. Temperatures will remain above normal through the period with highs in
the 15 to 20C range each day. The
dry weather will be ideal for outdoor activities, but will come as unwelcome
news for forestry and agriculture interests looking for some much needed
precipitation over Southern Manitoba.
THU APR 17 - ROLLER
COASTER APRIL WEATHER CONTINUES
The transition between winter and summer continues
to battle over southern Manitoba with winter taking the most
recent punch. A system tracking across the Dakotas last night into this
morning brought a large area of snow to Southern Manitoba, where record high
temperatures in the mid to upper 20s were recorded just a few days ago. The
heaviest snowfalls from this latest system fell just south of Winnipeg where 15 to 20 cm of snow
was recorded. Snow/water ratios were about 10:1 giving some much needed
moisture over the dried up farmlands of southern Manitoba. Some snowfall amounts
recorded since last night included..
Winnipeg airport... 9 cm
Winnipeg Forks..... 11 cm
Winnipeg South..... 12 cm
Steinbach...........20 cm
Altona..............20 cm
Miami/Morden........15 cm
Emerson.............13 cm
Carman..............10 cm
Starbuck............ 7 cm
The snow shouldn’t stick around for long though.
Temperatures in the teens over the next few days will make this latest snowfall
a fleeting memory of winter’s hopefully last gasp.
SUN APR 13
– SUMMERLIKE SUNDAY SETS RECORD HIGH IN WINNIPEG
Sunny skies and balmy
southeast winds allowed temperatures to soar to record levels across Southern Manitoba on Sunday capping a beautiful weekend (see Sunday charts). The high in Winnipeg was a summerlike 25.7C,
beating the previous record high for the date of 23.9C set back in 1958.
Temperatures were even warmer south of Winnipeg where the mercury soared to 28.6C at Emerson, the
hottest spot in the country. In North Dakota temperatures soared to a record
92F (33.3C) at Bismarck, the city’s earliest 90F temperature ever
(previous earliest was a 92F reading on April 18, 1987) However, much cooler air was not far way, with
Brandon only hitting 16.6C, and Dauphin struggling to hit 10C. This cooler air
will be flooding across the remainder of Southern Manitoba on Monday giving temperatures some 10 to 15 degrees
cooler than Sunday’s summerlike values.
WED APR 9
– TEMPERATURES SOAR ACROSS SOUTHERN
MANITOBA
Just 5 days after a
snowstorm brought 20 cm of snow to southern Manitoba, temperatures soared into the mid 20s over the
region under sunny skies and brisk southerly winds. Temperatures in Winnipeg climbed to 24.9C at the airport, falling within 2
degrees of the record high for the date of 26.8C in 1977. The national hot spot was at Portage La
Prairie where the thermometer topped out at 25.5C A cold front moving through on Thursday
will drop temperatures some 10 degrees for tomorrow, but should still remain
above normal through the upcoming weekend.
FRI APR 4
– SNOWSTORM HAMMERS SOUTHERN
MANITOBA
It took
awhile for the snow to start in Winnipeg yesterday,
but once it began, the snow accumulated rapidly through the night. By 8 am this morning, 20 cm of light fluffy snow was on the ground in Charleswood. The snow began Thursday afternoon around 4 pm, and by 9 pm, 8 cm had fallen. The snow continued through the night into this morning
as the precipitation band stalled over Southern Manitoba bringing
significant snowfall further north than first expected. Snow should gradually
taper off through today with a clearing trend for the weekend. Milder
temperatures are expected next week.
WED APR 2
– SNOWSTORM HEADING TOWARDS SOUTHERN
MANITOBA
After dodging one snowfall last night, it looks like Winnipeg and much of Southern Manitoba won’t be as lucky over the next couple of
days as a major storm system develops over the American Plains. This system is expected to bring
significant snowfall over southern Saskatchewan tonight which will spread into southwestern Manitoba overnight. The snow will continue to slowly
progress eastward across southern Manitoba on Thursday reaching the Winnipeg
area by midday or afternoon and continuing Thursday night into Friday morning.
Up to 10 cm of snow is possible in the Winnipeg area by Friday with the bulk of the snow expected
south and southwest of Winnipeg where 20 to 25 cm of snow is possible especially
near the international border. Gusty northeast winds will also cause blowing
and drifting snow with reduced visibilities and poor driving conditions especially
Thursday afternoon into Friday morning. So much for spring!
TUE APR 1
– SNOW FOOLING.. WINTER’S BACK.
After teasing
southern Manitoba with springlike
conditions over the past two weeks, Mother Nature is poised to play a rather cruel April
Fools Joke on portions of southern Manitoba and the northern Plains this week. For tonight a band of locally heavy snow
is forecast to spread along the North Dakota-Manitoba border with 5 to 10 cm
possible by Wednesday morning. Affected communities in this zone include
Emerson.. Gretna.. Morden-Winkler.. Pilot Mound.. and
Melita as well as northern North Dakota. (keep an eye on Grand Forks webcam to monitor snowfall south of the border)
The bulk of the snow is expected to stay south of Winnipeg and the TransCanada
highway although a dusting of snow may be possible overnight. By Wednesday
night and Thursday, a more potent storm system over the plains is expected to
produce another general snowfall over Southern Saskatchewan and North Dakota.. likely clipping extreme
southern Manitoba along the international border once again. Persons
planning on travelling south of Winnipeg over the next couple of days should be prepared for
winterlike conditions at times. The weather pattern
is expected to stay cooler than normal into the second week of April.
MARCH 2003 HIGHLIGHTS
FRI MAR 28 – A RETURN TO
COLDER WEATHER AND SNOW FOR BEGINNING OF APRIL?
After a welcome
change to springlike weather over the last half of
March, long range guidance is indicating that cooler than normal weather is
likely to return to southern Manitoba for the beginning of April along with an
increased threat of snow. Long range models are indicating that the weather
pattern will shift by next week with a long wave trough over western Canada and an upper ridge over southeastern United States. This will set up a storm track over the northern
plains that may bring an increased threat of snow-bearing systems over southern
Manitoba for the first week of April.
FRI MAR 21 - SPRING HAS SPRUNG!
The first full day of spring brought sunny skies and
mild temperatures over southern Manitoba with afternoon highs near
+9C. Officially, spring arrived at 7
pm
last evening, but for Manitobans, spring really began last Friday Mar 14th when
a long cold spell was finally broken as temperatures climbed above freezing for
the first time since January 8th.
Above freezing temperatures have continued ever since which has
virtually eliminated the snowpack over much of the Red River valley. Last Friday for example Winnipeg had 26 cm of snow on the
ground to the start the day.. now
7 days later, only snowbanks remain with fields
virtually snowfree. In fact, satellite pictures
indicate the only significant snowpack over southern Manitoba is over the interlake and over western sections around Riding Mountain, Dauphin and Brandon areas where 20 to 30 cm of
snow is still on the ground.
SAT MAR 15 – MILD
TEMPERATURES OVER MELTING SNOW CREATE DENSE FOG OVER WINNIPEG
The combination of mild temperatures over a melting snowpack and light winds allowed areas of dense fog to
develop over southern Manitoba early Saturday morning which redeveloped over Winnipeg by Saturday evening. Near zero visibilities were
being reported around Winnipeg Saturday evening. While Winnipeg was stuck with low cloud and fog Saturday, areas
just to the west of Winnipeg managed to break into sunshine allowing temperatures
to climb to 10 degrees or higher over Portage, Carman, Gretna, and Morden. Hot spot honours went to Morden with a
high of +12C. Satellite pictures
indicate snowcover has virtually disappeared over the
western Red River Valley, and from Emerson southward which helped
temperatures to climb into the double digits over these areas on Saturday.
FRI MAR 14 – TEMPERATURES
RISE ABOVE ZERO IN WINNIPEG - FIRST THAW IN
OVER TWO MONTHS
Temperatures finally
rose above 0C in Winnipeg for the first time since January 8th – a
stretch of 64 consecutive days below freezing. Morning low cloud and fog gave
way to springlike afternoon sunshine allowing
temperatures to climb to +5C in Winnipeg, and up to +7C over Emerson. The 26 cm snowpack at my location dropped to 20 cm by the end of the
day, with considerable ponding on city roadways due
to melting snow. The mild weather is expected to continue through the weekend
before a storm system over the Dakotas brings a possibility of rain or wet snow to
southern Manitoba by next Tuesday.
MON MAR 10 – MAJOR WARMUP BY WEEK'S END..
After a bone-chilling start to March, it looks like
a break in the cold weather pattern is finally in sight. Long range models
continue to show a change to mild weather over southern Manitoba by the end of the week.. with temperatures likely
climbing above freezing on Friday for the first time since January 8th. The mild weather is expected to continue
through the upcoming weekend, a pleasant change from the past 5 weekends which
have featured cold and windy conditions over Southern Manitoba. The expected thaw should finally start
to make a significant dent in the 30 cm snowpack
currently over Winnipeg which has been allowed to
steadily accumulate over the past two months. So stock up on that windshield washer
fluid.. looks like milder weather is finally on the
way!
SAT MAR 8 – COLD SNAP SETS
ANOTHER RECORD LOW -
RELIEF EXPECTED BY END OF NEXT WEEK
The cold snap that has gripped Manitoba and much of the Prairies over the past month produced
another record low in Winnipeg this morning when the temperature dropped to
-34.6C.. surpassing the previous record low for March 8 of -31.4C in 1995. It was Winnipeg’s second record low this week. Temperatures have
been averaging some 15 to 20 degrees below normal for the beginning of March
and the below normal weather is expected to continue into the middle of next
week. However long range guidance is finally showing a warming trend over the
Prairies by the end of next week, with a possibility of near to above normal
temperatures persisting for the remainder of March over the Prairies. This would come as a relief to
winter-weary Manitobans who have endured below normal temperatures for over a
month, and last saw temperatures above freezing back on January 8.
SUN MAR 2 –
WINNIPEG SETS RECORD LOW
Clear skies and light
winds allowed temperatures to plummet across southern Manitoba early Sunday morning, resulting in some of the
coldest readings of the winter. At the Winnipeg airport, a new record low of -37.4C was set for the
date, eclipsing the previous record low for March 2 of -34.4 set back in
1893. At my station, a low of
-34.7C was recorded, the coldest reading at my site since it went on line in
2001. Temperatures are expected to
continue below normal for the next 5 to 10 days as a persistent Arctic vortex
remains in place over Hudson Bay.
FEBRUARY 2003 HIGHLIGHTS
Mon Feb 10th -
Rob's Obs records frigid low of -33.6C
Clear
skies and calm winds allowed temperatures to drop below the -30 mark across
Winnipeg early Monday morning. At my station in Charleswood,
the low dipped to a frosty -33.6C (-28F), the coldest reading at Rob's Obs since it went on line in 2001. Cold weather is
expected to persist for the next little while as a large Arctic vortex remains
stationary over Hudson Bay.
JANUARY 2003 HIGHLIGHTS
Sat Jan 25th -
Nasty weather moving in for Monday
A
weather system moving in from the Pacific on Sunday will bring strong southerly
winds along with snow and blowing snow over southern Manitoba Sunday night into
Monday. The nasty weather is expected to spread over southern Saskatchewan
during the day Sunday reaching Regina by Sunday afternoon. Near blizzard
conditions may be possible for a few hours Sunday afternoon into Sunday evening
over southeastern Saskatchewan as southeast winds gusting to 70 km/h develop
over the region. The strong winds and blowing snow are expected to move
into southwestern Manitoba Sunday evening reaching Winnipeg after midnight
Sunday. This may produce some difficult travelling
conditions by the Monday morning commute over Winnipeg and the Red River
valley. Conditions are expected to improve by Monday afternoon as winds shift
into the west bringing in drier and milder air from
Saskatchewan.
Tue Jan 7th -
Records tumble across the Prairies
A massive flow of mild Pacific air flowing over the Rockies produced a
record-breaking mild January day across the Prairies. At least 45 new record
daily highs were established across the three Prairie provinces including 18 in
Manitoba, and 18 in Alberta. Among the most
notable records was the 17.6C reading in Calgary, which set a new all-time
record high for the month of January beating the previous mark of 16.5C set in
1987. Winnipeg hit a record high of +6.1C, easily surpassing the previous mark
of +3.3C set in 1963. The upper flow
pattern on this day shows a classic set up for record warmth across the
Prairies, with a westerly flow of Pacific air across the entire area, amazing
850 mb temps of +14 to +18C, and 500-1000 thickness
values of 558+ dam over the southern Prairies. Compare this pattern to the mild
January day set just one year ago across southern Manitoba (Jan 8th
2002) and to the record warm December
27th 1999 when Calgary hit an all time
December high of 19.5C
Sun Jan 5 -
Record high temperatures possible this week
A massive flow of mild Pacific air is forecast to flood over the
prairies early this week, bringing above freezing temperatures to Manitoba by Tuesday.
Record high temperatures are likely over Alberta Monday and Tuesday as
temperatures soar into the mid to possibly upper teens over places like Calgary
and Lethbridge. Westerly winds will bring this mild
air into southern Manitoba for Tuesday and Wednesday bringing temperatures into
the +2 to +5 mark for Winnipeg. These will be record challenging values as the
record high on Tuesday is +3.3C (1963) for Winnipeg and +6C on
Wednesday (set just last year in 2001)
Click here for
2002 Highlights
