Groundhog Day 2011
by Stormy on February 02, 2011
It's Groundhog Day 2011 and all the prognosticators are taking a look at the weather. It's time to put Colorado's forecast in, too.
It's Groundhog Day once again and it's once again time to poke my nose out into the cold to see how the weather is doing. And what does my nose come in contact with? I'm nose to nose with my own shadow! The writing is clearly on the wall, or in this case, in the snow. Six more weeks of winter.
I'm always cautious about these predictions I make, so it was worth visiting the NOAA website to get their thoughts on how winter will be doing. It turns out that, on average, the last freeze in Denver is May 5 and the last snow fall, again on average, happens on April 27. Considering that April 27 is still 84 days away (oh, my!) it should be a no-brainer to call spring to be late.
And considering that it's -12 degrees right now (yes, that's a negative 12 degrees), before wind chill, I think I'll err on the side of caution and put a definite six week hold on anything resembling spring.
The news media is already reporting that Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow and is predicting that spring will be early this year. This is not terribly surprising as this morning Phil would have been outside in 34 degree weather, surrounded by fog, according to the weather service. Phil, buddy, it should start snowing by 2 PM your time today and this time tomorrow, when the snow is piled higher than a sitting woodchuck, the temperature will be a frigid 13 degrees. You may want to reevaluate your prediction. In the very least, don't try sunning out in the street. I'd hate to pick up breaking news that you've been hit by a snow plow waiting for that early spring.
Now, let me go find some warm water to soak my toes in so I can get some feeling back in them.
| |
