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. . . Ticker for March 17, 2016 . . .
MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... March 17, 2016 March 17, 2016 March 17, 2016 March 17, 2016 It's WHAT in the Panhandle? http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/meh.jpg Yes, you're reading that correctly, the wind chill is 11 degrees in the Panhandle, with an air temperature of 20. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/current-windchill.png http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/current-temps.png By the way, what does it have to be "the Panhandle" while the rest of the state is "Oklahoma?" Why not call that strip of land while the rest of the state is known as "the Oklahoma Pan?" The revolution starts here! Anyway, the craziness goes even further as we have rain falling in the southern parts of the state, a severe storm warning for Durant, and drought spreading in Oklahoma...I mean the Panhandle! http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/current-radar.png http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/20160315_OK_trd.png That's right, we're now up to 8% of the state in moderate drought, and 34% in at least abnormally dry (D0) conditions. And the divide between the NW and SE is fairly stark, and I'm not just talking about accents. We'll just go with the last 30 days for dramatic effect. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/last30dayspct.png http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/last30daystot.png http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/last30days.stats.png And remember, those stats were through midnight last night, so the starkness will get even, uhhh, starkerer with the rain this morning. We've already seen the 7th wettest Feb. 16-March 16 vs. the 15th driest Panhandle region since at least 1921. And it has been more than 90 days since parts of NW OK have seen at least a quarter-inch in a single day. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/mesonet.rainfall.quarterinch.png It'll get worse before it gets better. We will see rain chances off and on across most of the state for the next two days, especially in southern Oklahoma and especially tomorrow. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/nws-norman-rain.jpg http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/nws-tulsa-rain.gif And even MORE craziness, after several weeks without seeing a below freezing reading on the thermometer, winter is making a brief comeback for the NW third of the state (if not a larger area) for Saturday and Sunday mornings. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/nws-norman-freeze.jpg http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/saturday-lows.png http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/sunday-lows.png And let's face it, it's been a wonderfully freeze-free March thus far for most of the state, at least through last night. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/march-freezing.png Regardless, with lows dropping into the low- to mid-20s, vegetation is going to take it on the chin in some areas. Rainfall amounts are going to be fairly light for the most part. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/3day-rainfall-forecast.gif After that, a nice warm up is in store for the state. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/nws-norman-7day.jpg Following that, as we look ahead to April and also April-June, the Climate Prediction Center precipitation outlooks show slightly increased odds of above normal precip for OK, especially across the western quarter of the state as we get farther into spring. The basis for these outlooks continues to be the general precipitation patterns observed during strong El Nino events (even though it continues to fade). http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/april-precip-outlook.gif http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/april-june-precip-outlook.gif The temperature outlooks for the same period are rather inconclusive for most of the state, save for slightly enhanced odds of below normal temperatures across parts of southern Oklahoma. Now you're going to see some folks show these maps (maybe) where they label that white "EC" area as "normal" or something like that. Please remember that is INCORRECT! The EC (Equal Chances) area is where the forecaster sees EQUAL odds of below-, near- or above-normal temperatures for each time frame. NOT NORMAL! In those cases, each category has about a 33% chance of occurring. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/april-temp-outlook.gif http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/april-june-temp-outlook.gif With those outlooks, the drought across NW OK is expected to improve by the end June with the wettest part of the year (climatologically speaking) approaching. http://ticker.mesonet.org/archive/20160317/season_drought.png Gary McManus State Climatologist Oklahoma Mesonet Oklahoma Climatological Survey (405) 325-2253 gmcmanus@mesonet.org ================================================== The OCS/Mesonet Ticker https://ticker.mesonet.org/ To subscribe or unsubscribe from the Ticker or for questions about the Ticker or its content Phone or Email the Ticker Manager at OCS Phone: 405-325-2253 Email: ticker@mesonet.org --------------------------------------------------- -C- Copyright 2024 Oklahoma Climatological Survey ===================================================