Ticker for October 13, 2006

                
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October 13, 2006   October 13, 2006   October 13, 2006   October 13, 2006


First Freeze

Clear skies and very light winds amplified the recent passage of a cold
front and brought Oklahoma's first sub-freezing temps of the season
this morning. Here's a snapshot from 6:30 am:



Several locations in the southeast had dipped below the freezing mark
by sunrise. If you're concerned about the depth and duration of the
overnight freeze, here's a map that shows how long temps stayed below
freezing (blue numbers), and just how low the temperature dipped (gray
numbers):



Finally, for those parts of southeast Oklahoma that got frost this
morning, it's a tad early compared to average ... but it's really not
out of the norm for the region. The following map shows the median date
of the first freeze of fall for the state:



Notice the early onset - compared to neighboring regions - in parts
of southeast Oklahoma. The protected valleys tend to get in situ
cooling and/or "cold air drainage" that lead to earlier and deeper
freezes. Since people and thermometers tend to settle in valleys, that's
where the records are taken!