Ticker for January 28, 2011

                *CORRECTION -- RECORD HIGH NOT REACHED TODAY IN OKC*

As luck would have it, the weather picked the perfect day to pre-date our
records. The official record for Oklahoma City itself is 78 degrees, set all
the way back in 1893. That tops the Will Rogers record of 71 degrees in 2003.
Therefore today's high of 76 degrees at Will Rogers was not an official OKC
record.

The picture gets a bit muddled when piecing together different observing
stations to get a longer look at a single city, like OKC. At any rate, we'll
go with our friends over at the NWS. The record for today still stands at 78
degrees.


MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ... MESONET TICKER ...
January 28, 2011   January 28, 2011   January 28, 2011   January 28, 2011


QED

For all you lovers of winter weather out there, I give you January 28, 2011.

Game
Set
Match

High temperatures at 1:45 p.m. have already exceeded record levels for some
parts of the state (Mesonet vs. COOP, of course):

Mesonet website: http://www.mesonet.org
Mesonet today: 

COOP records: 


Official word from the NWS office in Norman should be coming later on that.
Things are not all rosy, of course. As I glance up from my computer screen, I
see a large plume of smoke to the east of Norman, reminding me that the fire
danger is elevated thanks to the low relative humidity and gusty winds.





Keep watch on wildfire conditions at the Mesonet's OK-FIRE website:
http://okfire.mesonet.org/

This is all in advance of next week's weather that *SOME OF YOU* (harumph
harumph!) seem to prefer. Something that we can all agree on, however, is the
need for moisture. I've seen quite a few estimates on amounts thrown about, and
those will solidify the closer to next week's storm we get. The form of that
precipitation might not be to our liking. Even the most foolhardy of us

... (same to you)...

want a batch of heavy freezing rain. If we're going to get frozen precip, snow
would be the best answer. Not only does it insulate delicate roots from really
frigid weather, it is great for recharge since it melts slowly and percolates
into the ground with very little runoff. One event will not eradicate our
drought though. Keep that in mind if we do get a good round of moisture. It
will be a good start, however.

Okay, back to enjoying looking at the nice weather on my computer screen. I'm
feeling so good about it, I'm not even going to go buy bread and milk to
prepare for *WINTER STORM 2011!!!* until Sunday.

Foolhardy? Sure. Sometimes I live dangerously like that. I've been known to run
and jump in the pool after eating well before the mandatory 30 minutes ...
with scissors!!


Gary McManus
Associate State Climatologist
Oklahoma Climatological Survey
(405) 325-2253