5:53 PM Monday, February 28, 2022
-Our first 50-degree temperature of the year at Duluth typically occurs in March.
-Daylight Saving Time begins March 13 (spring ahead an hour)
-A 7 PM or later sunset at Duluth begin March 13.
-First official day of spring is on Sunday, March 20.
-Meteorological spring consisting of the three months of March, April and May begins on Tuesday, March 1.
A look back to last March, and the record warm March of 2012
-March 2021 had 9 days with a high of 50 or warmer and 1 day with a high of 60 or warmer at Duluth, Minnesota.
March 2021 had a snow depth of 12″ on the 1st, but that dropped to a trace on March 21st.
-Remember March 2012? What a warm month that was in Duluth, in fact it was the warmest March on record at Duluth. 14 days saw a high of at least 50 with 6 days at or above 60, and 4 days at or above 70. Warmest temperature was 75 on March 17. Highly unlikely will see a repeat of that this March, and I think it’s unlikely will see a repeat of March 2021 given how the pattern appears to be setting up in March 2022.
-One interesting thing about March 2012 is that we picked up nearly a foot of snow in Duluth between March 2 and March 5, but my midmonth we were torching big time!
| Climate Normals and Records at Duluth, Minnesota for the month of March Normal high on the 1st: 30 Normal high on the 31st: 42 Normal low on the 1st: 12 Normal low on the 31st: 24 Average monthly temperature: 27.0 degrees Warmest March on record: 39.2 degrees set in 2012 Coldest March on record: 13.5 degrees set in 1923 Normal Precipitation: 1.46″ Wettest March on record: 5.12″ set in 1965 Driest March on record: 0.22″ set in 1959 Normal Snowfall: 12.8″ Snowiest March on record: 48.2″ set in 1917 Least snowy March on record: Trace set in 2010 On average our first 50-degree temperature of the year occurs on March 20 Last year’s first 50 occurred on March 8 Average number of days with a high of 50 or warmer: 4 Average number of days with snowfall of 0.1″ or more: 8 Average number of days with snowfall of 1.0″ or more: 4 Average number of subzero nights: 3 Astronomical Data for March 2022 Sunrise on the 1st: 6:48 AM CST Sunset on the 31st: 6:49 AM CDT Sunset on the 1st: 5:55 PM CST Sunset on the 31st: 7:36 PM CDT |
March has that reputation of being a snowy month in Duluth, but that hasn’t really been the case for about the last 5 years or so.
Here’s a look at past snowfall totals at Duluth, Minnesota for the month of March (2010-2021)
Normal snowfall in March is 12.8 inches
2010: Trace (least snowy March on record)
2011: 7.4″
2012: 11.9″
2013: 25.8″ (11th snowiest March on record)
2014: 20.9″
2015: 8.1″
2016: 17.3″
2017: 5.3″
2018: 5.1″
2019: 6.7″
2020: 10.1″
2021: 8.7″
Nearly 65% of Lake Superior was covered by ice a few days ago, but that number has dropped to around 45% as of February 27.
The pattern may be quite active in March 2022.
Temperature outlook for the Northland for March 2022: Near normal temperatures.
Precipitation outlook for the Northland for March 2022: Above average precipitation.
Thanks for reading!
Tim
Leave a Reply