Portland sets record for warmest winter!

By Rod Hill on 2015-03-01

PORTLAND SETS RECORD FOR WARMEST WINTER SEASON AND WARMEST FEBRUARY!

Portland (PDX) sets record for the warmest meteorological winter on record. The period measured is December 1st through the end of February.  The record mean was 45.4 degrees, beating out the old record of 45.2 degrees set back in 1957-1958. The record mean temperature refers to the total average temperature of each day. While this past winter barely eclipsed the previous record set back in the 1950s, February 2015 blew away the record for the second month of the year. Last month's mean temperature of 49.2 degrees was more than 5 1/2 degrees above average, surpassing the old record of 48.8 degrees set back in 1991. Every day last month except for the first, averaged above normal.

It may surprise you to know that February precipitation was actually .05" above normal with a total of 3.71 inches. The first nine days of the month saw heavy rainfall at times.

The Mt. Hood snowpack continues to hold near 30% of average for this time of year. It is note worthy that total moisture on the mountain has likely been well over 70% of normal, but much of the precipitation has been rain, not snow. Simply put, Mt. Hood is having a warm temperature crisis this season, not a moisture deficit. Warm weather over the Northwest is producing high snow levels, bringing rain, not snow.

Rod Hill