UPDATE: A late tornado report has been added and the "zero" record is no longer valid.
UPDATE: We have also issued an official news story, saying:
"Despite it being an El Nino year, which would normally mean severe weather in the South, the jet stream has been depressing cold air very far south and it has combined with cooler-than-normal Gulf of Mexico water temperatures," Margusity said. "These have led to the suppression of severe weather in February." February's previous low was two tornado reports, occurring in both 1964 and 2002.
However, this would not be the first tornado-free month on record. According to the SPC, only five months since 1950 have failed to turn in a tornado report: October 1952, December 1963, November 1976, January 1986 and January 2003.
UPDATE: NOAA has put out a blog on this. They also point out that "in 2003, we started out with no tornadoes in the first 45 days of the year. Even as late as 29 April, it was the slowest start in the database."
February went by without a tornado according to stats from the Storm Prediction Center, marking this the first February in recorded tornado history (since 1950) to do so. (Credit to Meteo Madness Man for this tidbit). Since 2000, there have been between 2 and 146 tornadoes in the month, averaging 35, according to their monthly summaries. In addition, this is the slowest February since 2000 for severe weather in general, according to their stats (probably further back, you tell me if you have time to search through all that data).
These numbers also put us at the slowest start for a tornado year since 2004, when there were only 5 tornadoes before March (we had 41 in January this year). 2004 also beat 2010 for slowest start for severe weather spotter reports overall, with 187 vs. 306 this year.
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The damage from the Moore, Okla., tornado of May 20, 2013, is incredible. These radar loops show the immensity of the tragic storm.
When I saw that Google had created a 30-year satellite time-lapse of Earth, I knew where the most impressive weather-related animations would be.
Whatever you call them -- "Ice Needling," "Ice Surges," or "Ice Shoves," or "Ice Heaves" -- a phenomenon that I first blogged about in 2009 is back -- with a vengeance!
17 years ago on this date, while I was taking my freshman exams at UNCA, a "cut-off" low was rumored to dump 57" of snow at nearby Mount Pisgah... but is that reading reliable?
Tornado reports and warnings are down for 2013 so far, and the last 12 months, but what about severe-thunderstorm-warned areas and lightning strikes?
The last two weeks have featured no less than four storm days, one with four storms, here in Central Pennsylvania and I've taken some neat pictures.
Jesse Ferrell
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