As chill sets in, a look at snow, cold through NC history
The sudden cooldown in the Triangle Monday got us to thinking: How cold could it get, does it get, here in central North Carolina?
We know that winter is coming, but just what kind of winter? WRAL Chief Meteorologist Greg Fishel and I crunched a lot of data on historical temperatures, winds and snowfall to get an idea of what to expect.
First, we looked at the extremes.
For those who've been in Raleigh awhile, the 20-inch snowfall of January 2000 is one they'll never forget. Jan. 25, 2000, remains the greatest single-day snowstorm ever seen in the state capital.
What's interesting is how concentrated that storm proved to be. None of the counties surrounding Wake got close to the same amount on that day.
As you might expect, the greatest snowfall the state has ever seen happened in the mountains. On Saturday and Sunday March 13 and 14, 1993, Yancey County measured 50 inches of snow, or almost 5 feet!
When it comes to cold, the WRAL Temperature Tracker allows you to compare actual, record and normal high and low temperatures over the past year.
These are just some of the datapoints Greg and I considered in looking ahead to this winter.
A good seasonal outlook, like the one provided in the Old Farmers' Almanac, is a useful planning tool for utilities – who estimate how much heat or cooling power will be necessary – and for agriculture, as farmers plan when to plan, when to irrigate and when to harvest.
