Cold Start to 2015!

The National Climate Data Center within NOAA, released a map showing the temperature departures for the first four months of the year. As expected, the northeast is shaded in blue (colder than average) and the west is shaded in red (warmer than average). 

Here in Connecticut, we had the fourth coldest January to April on record. Records go back about 121 years! I'm sure we would have been the coldest if April had not warmed up the way it did. 

Although, no state had their coldest period on record, Massachusetts and New York came close. Both states had their second coldest January thru April in 121 years! 

What's more impressive is that in California and Arizona, it was the warmest January thru April on record! With it also being the second warmest period on record in nearby states like Oregon, Nevada and Utah. 

Sea Ice in Long Island Sound During the Coldest Month on Record!

Now that it's March, we can officially declare the month of February 2015 as the coldest month on record in Bridgeport, Connecticut with an average temperature of 19.9 degrees (F)!  Records go back to 1948. 

Climatologically, January is the coldest month of the year. So it is impressive to have the coldest month on record now be in February! 

The NWS reports the highest temperature recorded at Bridgeport in the month of February 2015 was 37 degrees and the lowest was -2 degrees. The month saw 21.5 inches of snow fall with an average snow depth of 11 inches throughout the month (that's a far cry from what Boston saw!) 

I've shared some of the pictures of a frozen Long Island Sound in this post and this post but here are some more photos I haven't shared yet! 

Below is a picture of the American flag at Anchor Beach in Milford, CT. Notice all the sea ice and slush floating in front and around the rock that sticks out into the water. 

Since the cold was so prolonged, every tide cycle added more ice to the rocks along the shore. 

Frozen steps to the beach! The bottom few steps of this staircase that have weathered both Irene and Sandy have accumulated ice during high tides during the month. 

Another stair case to the beach frozen from high water at high tide. Pretty impressive that not even the sun could melt this ice! 

These rocks along the beach have been incased in sea ice, formed at different levels depending on the height of the tide. The combination of ice, tide and rocks made for some very cool patterns. 

Connecticut Coast to See Coldest Month on Record in February 2015

We might not have the record snow of Boston (where season totals just topped 100 inches last night 2/24/15) but down here along the Connecticut coast we're on the brink of having not only the coldest February on record but also the coldest Month on Record!   

Bridgeport, Connecticut is the official coastal weather station for the area. It is located on the eastern edge of Fairfield County and is only a town over from my hometown. National Weather Service climate data for coastal Connecticut is taken at this station. 

One thing to note about this station, where sub-zero temps are actually very hard to attain, is that the weather station sticks out on a small piece of land that juts into Long Island Sound. This has a moderation effect on the stations records since its surrounded on three sides by the warmer waters in the winter and cooler waters in the summer. 

Although this winter, even the waters of Long Island Sound have gotten really cold! Check out these photos I took of sea ice in Long Island Sound. 

So with only a few days left in the month of February, will February 2015 go down as the coldest month on record (aka the coldest month in a hundred years!)? We'll find out in a few days! 

In the meantime, check out the graphic released by the National Weather Service below!