What’s Better: A Few Small or One Huge Snowfall ?

January 2016 DC Snowfall

Accurate snowfall records date back to January 1888 in the Nation’s Capital and snow has been officially measured at National Airport since World War II.  Washington, D.C. averages 15.4” of snow annually according to NOAA.  Fifteen of the last 20 winters have had below average snowfall in the Nation’s Capital.

However, Washingtonians had two of their 10 snowiest winters on record since 2002.  The 56.1” of snow during the 2009-2010 winter season made it the snowiest winter on record in the Nation’s Capital.  That’s in addition to the seventh snowiest winter on record in DC when 40.4” of snow accumulated during the 2002-2003 winter.

More recently, the Nation’s Capital has experienced record winter cold, record warmth and record snowfall.  For example, although February 2015 was DC’s coldest February since 1979, December 2015 was DC’s warmest on record.  The 2013-2014 winter season was DC’s 18^th snowiest on record with a total of 32”.  Daily snowfall exceeded an inch on 10 days during the 2013-2014 winter season.  By comparison, the 2015-2016 winter season was also snowier than average with 22.2” of snow at National Airport.  However, 17.8” of that occurred during the record-setting January 2016 storm, or roughly 80% of the seasonal total.

There were only three days with at least one inch of snowfall during the 2015-2016 winter in Washington, D.C., unlike the 2013-2014 winter.  That illustrates how DC residents can exceed the average seasonal snowfall total: with one major winter storm or with a series of smaller snowfalls. 

Although the month of March averages less snow than December, January and February in Washington, D.C., there have been seven winters where March has been the snowiest month dating back to the 1992-1993 season.  Some may remember the March 1993 “Superstorm” that brought record snowfall the much of the Mid-Atlantic Region.

By comparison, the 1989-1990 winter was the opposite of the 1992-1993 winter season.  That’s because a total of 12.5” of snow fell in Washington, D.C. in November and December 1989, while only a combined 2.8” occurred during the rest of that winter.  This winter has been similar to the 1989-1990 winter so far.  Both December 1989 and December 2017 were colder than average and had measurable snowfall in the Nation’s Capital.  The high temperature of 23° on December 31, 2017, was DC’s coldest December high temperature since December 24, 1989.  

Following temperatures at or below freezing on eight of the first 15 days of January, another significant shift in the weather pattern is expected later this week.  March-like temperatures in the mid to upper 50s are expected by this weekend.  However, a weak system will first bring some light snow to the DC Metro Region later today and tonight.