D.C.’s Dramatic March Weather

 

Spring’s March arrival is often accompanied by wide swings in weather.  No place is that more true than in the Nation’s Capital where there have been some compelling changes in the weather over a short period of time in recent years. 

2022:  Following record warmth on March 6 and 7 with highs of 78° and 80° at National Airport, March 9 felt more like early February with a high of only 47°.  Highs rebounded to 63° on March 11, but temperatures plummeted thereafter to a low of 24° on March 12.  That coincided with widespread D.C. Area snow totals of 1”-3” on March 12.  The snow, however, was short-lived as highs in the Nation’s Capital rebounded to 61° on March 14 and 71° on March 15.

2018: March has been D.C.’s snowiest month of the year five times since 2008, most recently in 2018.  Some Washingtonians may recall that 4.1” of snow fell four years ago today on March 21.  While not a record amount, it was D.C.’s largest snowfall to that point since the January 2016 blizzard.  Fortunately, the good news is that snow doesn’t stick around very long by the second half of March.  High temperatures were in the 50s just two days after that snowfall.

2017: Following D.C.’s warmest February on record, March 2017 got off to a very warm start.  A record-tying high of 80° occurred on March 1.  Widespread severe weather occurred that afternoon with a slew of severe wind gusts that caused isolated damage in the D.C. Metro Area.  Washingtonians had a hard pivot to more winter-like weather less than two weeks later.  A total of 2” of snow accumulated in the Nation’s Capital on March 13-14, 2017.  High/low temperatures of 33°/22° on March 15, 2017 were very unusual because the average in the Nation’s Capital on March 15 is 56°/38°.  However, lows in the 20s on several days in mid-March 2017 caused significant damage to D.C.’s famous cherry blossoms along the Tidal Basin.

2016:  Given the recent trend for chilly and snowy March weather in the D.C. Metro Area, March 2016 stands out since it was D.C.’s fourth warmest March.  There was a four-day stretch from March 8 –11 when high temperatures were in the upper 70s.  March 2016 was also a dry month in the Nation’s Capital with a monthly rainfall deficit of more than 2”.  There was ample opportunity for folks to spend time outdoors in the predominantly dry and mild weather.

2014: Not only was this March nearly 4° colder than average, but it was also D.C.’s coldest in nearly two decades since 1996.  Washingtonians may remember it for being an exceptionally snowy month.  A total of 12.7” of snow fell at National Airport, making it D.C.’s snowiest March since 1960 and snowiest overall month since February 2010. 

2011:  The Mid-Atlantic Region saw multiple severe thunderstorms on March 10.  These storms produced two tornadoes in northern Virginia, along with dozens of severe wind gusts from Virginia to North Carolina.  Fortunately, there were no fatalities and damage was minor.