DC's rainy start to winter

 

2023 weather headlines were dominated in the nation's capital by long stretches of drier than average weather and drought conditions. However, there has been a hard pivot to a much wetter than average period since early December. Thus, drought conditions have been significantly reduced - if not eliminated - for much of the DC Metro Area. 

The nation's capital received 10.06" of rain since December 1, the start of meteorological winter.  That's more than double the average amount of rain for the time period and a record for wettest December 1 - January 14 (eclipsing the 7.56" from 1901-1902). Roughly two-thirds of that double-digit rainfall occurred on five days that each saw an inch or more of rain in Washington, D.C.

That includes January 9 when National Airport saw 2.24" of rain.  Daily rainfall records were set at all three DC-Area airports on January 9, 2024. The January 9 total of 2.24" ranks as DC's fourth wettest January day on record - and wettest since January 28, 1922. Some may recognize that date as when DC's largest snowstorm on record occurred, called the "Knickerbocker Storm."

December 2023 finished as DC's fourth wettest on record with 6.43" of rain and the wet weather pattern has continued during the first half of January. Having a wet winter is typical for the DMV during an El Nino winter.  NOAA's Climate Prediction Center ranked our current El Nino as "strong." What separates this winter from the "very strong" El Nino winters of 2015-2016, 1997-1998 and 1982-1983 is that this winter has been much wetter.

The 0.1" of snow so far this winter in the nation's capital is the same amount as what fell during the entire 1997-1998 winter season. However, the 2015-2016 and 1982-1983 winters both saw major winter storms that rank among DC's Top 10 largest snow events. Those two storms occurred in late-January and mid-February, following unusually mild December's (like December 2023). It's worth watching if this winter will follow that pattern, or the relatively snowless pattern of the 1997-1998 winter.

The nation's capital hasn't had an inch of snow since January 16, 2022 (2.6").