Boston

March Expected to Be Colder Than February for 2nd Straight Year

It's been a wet, snowy winter. We are heading into spring with a surplus of precipitation, and for the second consecutive year, we are on pace for a late-season anomaly.

Since Jan. 1, we've seen a 3.59" surplus. Snow has also been above normal. This 2017-2018 season is 17.7" above average. Logan Airport has recorded 58.6" of snow this season. All of New England has seen at or above average precipitation since the first of the year.

The closest area of drought conditions in the Northeast is in Maryland. We do have to watch the possibility of flooding this spring. Thankfully, the last couple of wet, snowy winters proceeded by a slow warm up and a relatively dry spring. There is still a significant amount of snow across northern New England. Parts of Vermont still have a three-foot snow base.

Currently, if the forecast stays on track, it appears March will be colder than February. March is the meteorological start to spring. We have more daylight. The sun angle is higher. That's a tough task to achieve. Currently, the average temperature for March is 36 degrees. The average temperature for February was 38.1 degrees.

When was the last time March was colder than February? 2017. Wait – only a year ago? Yes, but it is a very rare occurrence. Since records were first kept in Boston, back in 1873, this has only happened three times. The first occurrence where March was colder than February was in 1960. 1984 was the second occurrence. 2017 was the third.

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