Monthly Climatological Summary
Norman 3SE, Cleveland Co., OK (Lat 35^10'57"N, Lon 97^25'27"W, elev 1130)
February 2002
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     Temperature  Precipitation  Snow      AM         PM
      Max   Min    Water Snow    Depth     Wx         Wx      
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01   45.3  24.1     .00   0.0      0       SKC        FEW
02   48.4  24.4     .00   0.0      0       BKN        OVC
03   51.8  38.5     .00   0.0      0       OVC        BKN
04   50.7  29.7       T     T      0       OVC       -RA SN
05   41.2  33.4     .38   0.1      T      -RA SN      SN
06   39.0  32.7     .07   0.3      0      -SN        -RA SN
07   52.2  36.1     .00   0.0      0       OVC        SKC
08   62.1  34.0     .00   0.0              FG
09                  .00   0.0
10         32.4     .00   0.0      0
11   52.9  23.7     .00   0.0      0       FEW        FEW
12   58.3  31.6     .00   0.0      0       SCT        BKN
13   51.6  30.0     .00   0.0      0       SCT        SKC
14   57.2  27.0     .00   0.0      0       BKN        SCT
15   52.2  30.2     .07   0.0      0      -RA         SKC
16   65.1  27.7     .00   0.0      0       SKC        SKC
17   65.7  30.6     .00   0.0      0       BKN        BKN
18   63.0  43.7       T   0.0      0       BKN        OVC
19   67.5  45.7     .21   0.0      0       TSRA       BKN
20   64.8  35.6     .00   0.0      0       SCT        SCT
21   57.9  42.1     .00   0.0      0       BKN        FEW
22   57.4  28.9     .00   0.0      0       SKC        SCT
23   66.9  38.8     .00   0.0      0       SCT        BKN
24   73.4  39.6     .00   0.0      0       BKN        FEW
25   39.7  20.7       T     T      0       OVC       -SN
26   28.8  16.5     .00   0.0      0       SCT        SKC
27   41.4  12.2     .00   0.0      0       SCT        SKC
28   54.3  23.2     .00   0.0      0       BKN        BKN


KEY TO AM/PM WX: SKC - sky clear, FEW - few clouds, SCT -
partly cloudy, BKN - mostly cloudy, OVC - overcast, RA -
rain,  TSRA - thunderstorm with rain, SN - snow, FG - fog.


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Means and Totals for February 2002
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Average Maximum Temperature:      54.2
Average Minimum Temperature:      30.9

Mean Temperature:                 42.5

Maximum Temperature:              73.4  (2-24-02)
Minimum Temperature:              12.2  (2-27-02)

Days with max temperature 90.0F+:    0             Year:       0
Days with max temperature <32.0F:    1             Year:       2
Days with min temperature <32.0F:   15             Year:      33
Days with min temperature <0.0F:     0             Year:       0

Precipitation:                     .73             Year:    3.52
Greatest one-day precipitation:    .38  (2-05-02)

Snowfall:                          0.4             Year:     0.4
Greatest one-day snowfall:         0.3  (2-06-02)
Maximum snow depth at midnight:      T  (2-05-02)

Days with measureable pcpn:          4             Year:      12
Days with pcpn 1.00"+:               0             Year:       1
Days with measureable snowfall:      2             Year:       2
Days with snowfall 1"+:              0             Year:       0
Days with glaze ice:                 0             Year:       0
Days with damaging wind:             0             Year:       0
Days with hail:                      0             Year:       0
Days with thunderstorms:             1             Year:       2
Days with fog:                       1             Year:       1

NOTICE: All temperatures are in degrees Fahrenheit and all precipitation values in inches. Snowfall totals denoted by an asterisk indicate hail.


Summary....Feb 2002 was a dry month in central Oklahoma with many mild afternoons and cool nights. Most of the month's precipitation came in the form of snow on the 5th-6th, but warm air temperatures and even warmer ground temperatures kept accumulations to a minimum. Temperatures during the final weekend of the month were especially mild, reaching 73.4 degrees on the 24th. But just when spring looked like it was just around the corner, a harsh Arctic blast as severe as any we've seen all winter came crashing down from the north late on the 24th. Despite a full day of sunshine, the temperature did not make it out of the 20s on the 26th. Our low of 12.2 degrees on the 27th nearly equalled our coldest reading of the winter (10.8 degrees on Jan 3).

As dry as it was here during the month, Turlock CA was even drier, receiving only .61 inch of rain during the month. The season total there stood at 9.18 inches through the end of the month.

If you read through the columns closely, you might have noticed some missing data from the 8th-10th. That is because I was in Denver CO those days. On the way there I witnessed the aftermath of the late January ice storm...or more appropriately, the Great Oklahoma Arborcide of 2002. Virtually every tree within a 50 mile wide swath to the west and northwest of Oklahoma City sustained serious damage. It was an amazing sight, especially after considering those trees had survived decades of severe thunderstorms and windstorms relatively unscathed. Speaking of windstorms, I experience one doozy of a windstorm while in Denver. Winds as high as 50-60 mph kicked up tons of dust and tumbleweeds there on the 8th-9th, reducing the visibility at times to less than 2 miles. On the 10th it was time to head back to Norman, and by then winds were calm with a spectacular clear view of the snow-capped Rocky Mountains.