Contributing factors for the lack of snow in the winter of 2011-2012

These images show the difference in snow coverage in North America between this winter and last winter.  Two contributing factors for the lack of snow in the winter of 2011-2012 were the positive phase of the Arctic Oscillation (AO)  and the La Nina event.   During La Nina systems carrying moisture tend to develop less frequently. The diagram of the (AO) shows that during a positive phase, cold air is trapped in its source region over the high latitudes of the northern hemisphere. This blocking supports and strengthens the La Nina.  In addition during positive phases of the Arctic Oscillation the jet stream takes a more northern course steering snowstorms towards Alaska.

Even with all of this, I am still holding on to hope for a decent Easter snowfall in New England.  We are not going to hike the Teardrop this weekend, but still plan on hitting the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

Winter 2011-2012 Image 3/5/12

                                                                        

Winter 2010-2011 Image 3/3/11

                           Postive on the left (winter  2011-12 )                      Negative on the right

Arctic Oscillation current winter 2011-12

Arctic Oscillation last winter 2010-11

Ahead of Schedule

The long term forecast is predicting above average temperatures for the North Country.  Luckily my wife Julie and I went out skiing last weekend.  These photos are from Saturday 3/10/12.  It snowed the Friday night before; this fresh snow added to the coverage. 

Spring has arrived about 4-6 weeks ahead of schedule.  Many of the snowfields of Vermont and New Hampshire are suffering because of the heat pump associated with a persistent southerly flow.  This year the spring hike in Tuckerman Ravine will more than likely require you to hike out rather than ski out.  I am looking forward to possibly hiking up and then skiing the Teardrop trail on 3/24/12. This trail is on the western side of Mt. Mansfield and was cut by the CCC in 1937.

This is an image from the 1930's of the CCC crew that cut the first trails on Mt. Mansfeild.(Teardrop, Nosedive, Bruce Trails)  They are pictured in front of their Ranch Camp.

National Weather Service Visit

I am taking an Earth’s Climate System course through the American Meteorological Society SUNY Brockport.  On Wednesday evening, participants in the course had a meeting at the National Weather Service Office in Mt. Holly N.J.  The headquarters for the NWS serving the Philadelphia area, southeastern New Jersey, and northern portions of Delaware and Maryland.  It is the second time I have had the opportunity to visit the forecast office and after each visit I am more excited to teach about the local weather and climate.

Our next meeting is to be held at CBS 3 on April 24, 2012 in Philadelphia.  We will sit in on the evening news broadcast.  Our focus is the weather report provided by Kathy Orr. After the news broadcast we are permitted to pretend we are weather broadcasters.  It is cool to work the green screen, you just have to make sure you do not wear green, or that portion shows up blank on the monitor.  This Climate course is one of a kind and it provides many connections to my teaching.  Plus it is free and upon completion you earn 3 graduate credits.

Finally

This weekend my wife and I telemarked skied at Stowe Mountain and Smuggler’s Notch Ski Areas. We were very fortunate because it snowed, and snowed, and snowed. The powdery white snow was a welcome site to locals and visitors alike.  During the winter all major New England ski resorts have been lacking natural snow.
Accumulations had reached about 3 feet by Sunday. This bottomless powder was a welcome site to our family and we are hoping for a strong showing of Northeast storms for the months of March and April.

Stone Hut

The Stone Hut serves as a public lodging facility.  It operates as a primitive shelter from mid-November to mid-April.  The shelter sleeps up to a dozen people.  Interested hikers or skiers can request a reservation via mail from September 15 through November 1. The Stone Hut was built in 1936 by Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).  These crews cut the first trails on Mt. Mansfield and this was used as “home away from home” for these early skiing pioneers. 

My family intends to reserve the hut during an upcoming winter.  Preparation requires gear for winter camping.  You would need to bring food and a stove, along with proper sleeping pad and bag.  This type of building is very unique it has a good feel to it. I think it is the fact that it has stood up against Mother Nature for many years.   I am looking forward to the trip we organize to visit the Stone Hut on Mt. Mansfield.   

Palmyra Cove Education Center

Monday evening I was trained to represent the GLOBE program at our school.  The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) workshop was given at the Palmyra Cove Education Center.  This program was started in 1995 by Vice President Al Gore.  GLOBE’s implementation of internet came at a time when using this method of communication was in its infancy.  After 17 years, the program promotes international collaboration between teachers of all age level students.  This map shows the location of participating schools throughout the world. GLOBE Interactive International Schools Map

Our course facilitator suggested schools in Finland or Czech Republic because they seem to be very active in the program.  In addition you can view how many times the individual school has posted data to the site.  This provides an idea of the level of participation in the school.

I will update you on the progress of my implementation of the program.  Let me know if you have any questions.  It would be cool to see some other teachers from our course work with the globe program.