Full Wolf Moon to Shine Brightly This Weekend

We're off to another cold start this morning with temperatures in the single digits inland and lower teens along the immediate shoreline. However, the clear night sky was illuminated brilliantly by the nearly-full Moon. In fact, I could easily make out the shadows of homes and trees in the middle of the night. The Full Wolf Moon officially happens Saturday, January 26, at 11:38 p.m. EST.

Since the length of daylight is still relatively short, the full Moon will appear for nearly its longest duration of the year. In fact, today's moonrise happens at 3:58 p.m., and tomorrow's moonset is at 6:26 a.m. That means the Moon will be "out" for nearly 14-and-a-half hours. Sunrise this morning was at 7:09. During the Summer, when the Sun rises earlier and sets later, a full Moon isn't "out" nearly as long since the daylight is much longer.

The Moon rises about 30 to 70 minutes later each day, so the Moon is out during the daytime as often as it is out at night. As the Moon wanes, it becomes a half Moon and a crescent Moon on the way to a new Moon. The complete phase cycle is about 29.5 days average duration. The time in days counted from the time of New Moon is called the Moon's "age." Each complete cycle of phases is called a "lunation."



So how did the name of the January full Moon originate? Amid the cold and deep snows of midwinter, the wolf packs howled hungrily outside Indian villages. Thus, the name for this month's full Moon. Sometimes it was also referred to as the Old Moon or the Moon After Yule. Some called it the Full Snow Moon, but most tribes applied that name to the next Moon. The next three full Moons this year include the February 7th Snow Moon, March 8th Worm Moon, and April 6th Pink Moon.

As far as our weather is concerned, we won't be able to see the Full Moon tonight due to a weak Clipper system which should bring less than an inch of snow to southwestern Connecticut. The light snow will exit the region after midnight. Tomorrow will be partly sunny, blustery, and cold with a high temperatures in the upper 20s. Sunny skies are expected Sunday before milder temperatures arrive by next week.

Paul

Frigid Wind Chills Expected Today

The coldest air of the season will be with us through the start of the upcoming weekend. Low temperatures dropped into the lower single digits inland and upper single numbers along the immediate shoreline early this morning. However, a gusty Northwest wind will develop today, and wind chill values are expected to be close to zero for much of the day. Yes, bundle up!

Exposure to brutally cold wind chills for even a brief period of time can be dangerous. Make sure you're bundled up before heading outside, and keep your extremities covered. The wind chill is based on the rate of heat loss on exposed skin caused by the wind and cold. As the wind increases, it draws heat from the body, driving down the skin temperature and eventually the body temperature.

The adjacent photo (click to enlarge) is a wind chill chart. Feel free to print the chart and keep it handy. It shows corresponding values for the air temperature and wind speed. Today, for example, when the high temperature struggles to reach 20 degrees and the wind is blowing at 20 miles an hour, the wind chill will be between zero and five degrees above zero. At this wind chill temperature, exposed skin can freeze in 30 minutes!

Frostbite occurs when body tissue freezes. The most susceptible parts of the body are the fingers, toes, ear lobes, or the tip of the nose. Symptoms include a loss of feeling in the extremity and a white or pale appearance. Get medical attention immeditaely for frostbite. The affected area should be slowly warmed.

Hypothermia occurs when the body temperature falls below 95 degrees. Warning signs include uncontrollable shivering, memory loss, disorientation, incoherence, slurred speech, drowsiness, and exhaustion. Get medical attention immediately. If help is not available, begin warming the body slowly.

Warm the body core first, and not the extremities. Warming extremities first drives the cold blood to the heart and can cause the body temperature to drop even more. That may ultimately lead to heart failure. Do not take any hot beverage or food. About 20% of cold-related deaths occur in the home, according to the National Weather Service Office.

Obviously, the best way to avoid hypothermia and frostbite is to stay warm and dry indoors. If you must go outside, dress appropriately. Wear several layers of loose-fitting, lightweight, warm clothing. The trapped air inside the layers will insulate the body. Remove the layers to avoid sweating and subsequent chill. Wear a hat since half of body heat can be lost from the head. Cover your mouth to protect the lungs from the extreme cold. Mittens are actually better than gloves. Try to stay dry and out of the wind.

Remember, as far as the wind chill is concerned, it only affects people and animals. The only effect the wind chill has on inanimate objects such as car radiators and water pipes is that it cools the object more quickly to the current air temperature. For example,if the outside air temperature is five degrees below zero and the wind chill temperature is -31 degrees, then the car's radiator will not drop lower than -5.

I hope this helps. I know I'll be bundled up when I go outside today. Adding insult to injury will be an area of low pressure which will bring some light, fluffy snow to the region late tomorrow and tomorrow night. Perhaps an inch or two of snow will accumulate. However, temperatures are expected to moderate well into the 40s by the middle of next week. I can hardly wait.

Paul

Recalling the Snow, Wind, & Cold Eight Years Ago

Eight years ago this morning we were preparing for a powerful Winter storm which arrived by the early afternoon. I was at the grocery store stocking up on food, supplies, and batteries. The impending blizzard brought heavy snow, damaging winds, and bitter cold to southwestern Connecticut. Yes, the snowstorm of Saturday and Sunday, January 22 and 23, 2005, was one for the record books and will not soon be forgotten
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The snow began falling shortly after lunchtime, and it became steadier and heavier through the afternoon. The cold air was already in place since the mercury dipped to two degrees at daybreak. By later in the day the winds began gusting out of the Northeast, and Arctic cold air had settled into the region. Roads became almost impassable by late-afternoon, and by nightfall the snow was virtually blinding.

A Blizzard Warning was issued by the National Weather Service that day. For at least three hours, the blowing snow reduced visibility to less than a quarter of a mile, and wind gusts were frequently clocked over 35 miles an hour. Adding insult to injury was the wind chill, which fell below zero by nightfall.

By the time Sunday morning, January 23, arrived, the snow had moved away, but the damaging winds and biting cold were here to stay for the time being. Nearly a foot of snow had fallen across southwestern Connecticut. Here are some of the official totals reported by the National Weather Service office:

• Milford 12.0"
• Orange 12.0"
• Darien 10.5"
• Fairfield 10.3"
• Norwalk 10.3"
• Bridgeport 9.5"
• Greenwich 9.0"
• Westport 9.0"
• Stratford 8.0"

Sunday morning's low temperature fell to six degrees above zero at Sikorsky Memorial Airport, but what I most remember about that morning was the howling and downright dangerous winds. Here is a sampling of some of the peak wind gusts from across the region:

• Orange 53.0 mph (6:39 am)
• Bridgeport 49.0 mph (6:24 am)
• Westport 45.0 mph (2:05 pm)

Shoveling the nearly one-foot of snow in those conditions was extremely difficult. I remember taking several breaks that day because the wind was just too strong. The afternoon high temperature only reached 25 degrees, but it certainly felt much colder than that. Another factor was the blowing snow, which reduced visibility even though the skies became clear and sunny for much of the day. The weather made headlines nationwide:


 

By Sunday evening, roads were extremely icy, and the mercury continued to drop. The low temperature that night fell to five degrees above zero, and the wind continued to howl. It wasn't until later Monday afternoon, January 24, that the wind slowly began to subside and, by the following day, the temperature climbed to a more seasonable 34 degrees.

Bundle up the next few days. Temperatures will be quite cold the rest of this week. The mercury will dip into the single digits inland and close to 10 degrees above zero along the immediate shoreline tonight. However, wind chill values will fall to 10 below zero. Tomorrow will be the coldest day of the week with afternoon temperatures holding close to 20 degrees. A Winter storm is poised to take aim on us by Friday afternoon, possibly bringing moderate snow into early Saturday. Stay warm!

Paul

More Than a Half-Foot of Snow Fell on This Date in 2004

Just a little more than a half-foot of snow fell on this date, Sunday, January 18, 2004. Officially, Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford recorded 6.5" of snow. I remember shoveling the snow before watching the New England Patriots defeat the Indianapolis Colts, 24-14, in the American Football Conference championship game in Foxboro, Massachusetts, that afternoon.

Here is the video of that storm taken in Norwalk.

   

Paul

Record Low Temperature of Five Degrees Below Zero Set on This Date in 1957

A record low temperature of -5 degrees was established on this date in 1957 at Bridgeport. Take a look at the front page of The Bridgeport Post from Thursday, January 15, 1957. Please click the image below to enlarge.

According to the article, "An Arctic cold wave held the area in an icy grip as the U. S. Weather Station at the Bridgeport Municipal Airport, Stratford, reported a reading of five degrees below zero, its lowest since the facility was established in 1938."

The article states, "A check of low temperatures around Fairfield County upheld Sandy Hook as the most popular spot for snowmen with a reading of 18 degrees below zero reported. Unofficial lows in other sections are as follows: New Milford -17, Newtown and Stevenson -14, Easton and Botsford -12, Monroe -10 & -15, Weston -12, Fairfield -7 to -12, Danbury -11, Norwalk and Stratford -5, and Westport and Milford -4."

Paul

Wild Weather Happened Seven Years Ago This Week

A Dense Fog Advisory was issued early this morning for near-zero visibility. Temperatures were in the mid-to-upper 40s at daybreak, and some showers will linger through mid-to-late morning. However, things were quite different seven years ago this week. An incredible stretch of weather brought just about everything, except the kitchen sink, to southwestern Connecticut.

In fact, several storms brought heavy rain, accumulating snow, damaging winds, and dangerous icing to southwestern Connecticut over a three-day period which began on Saturday, January 14, 2006, and continued through the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, Monday, January 16, 2006. The wild weather ride actually didn't end until nearly a week later.

I recorded the following entries in my weather log, which I chart daily. Although most days are rather mundane, I highlighted these three days for obvious reasons. The weekend included record-high temperatures, record rainfall, tropical storm force winds, bitter cold wind chills below zero, icy roadways, and three-and-a-half inches of snow.

Saturday, January 14, 2006 --- A powerful Winter storm came barreling into the Northeast, producing record heavy rainfall of 1.59 inches, which broke the old mark of 0.91 inches, established in 1958. Strong southerly winds ahead of a well-defined cold front (51 miles-an-hour wind gust) brought down trees and power lines, and mild temperatures (56 degrees at 7:53 am) began a 36-hour stretch of severe weather across southwestern Connecticut.



I took each of these photos of the damage in my neighborhood from the storms. The first two show a truck and a car which were destroyed by falling trees in 50+ mile-an-hour wind gusts from January 14.



Sunday, January 15, 2006 --- Continued strong wind gusts (48 miles-an-hour) out of the North behind the front delivered much colder air (32 degree high and 11 degree low), and 3.5 inches of snow, creating a nightmare for local residents as power outages, below zero wind chills, and icy roadways punctuated the day's weather. The damage from the wind was extensive, as evidenced by the many trees which came tumbling down.



Monday, January 16, 2006 --- Bitter cold wind chills greeted early-morning risers as temperatures hovered between zero and ten degrees at daybreak. The high (29 degrees) and low (10) were well below normal for mid-January. Although the wind began to relax somewhat, we still had a peak wind gust of 31 miles-an-hour. United Illuminuating crews were out in full force attempting to restore power to many residents who were braving the ice, wind, and extreme cold for several days.



Personally, what I remember most from that weekend was losing power Saturday night, January 14, while my son and I were watching the New England Patriots' playoff game at Denver. We awoke to frigid, snowy, and icy conditions the following morning. However, fortunately for us, we were one of only a handful of families in our neighborhood to have power restored late the following morning. The majority of homes in our neighborhood remained without power for several days.

Paul