Thanksgiving Day Temperature Graph Over the Last 20 Years

Local climatologist Ralph Fato created this chart showing the Thanksgiving Day high temperatures at Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford over the last 20+ years, since 1990.

This Thanksgiving will be one of the coldest with a daytime high temperature in the mid 30s and a gusty Northwest wind. Click the chart to enlarge for better viewing.

Paul

Thanksgiving Day Snowstorm 24 Years Ago Today Remains Snowiest November Day on Record

Twenty-four years later, the Thanksgiving Day snowstorm of November 23, 1989, still remains the snowiest November day on record in southwestern Connecticut. The storm, which began Wednesday evening, November 22, delivered over a half-foot of snow in less than 24 hours, while creating havoc on area roadways and major airports in the Northeast. Officially, 6.6 inches of snow fell at Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford.

The first Thanksgiving Day snowstorm in 51 years postponed traditional high school football rivalry games and even prevented Snoopy and Bugs Bunny from making it to the big parade in Manhattan. Snow fell from Virginia to New England, breaking records in Boston, New Jersey, and New York City. By the time it dwindled to a flurry late Thursday, November 23, the storm delivered 4.7 inches of snow to Central Park.

The unforgettable storm was the seventh measurable Thanksgiving Day snow recorded in New York City since the National Weather Service started keeping records more than 120 years earlier. The last white Thanksgiving in the city was in 1938, when 3.9 inches of snow fell. In Newark, nearly six inches of snow fell in less than 24 hours, breaking the Thanksgiving record of four inches set in 1938.

The New York City police department said there were about 1.8 million spectators and marchers at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. They described it as a light to medium turnout. Strong gusts in the early morning tore at the seams and patches of the giant Snoopy and Bugs Bunny helium balloons, puncturing Snoopy's nose and tearing a hole in his comrade's side, a Macy's parade official, said.

Boston experienced the heaviest Thanksgiving Day snow in 65 years, and in southern New England, three to eight inches were recorded. Long Island was the hardest hit, in particular Northport and Centerport, where five to seven inches fell. In Brooklyn and New Jersey, up to five inches were reported. There were no record lows in temperature, however.

What do I most remember about the snowstorm? I just began working as the evening weather anchor at News 12 Connecticut two months earlier, and the snow caught just about everybody by surprise. Although there was some snow in the forecast, I distinctly remember telling the viewers that it shouldn't amount to much, and travel shouldn't be adversely affected. Boy, was I ever wrong!

Paul

Shorter Days Lead to Seasonal Affective Disorder

After 18-and-a-half years of working the early-morning shift, I suppose I’ve gotten used to getting up and driving to work in the dark. However, I have an especially difficult time with the Sun setting so early in the afternoon. It seems that there is very little time to do anything outside before it gets dark. In fact, one of the late buses from our neighborhood school arrived just before 5 o’clock last night when it was completely dark out. I don’t like it.

Those who work the 9-to-5 shift are coming home in the dark now. Sunset this afternoon is at 4:33. And, it only gets earlier over the month. By the end of the month, Sunset is at 4:24. The earliest time the Sun sets at our latitude is 4:23 in early December. That is a striking contrast to late June, when the latest Sunset in southwestern Connecticut happens at 8:30.

Psychologically, the darker afternoons and evenings affect many people. You’ve no doubt heard about Seasonal Affective Disorder. According to the National Mental Health Association, some people suffer from symptoms of depression during the Winter months, with those symptoms subsiding during the Spring and Summer. This may be a sign of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). SAD is a mood disorder associated with depression episodes and related to seasonal variations of light.

How does SAD affect people? People with the disorder frequently experience the following:

• Sleep problems – oversleeping but not refreshed, cannot get out of bed, needing a nap in the afternoon
• Overeating – carbohydrate craving leading to weight gain
• Depression, despair, misery, guilt, anxiety – normal tasks become frustratingly difficult
• Family / social problems – avoiding company, irritability, loss of libido, loss of feeling
• Lethargy – too tired to cope, everything an effort
• Physical symptoms – often joint pain or stomach problems, lowered resistance to infection
• Behavioral problems – especially in young people

Melatonin, a sleep-related hormone secreted by the pineal gland in the brain, has been linked to SAD. This hormone, which may cause symptoms of depression, is produced at increased levels in the dark. Therefore, when the days are shorter and darker the production of this hormone increases.

Phototherapy or bright light therapy has been shown to suppress the brain’s secretion of melatonin. Although, there have been no research findings to definitely link this therapy with an antidepressant effect, many people respond to this treatment.

I admit, the early darkness always shocks me in early November. Remember, it was just over two months ago we were still enjoying Summer and relatively brighter evenings. The Sun set at 7:25 on the first day of September. Seemingly, in the blink of an eye, we’re just about five weeks from the first day of Winter. Yeah, it’s a bummer, to be sure.

Personally, the only positive about the longer nights is the relative ease of falling asleep. I actually feel as though I should be going to bed at 8 p.m., even though it’s an early time by most people’s standards. During the Summer, it’s virtually impossible to fall asleep when the Sun is still shining, my son is playing, and I hear people laughing and talking outside. I actually embrace the darker evenings for that reason alone. After all, the 2 o’clock alarm is not a “friend,” no matter the time of the year.

So, if you don’t enjoy the shorter days and longer nights, we have about a month before the length of daylight begins to increase once again. The first day of Winter is technically “the shortest day of the year.” Before you know it, the evenings will start getting a little brighter once more.

It can’t get here fast enough!

Paul

Full Beaver Moon Happens This Sunday

You may have noticed the Moon waxing over the last several nights. In fact, it was shining brilliantly on my way to work this morning just after 3 o'clock. The Full Beaver Moon happens this Sunday morning, November 17, at 10:16. Unfortunately, there skies will be mostly cloudy late Saturday night and Sunday as a frontal system approaches from the West.

November's Full Moon is so named because this was the time to set beaver traps before the swamps froze to ensure a supply of warm Winter furs. Another interpretation suggests that the name Full Beaver Moon comes from the fact that the beavers are now actively preparing for Winter. It is sometimes also referred to as the Frosty Moon.



During the late 1800s, beavers were almost hunted to extinction by the white trappers and traders, because the beaver pelt became a very fashionable wardrobe accessory, especially for men's top hats in Europe and in New England. Since that time they have greatly increased in number and in the amount of damage that they cause during the building of their dams and dens.

Are you aware that a single beaver may chew down hundreds of trees every year as he continuously builds and repairs his lodges and dams? The beavers do provide habitat for other animals such as ducks and otters, but they can also cause unexpected large-scale floods.

Over ten years ago in the Washington, D.C. tidal basin, where many of the famous ornamental cherry trees bloom drawing tourists from all over the world, a family of beavers moved into the "luxurious digs." The beavers were noticed as soon as they began downing cherry trees to build their lodges. The National Park Service Rangers quickly set live humane traps and moved the family of pesky beavers to another area where the trees were not as famous or rare.

Full Moon names date back to Native Americans in what is now the Northern and Eastern United States. The tribes kept track of the seasons by giving distinctive names to each recurring Full Moon. Their names were applied to the entire month in which each occurred. There was some variation in the Moon names, but in general, the same ones were current throughout the Algonquin tribes from New England to Lake Superior.

As far as our weather goes, today will feature sunshine mixing with high clouds and temperatures in the middle 50s. Tonight will become mostly cloudy and not as cold with lows in the upper 30s to lower 40s. Early clouds will give way to sunshine tomorrow with a high in the mid-to-upper 50s. Sunday will be mostly cloudy with some light drizzle or a sprinkle or two by afternoon with a high near 58 degrees.

Have a good weekend.

Paul

Holland Hill School's Third- and Fourth-Graders Well-Prepared for Weatherkids Visit

I visited with the third- and fourth-graders at Holland Hill School in Fairfield, Wednesday morning, November 13, 2013. They were well-prepared for my visit.

   

Paul

First Snow of Season Coats Lawns

A strong cold front brought a burst of snow to the region early this morning, which caused wet roads and a whitening of the lawns. Officially, one-tenth of an inch of snow fell at Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Stratford, but two inches of snow were unofficially reported in Redding. This view along Route 107 in Redding was taken by our camera during the mid-morning snow.

This wasn't the earliest snow in recent memory. That happened two years ago when a Nor'easter delivered up to a foot of snow in parts of Northern Fairfield County October 29, 2011. More than eight inches of snow fell at Sikorsky Airport last November 7 and 8. Here is a look at the dates of the first snowfall from each of the last seven years, courtesy of local climatologist Ralph Fato:

• November 12, 2013
• November 7, 2012
• October 29, 2011
• November 8, 2010
• December 5, 2009
• November 30, 2008
• December 13, 2007

The temperature was in the lower 50s at midnight, but once the cold front cleared the region, the mercury dropped like a rock. In fact, the temperature quickly fell into the low-to-mid 30s by mid-morning. Light drizzle was reported in Norwalk between 3 and 6:45 a.m. before transitioning to a mix of rain and wet snow from 6:45 to 7 o'clock. A half-inch of snow was measured in Norwalk between 7 and 9 o'clock before it tapered off.

Here are three more photos taken by Ralph. The first shows a Wintry scene along the Merritt Parkway in Stamford. The second was taken in Greenwich at 9 o'clock. The last photo was taken at the country club in New Canaan at 11 o'clock.

Paul