Friday was a cloudy day, quite mild in the early AM with a brief somewhat intense shower about 0330 that had a max rain rate of 3.95″/hour. The last bit of rain fell around 0545. The rest of the day was cloudy, dry and gradually colder with clearing in the evening. Temperatures started out in the mid 60s right at midnight, then fell into the upper 50s by mid AM then a slight rise to a PM max of 61° at 1320, then fell off the rest of the day to the mid 30s by midnight under clear skies. The Friday maximum temperature from the VP2 (67.1°) was recorded at 0027 while the minimum temperature (36.5°) was recorded at 2359. Dew point temperatures were high in the early AM but fell off nicely the rest of the day into the 20s by late evening, ranging from a high of 59° very early at 0000 down to a low of 27° at 2331. Relative humidity values were high in the early AM but started falling by the end of the day (96% – 63%). Barometric values rose back up again today, ranging from a low of 29.64″ early at 0131 but climbed most of the rest of the day to a high of 30.27″ at 2358.

Remember now you can get the VP2 data on Weatherlink. You can access the data through http://www.weatherlink.com/user/walrusman444.

I am posting daily to weather underground. My ID is KMDROCKV200 and my station is called “Gardens of Traville.” Data is online, normally just about in real-time. I contribute daily to cocorahs as Rockville 2.8 WNW, Station ID MD-MG-115. Please remember that Weather Underground does not report snow data, and reflects what is recorded automatically through the tipping bucket VP2 gauge.

I found out from the WEATHERSHELTER editor Bob Ziff that the reason the copy of the January 1904 COOP data for River Vale NJ was included in my mailing yesterday was that a -34° reading was reached on the 5th of that month (January) and that is the all-time state record low min for the state of New Jersey. The form was hard to read and under the actual number space on the form it was indicated as 34B and not -34 which is what I am used to seeing. So I missed it, and I had not gotten to look at the form closer as yet as I had intended. I got a lot more DC-AMS Chapter Science Fair work done, both on my growing excel spreadsheet and on outgoing/incoming email.  I talked late with Ray in the early morning about an apparent weakness showing up of late with the NCEP surface analysis chart. They seem to tend to overpopulate pressure systems (mostly HIGHs but some LOWs) out in the Rockies. I think we counted 10 HIGHS and 2 LOWS over the Rockies and the Intermountain West. Ray would be interested to know if you have noticed this in this map recently. I can relay anything to him that you would want to report in. The East Coast appeared to look much better to me.

We started Friday cloudy with the bulk of our daily precipitation (0.19″) falling around 0330 for the day (3.95″/hour rain rate) Gradually temps started falling off after a very warm start. Colder temps really came in in the late afternoon and early evening along with a bit of wind with the clearing skies. Overnight into Saturday we have been quite clear, with temps falling to around the freezing mark. The rain in my rain gauge from Friday froze partially. Colder and sunny early on Saturday but with increasing high clouds already starting as the storm to our SW starts to move in with highs in the mid 30s and lows around 30°. A PM Wintry mix should develop with minimal accumulations, no more here than 1 inch of slushy snow at best (100 POP). Sunday should be mostly sunny with highs in the upper 40s and lows around freezing. Monday looks clear early then clouds in the PM with it looking like temps hovering around the 50° mark all day and a 50 POP for PM showers. On Tuesday another warm up under partly cloudy skies (AM clouds/PM sun) with highs in the low 70s and lows in the mid 50s. Wednesday will be warm again (mid 70s) with lows in the mid-upper 40s and a 50 POP for PM showers.

On the Channel 4 weather website at 0912 radar is showing light rain moving in from the west over sections of the western Carolinas. Much heavier cells over a good part of TN and southern KY with possibly thunderstorms over Arkansas and Oklahoma.

As of 0912, the data from the VP2 (coming from the ground radiation shield about 4 feet off the ground just under and out from the balcony) and the Lakewood WXBug station are as follows:

Sunny, cold, dry for now with increasing high clouds this morning.

Station Relative Location Temp RH DP     BP    Wind High/Low temp Friday
VP2            Ground         35.3  64  24 30.39S    NA     67.1/36.5

There was 0.19″ of precipitation in the cocorahs gauge on Friday through midnight obs. The VP2 tipping bucket rain gauge under my balcony also recorded 0.19″. The max rain rate (MRR) was 3.95″/hour at 0325 and 0330.

Friday’s precipitation 0.19″
February precipitation is 3.42″
February snowfall 0.0″
Snow on ground 0.0″ (reported to the nearest half-inch)
The seasonal snowfall total is 5.2″.
Year-to-date precipitation total is 5.25″

WX Bug Lakewood 4500 ft, 33 65 22 30.36″S SE 4 G E 10
                            140° from station                     68/35

The Lakewood rain gauge recorded 0.12″ of precipitation on Friday. It is now reporting 3.72″ for a monthly (February) total and a 2018 year-to-date (YTD) amount of 5.97″.

At 2400 obs Friday night the temperature from the VP2 was 36.5 RH 70% BP 30.27″R DP 27.7. Clear, colder, dry.

Good morning from the sunny, seasonably cold , and dry Walrus early on this Saturday.