Is it almost spring?

Much of this winter has seemed more like spring weather.  And this being Groundhog Day,  two out of three Canadian rodents predicted an early spring.   Ontario's Wiarton Willie groundhog and Nova Scotia's Shubenacadie Sam saw their shadows predicting an early spring, but Manitoba's woodchuck, Winnipeg Willow, agreed with Pennsylvania's Punxsutawney Phil, forecasting six more weeks of winter. But meteorologists warn that unpredictable weather may still have surprises in store.   Canadian meteorologist David Phillips says " ... it is premature to expect that winter will go away and spring is on the way in spite of what the groundhogs say."   

Weather forecasters had said we were going to have a long cold winter this year but we have had short cold spells and many weeks of mild weather.   Since I can't resist plotting numbers in a spreadsheet I plotted the winter temperatures so far. 

We had one fairly cold week in late November with temperature lows in the -20s, and then mild weather through December and up to mid January.  There were only 2 days in December with lows at or below -20C, and most days went up above 0C or minus single digits.  Then in mid January we were hit with a very cold week with temperatures in the -30s and extreme windchill in the -40s.   But then the mild weather has been back and still continuing.  I am very glad for this since I wasn't able to go out at all in the very cold week.   

 

The meteorologists explain the unseasonably mild winter as an "arctic oscillation" which keeps the jet stream stationary holding the very cold air in the far north.  What ever the reason I can take this kind of winter.  But we know enough that we haven't seen the last of cold winter weather no matter what the furry rodents say.