It has been a tumultuous winter across the United States with temperatures plummeting below zero in more than 30 states, intense lake-effect snow that unleashed blizzard conditions and storms in the East that ended the snow drought that lasted over 700 days.
And there is still more than a month to go before the arrival of spring.
Snow has fallen in every state across the country this winter, including parts of the Gulf Coast where flakes rarely fall. Even parts of Florida have had a taste of snow, although it amounted to just a "trace" with less than 0.1 of an inch of accumulation.
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| Map of measurable snowfall so far this season. Map courtesy of NOAA |
The list includes Alaska, which is having an unusually snowy winter, and Hawaii, which has had several bouts of snow on Mauna Kea, a mountain that reaches over 13,000 feet in elevation. It is not uncommon to see snow at the peak of Hawaii's tallest mountain, although snow was nowhere to be found in the lower elevations where the majority of folks live and visit.
It was a quick recovery after December, a month when North America experienced its second-lowest snow cover since 1966, when record-keeping began.
New York City experienced more than 1 inch of snow accumulation for the first time in 700 days, a drought that ended Jan. 16. Despite the accumulation, the city is still nearly 10 inches behind the historical average snowfall for the season.
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As of Wednesday, top seasonal snowfall amounts at official NOAA snow stations include Juneau, Alaska, with 89.7 inches (7.5 feet) Anchorage, Alaska, at 87.7 inches, Marquette, Mich., at 63.2 inches and Buffalo, N.Y., where 52.9 inches of snow has piled up.
Most winters, 49 U.S. states have measurable snow, with Florida being the exception. Measurable snow has been recorded in Florida in at least six of the last 14 winters, and, similar to this winter, snow flurries have been recorded in the Sunshine State most years.
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