Here comes spring! Will it begin cold and snowy? Here's what to expect.
After what has been a very long and unseasonably cold winter, the coldest since 2015, we are ready to bid the months of December, January and February goodbye.
March 1 is just days away, and it will usher in the season of spring including March, April and May. Hours of daylight are already on the increase and common sense would lead us all to believe the temperatures will be on the rise as well.
Unfortunately, it's not that simple.
For example, on March 6 and 7 in 2015 we dipped to 11 degrees, which compares to the frigid temperatures we have had over the past three winter months. Hardly spring-like.
On the flip side, just three years ago we touched 96 degrees late in spring 2022.
When we look at snow, well, there is still a big lack of the white, fluffy stuff.
Only 8 inches has fallen since last fall, leaving us 9 inches below average. So, although it's been a cold winter, it hasn't been a snowy one. If you are a snow lover, don't give up hope: March and early spring can be one of our snowiest times in Philadelphia. More than 11.5 inches of snow fell on March 13, 1993, and a whopping 19 inches fell on April 3, 1915. And, for non-snow lovers, the last time more than an inch of snow fell in March, April or May was during spring 2019.
So how is spring 2025 shaping up? The climatological outlook from NOAA's Climate Prediction Center is for a 40-50% chance of above-average temperatures and equal chances of average precipitation over the three spring months. Remember the key word here is average. We could easily have one bitterly cold spring month followed by two warmer-than-average months and the final three-month average would be a slightly above-average temperature for spring.
So, what does all this mean for you? How about an improvement over the current colder and wetter pattern we have been locked in?
Right now, February looks to end with average temperatures in the mid-40s and snow-free. In other words, March will likely come in more like a lamb than a lion. That could change rapidly, though, because our active weather pattern will continue with ups and downs through at least the first week of March.
It's too early to tell if this will be another spring like 2012, which was our warmest on record, followed by 2010 the second warmest on record. In fact, seven of our 10 warmest springs have been in the past 25 years.
Of course, it could also be like the spring of 2018 when 15.2 inches of snow fell.
So don't put away the winter gear just yet, but make sure you know where the shorts and flip-flops are just in case.
