Putnam County snowfall just half a normal winter

Sunday, March 20, 2016
Banner Graphic Photo One of the first true signs of spring, daffodils are popping up all around Greencastle as spring officially arrived on Sunday morning.

Snowfall in Putnam County for winter 2015-16 was just half the average winter season but probably a little more than we remember.

Local weather observer Diana Foust agrees as she closed the book on winter 2015-16 with the official arrival of spring at about 12:30 a.m. Sunday.

"I was surprised myself when I added the snowfalls," Foust said, concurring that it seemed like the Greencastle area total would be less than 10 inches for the season. "There was 13 inches."

The first measurable snow locally came Nov. 22 and amounted to two inches, she noted.

Then only 0.4 inches fell during December, followed by 5.6 inches in January and five inches in February.

On several occasions, Foust said, she recorded only a trace of snow.

Overall, central Indiana normally receives 25.9 inches of snowfall annually. Average monthly totals are 0.7 inches in November, 6.9 inches for December, 8.6 inches in January, 6.5 inches in February and 2.6 inches for March.

Meanwhile, total local precipitation logged for the period November through February was 14.95 inches.

"When it rains and then begins to snow the measurement is a little more difficult," Foust noted. "The snow I actually melted (snow water equivalent) equaled 1.32 inches of water. So rainfall only is approximately equal to 13.63."

The greatest amount of rain in the Greencastle area all came in December -- 3.23 inches on Dec. 27, then .97 inches on Dec. 28 and .88 inches on Dec. 29.

The National Weather Service Indianapolis office reports that overall, winter 2015-16 ranks as the 12th warmest and 50th wettest with the 50th least snowfall of all time. That includes snowfall records going back to 1884 and temperature and precipitation records that date back to 1871.

The largest daily snowfall received all winter at Indianapolis was only a little bit more than two inches.

Meanwhile, the NWS official outlook for meteorological spring (March-May) indicates a slightly greater chance of above normal temperatures. At Indianapolis, the average temperature for the spring season is 52.6 degrees.

The outlook also calls for a greater chance of below-normal precipitation. The average spring season precipitation is 12.42 inches along with 2.8 inches of snowfall, most of which typically falls during March.

With March 1 comes the end of meteorological winter, a period defined as covering the months of December through February. The winter of 2015-16 was the warmest winter for many since 2011-12, and the third warmest winter on record at Indianapolis since 2000.

Central Indiana experienced one of the warmest Decembers on record with many locations 10 to 13 degrees above normal for the month.

Respond to this story

Posting a comment requires free registration: