W e a t h e r W a r r i o r . N e t
WINTER WEATHER INFORMATION AND FACTS

Home
Winter Storms 07/08
Winter Forecasting
Storm History
Chasing in Winter
Winter Safety
Winter Vehicles
Winter Radar/Maps
Photo Gallery
Winter Links

Winter Storm
Intercepts

January 8th, 1999
2002/2003 Summary
December 5th, 2002
December 11th, 2002
December 24th, 2002
January 5th, 2003
February 12th, 2003
February 17th, 2003
November 5th, 2003
November 13th, 2003
December 9th, 2005
February 25th, 2007
December 5th, 2007
January 17th, 2008

...many more to come

Winter Weather Links
NWS - MD Winter's Page
WeatherTalkRadio Winter Outlook



The Winter Season in the Washington/Baltimore Metro area is here, and WeatherWarrior.Net is gearing up. For the immediate area, the first storm of a few inches typically hit about the second or third week in Decemeber. I plan to have pictures and other imagery of past storms very soon.  Unknown coverage locally and into the Northeast (lake affects region) this year because of surgery recovery, but if OK'd by doctors to drive and travel, we'll certainly be covering as much as possible.


Snow Fall Ranked Storms (storm total)*
1.(1)(3) 28.0" 1922 Jan. 27-28
2. 20.5" 1899(3) Feb. 11-13
3. 18.7" 1979 Feb. 18-19
4. 17.1" 1996 Jan. 06-08
5. 16.6" 1983 Feb. 11-12
6. 14.4" 1958 Feb. 15-16
7. 14.4" 1936 Feb. 07
8. 13.8" 1966 Jan. 29-30
9. 13.7" 1899(3) Feb. 8
10. 12.0" 1932 Dec. 17
Notes:
1. The biggest unofficial snow (before official records began) was in January 1772 when 36 inches (3 feet) fell in the Washington - Baltimore area. It has been called the Washington-Jefferson snowstorm because it was recorded in both of their diaries

2. Washington DC's normal winter snowfall is 17 inches, but just north and west of the city, the normal increases to 22 inches. This includes the Baltimore area.  In the storms mentioned above, it is typical for areas to the north and west of  DC to see 150% of that snowfall. 

3. If you combine the 1899 storms from Feb. 8th - Feb.13th, that would be ranked no.1 as the total snowfall would be about 34.2" (although some melting would likely have occured between the storm)

Information from:
The National Weather Service
Baltimore-Washington Forecast Office
Press Release
http://www.erh.noaa.gov/lwx/winter/storm-pr.htm


The Greater Washington Metropolitan Area
(Northern Montgomery, Western Fairfax, Western Prince William and Loudoun)
 * Based on 150% of the official snowfall amount recorded over 100 years.
Snow Fall Amount
Return Frequency
24 or more inches
1 in 25 years
18 or more inches
1 in 7 years
14 or more inches
1 in 3 years
10 or more inches
1in 2 years
8 or more inches
1 per year
4 or more inches
3 times per year
1 or more inches
6 times per year
Numbers Produced by Barbara McNaught Watson
                                   Warning Coordination Meteorologist
                                    NWS Baltimore-Washington Forecast Office