Characteristics of the top ten snowstorms at First-Order Stations in the U.S.

Abstract

Snowstorms can produce varying degrees of damage depending on the amount and intensity of the snowfall over a given amount of time. Concurrent weather conditions such as freezing rain and high winds often exacerbate the amount of damage received. In order to assess the frequency of potentially damaging conditions during climatologically significant snowstorms, the top ten snowstorms (TTS) at individual First-Order Stations in the eastern two-thirds of the conterminous U.S. were determined, and the hourly weather conditions during each event were analyzed. The results show that TTS have occurred as early as September and as late as June, with January being the peak month of occurrence. Hourly precipitation totals during TTS were 2.3 mm or less 88% of the time. Seven percent of TTS were classified as a blizzard with over half of the blizzards occurring in the West North Central region. The most common concurrent weather condition during a TTS was fog followed by blowing snow. Regionally, heavy snow events in the Northeast had relatively higher precipitation amounts, colder temperatures, higher winds, and more fog and blowing snow than any other region.