We 1 (1-03) Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released January 7, 2003, by the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Agricultural Statistics Board, U.S. Department of Agriculture. For information on "Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin" call Mark E. Miller at (202)720-7621, office hours 7:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. National Weather Summary Volume 90, No. 1 December 29, 2002 - January 4, 2003 For additional information, call (202) 720-2397. Highlights: At least 4 inches of precipitation soaked parts of northern California and the Pacific Northwest for the fourth consecutive week, accompanied by gusty winds. However, only light precipitation fell in areas from the Southwest to the central Rockies, where the effects of long-term drought persisted. Meanwhile, mild, dry weather prevailed on the Plains, where weekly temperatures averaged 4 to 16 degrees F above normal. Although the mild conditions favored overwintering wheat, drought-related concerns on the northern and central High Plains included soil moisture shortages, no protective snow cover, and wheat's exposure to potential weather extremes. In the Corn Belt, mild, mostly dry conditions in the upper Midwest contrasted with wet weather in the Ohio Valley. Snow blanketed the eastern Corn Belt toward week's end. On January 3-4, heavy snow returned to the Northeast, the region's second major winter storm in less than 2 weeks. Meanwhile, more rain fell across the South, further delaying fieldwork and threatening the quality of winter grains. Although dry weather returned to the South late in the week, cool conditions slowed evaporation rates from wet fields and flooded lowlands. According to the California Department of Water Resources, the high-elevation Sierra Nevada snow pack contained an average of 16 inches of liquid (140 percent of the year-end normal) by New Year's Eve, up from 4 inches (about 80 percent of normal) on December 1. Meanwhile, monthly rainfall totaled 23.31 inches (367 percent of normal) in Eureka, CA, breaking their December 1996 record of 21.26 inches. Farther inland, a daily-record total of 0.86 inch on December 30 in Boise, ID, accounted for nearly one-eighth of their annual precipitation. Nevertheless, Boise still experienced their third-driest year on record (6.96 inches, or 57 percent of normal), behind 6.64 inches in 1966 and 6.69 inches in 1868. Elsewhere across the western half of the Nation, however, 2002 was the driest year on record in locations such as Yuma, AZ (0.03 inch, or 1 percent of normal), Pueblo, CO (3.94 inches, or 32 percent), and Chadron, NE (7.78 inches, or 47 percent). Farther east, light freezing rain (0.01 inch) on January 4 barely ended a record-setting 53-day dry spell in Des Moines, IA. Des Moines' streak without measurable precipitation, which stretched from November 12 to January 3, surpassed their former record of 45 days, set from October 2 - November 15, 1952. Meanwhile, another soaking rainfall across the South produced several daily-record totals and contributed to a few December-record amounts. In Florida, it was the wettest New Year's Eve on record in Orlando (3.29 inches) and Tampa (2.68 inches). With a monthly total of 11.39 inches (493 percent of normal), Orlando noted their second-wettest December on record behind 12.63 inches in 1997. Nearby Melbourne, FL, measured their highest December sum (10.28 inches, or 445 percent of normal), eclipsing the 1940 record of 7.89 inches. Farther north, it was the wettest December 31 on record in Evansville, IN (1.34 inches), and the wettest New Year's Day on record in locations such as Washington, DC (1.52 inches), and Newark, NJ (1.73 inches). Prior to the rainfall, cold air briefly settled into Florida, resulting in daily-record lows on December 29 in Vero Beach (34 degrees F) and Melbourne (36 degrees F). A day later, daily-record highs in the Midwest included 63 degrees F in Peoria, IL, and 62 degrees F in Burlington, IA. During the second half of the week, warmth intensified across the western half of the Nation, resulting in more than five dozen daily-record highs. On January 3, daily records included 61 degrees F in Sheridan, WY, and 64 degrees F in Hill City, KS. A day later in California, record highs peaked at 87 degrees F in Simi Valley and Chatsworth. On January 3-4, snow spread across the Northeast in conjunction with a developing coastal storm. The system followed a track similar to the December 25-26 storm, blanketing many of the same areas with heavy snow. Albany, NY, received 20.8 inches on January 3-4, their tenth-greatest storm-total snowfall on record. The storm followed Albany's ninth-greatest snowfall on record, a 21.0-inch total on December 25-26. The only other winter that Albany recorded two 20-inch snowfalls was 1887-88. The highest unofficial combined total for the two storms was 77 inches, in Cherry Valley (Otsego County), NY, where 38 inches was reported from January 2-4. Elsewhere in New York, Binghamton netted 17.3 inches on January 3, their greatest single-day January snowfall since 18.4 inches was measured on January 13, 1964. The following day, 17.4 inches blanketed Burlington, VT, their second-highest single-day total on record during any month behind 23.1 inches on January 14, 1934. Warm, mostly dry weather prevailed in Hawaii, where weekly temperatures averaged as much as 2 degrees F above normal. However, strong westerly winds developed across parts of the State by January 4, when Lihue, Kauai, noted a daily-record gust to 45 mph. Meanwhile, mild, stormy weather prevailed in southeastern Alaska, but temperatures averaged as much as 14 degrees F below normal across the Alaskan mainland. In southern Alaska, Yakutat (45 degrees F) posted a daily-record high on January 4, but Valdez measured 50.7 inches of snow on December 30-31 and another 32.9 inches during the first 5 days of January. The snow more than quadrupled the season-to-date total (108.9 inches) in Valdez, where only 25.3 inches had fallen prior to December 30. Meanwhile, the coldest air of the season overspread interior Alaska, where the New Year's Day low temperature in McGrath was -38 degrees F. National Agricultural Summary December 30 2002 - January 5, 2003 Stormy weather persisted in the Pacific Northwest, delivering heavy rain to low-lying coastal areas and significant snowfall to coastal mountain ranges. Significant amounts of precipitation also spilled over to inland mountains and valleys, improving topsoil moisture supplies, reducing long-term moisture deficits, and boosting irrigation reserves. However, the storms produced virtually no precipitation for the Great Plains, leaving winter wheat fields on the High Plains exposed to potentially damaging temperature extremes. However, temperatures remained far above normal over the Pacific Northwest and northern Great Plains, further reducing the threat of heaving and winter kill, despite the lack of a protective snow cover. In California, precipitation interrupted field and orchard work in the central and northern valleys, but the delays were mostly brief. The precipitation and above-normal temperatures contributed to vigorous crop growth. A strong storm that formed in the southern Great Plains produced heavy rain, damaging winds, and flooding as it moved across the interior Mississippi Delta and up the Ohio River Valley. Parts of the Gulf Coast and scattered areas of the interior Southeast and Atlantic Coastal Plain also received heavy rainfall and associated severe weather. The storms further hampered sugarcane harvest in Louisiana and saturated Florida's already wet citrus groves. Abnormally warm, dry weather prevailed in the Corn Belt and adjacent areas of the Great Plains and Great Lakes. The next "Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin" report will be released after 12 p.m. ET on January 14, 2003. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact the USDA's TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD). 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