We 1 (12-03) Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released December 23, 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 Brian T. Young at (202) 720-7621, office hours 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET. National Weather Summary Volume 90, No. 50 December 14 - 20, 2003 For additional information, call (202) 720-2397. Highlights: Stormy weather gradually subsided in the East, but early- and mid-week storm systems produced additional heavy rain and snow from the Mid-Atlantic States into New England. In the latter region, heavy rains falling on a melting snow pack caused widespread flooding at mid-week. Meanwhile, another round of cold air trailed scattered showers across the Southeast. In Florida's citrus belt, below-normal temperatures helped to condition trees against increasingly cool weather. By Sunday, December 21, scattered temperatures near the freezing mark were noted as far south as the northern Everglades, although adverse effects on citrus and other winter agricultural interests were minor. Farther west, cold air briefly overspread winter agricultural areas in southern Texas, although no significant freezes were reported. In the Midwest, a late-week warming trend across the western Corn Belt contrasted with cold weather and snow showers downwind of the Great Lakes. Any remaining fieldwork in the eastern Corn Belt will have to wait until fields completely freeze. Farther west, late-week warmth and winds eroded winter wheat's protective snow cover on the northern and central Plains, while extremely dry conditions persisted on the southern Plains. On December 15, a dynamic low-pressure system briefly produced blizzard conditions on the central High Plains and sparked a wind and dust storm on the parched southern High Plains, maintaining severe stress on pastures and winter grains. Mild, mostly dry weather returned to areas from the Rockies westward, following a brief period of unsettled weather that boosted Western snow packs. Elsewhere, Northwestern winter grains continued to benefit from recent soil moisture improvements. Weekly temperatures averaging 6 to 14 degrees F above normal on the northern Plains contrasted with readings as much as 10 degrees F below normal in Florida. Early in the week, heavy precipitation fell throughout the East. Daily precipitation records for December 14 included 3.07 inches in Sarasota-Bradenton, FL, 2.25 inches in Wilmington, NC, and 1.70 inches in Norfolk, VA. Meanwhile, daily-record snowfalls were observed in locations such as Pittsburgh, PA (7.3 inches), and New York's Central Park (5.8 inches). Pittsburgh's month-to-date snowfall (through December 20) reached 20.4 inches, marking its snowiest December since 21.2 inches fell in 1974. On December 15, extremely heavy snow blanketed parts of Maine, where daily-record totals included 27.1 inches in Caribou and 16.0 inches in Bangor. Caribou's total represented its greatest December daily snowfall (previously, 19.4 inches on December 3, 1989) and second-snowiest day on record behind 28.6 inches on March 14, 1984. Meanwhile in Vermont, Burlington received 18.8 inches on December 14-15 and 10.2 inches on December 17-18, boosting its month-to-date snowfall to 49.6 inches. In Burlington's history, the only 2 months to feature higher snowfall totals were December 1970 (56.7 inches) and December 1969 (50.8 inches). Closer to the Atlantic Coast, however, much of the December 17-18 precipitation fell in the form of rain. In Piscataquis County, Maine, 24-hour rainfall included 3.44 inches in Greenville and 2.06 inches in Dover-Foxcroft. Due to the persistence of wet weather in the East, annual precipitation records were further demolished in locations such as Virginia's Dulles Airport (65.31 inches, or 160 percent of normal through December 21; previously 59.05 inches in 1972), Bristol, TN (64.84 inches, or 161 percent; previously 54.50 inches in 1950), and Greensboro, NC (61.76 inches, or 148 percent; previously 57.95 inches in 1901). January 1 - December 21 totals of 61.88 inches (152 percent of normal) in Baltimore, MD, and 60.22 inches (157 percent) in Washington, DC, were nearing the cities' 1889 records of 62.35 and 61.33 inches, respectively. Meanwhile in West Virginia, Charleston's year-to-date sum of 60.29 inches (140 percent of normal) stood just 0.18 inch shy of its 1950 standard. In contrast, Lubbock, TX, netted only 8.83 inches (48 percent of normal) from January 1 - December 21, leaving a distinct possibility that the city will experience its second-driest year on record. Currently, Lubbock's second-lowest annual precipitation total is 9.45 inches in 1924. On December 15, high winds sweeping across the southern High Plains lowered visibilities in the vicinity of Lubbock to as little as one-quarter mile in blowing dust. Lubbock clocked a peak wind gust to 62 m.p.h., while other December 15 gusts on the Texas High Plains included 67 m.p.h. near Morton and 65 m.p.h. near Plains. Farther north, Colorado Springs, CO, netted a 0.3-inch snowfall on December 15, accompanied by wind gusts to 56 m.p.h. Wild temperature fluctuations were common in Colorado and elsewhere on the Plains. In Pueblo, CO, highs reached 70 degrees F on December 17 and 20, but lows dipped to 1 degree F on December 16 and 8 degrees F on December 19. Farther west, daily-record lows on December 16 included -11 degrees F in Wells, NV, and 28 degrees F in Santa Barbara, CA. Just 2 days later, however, daily-record highs were set or tied in locations such as Mt. Wilson, CA (71 degrees F), and Seattle, WA (54 degrees F). Toward week's end, warmth overspread the High Plains, where record highs for December 20 included 68 degrees F in McCook, NE, and 54 degrees F in Cut Bank, MT. Meanwhile, cold weather settled into the East, resulting in additional snowfall downwind of the Great Lakes. In New York, Syracuse's weekly snowfall reached 32.6 inches, including 13.0 inches from December 17-20. Farther south, Gainesville, FL (22 degrees F), notched a daily-record low for December 21, while lows elsewhere in Florida on Sunday morning included 21 degrees F in Brooksville and 33 degrees F in Ruskin. Immokalee, FL, in the northern Everglades, reported a low of 32 degrees F. Highly variable temperatures--ranging from about 10 degrees F below normal to 10 degrees F above normal--prevailed across Alaska, in part because mild conditions overspread southeastern parts of the State. Meanwhile, some cold air remained trapped across the interior Alaska. Precipitation was locally heavy in southeastern Alaska but generally light elsewhere across the State. Weekly (December 15-21) snowfall totaled 18.9 inches in Anchorage, including a daily-record total of 5.3 inches on December 21, while weekly precipitation reached 9.31 inches in Yakutat. Farther south, Hawaiian weather featured a return to tranquility, following frequently heavy downpours in late November and early December. Only scattered showers across the western and central Hawaiian islands at midweek interrupted the quiet weather pattern. On December 16-17, 24-hour rainfall totals included 2.23 inches in Kokee, Kauai, and 1.03 inches in Kahakuloa, Maui. National Agricultural Summary December 15 - 21, 2003 Highlights: Moderate to heavy precipitation fell in the Northeast during the week, causing some localized flooding in parts of New England. Coastal areas of the middle Atlantic Coast States experienced some moderate precipitation, as did peninsular Florida and the southern Appalachians. The Corn Belt, Delta, Great Plains, and Rocky Mountains were mostly dry, with only light, widely scattered precipitation. Precipitation in the Pacific Northwest was again concentrated in the coastal areas, missing most of the crop-producing areas in the region. Temperatures were mostly above normal west of the Mississippi River, with very mild temperatures in the northern and central Great Plains, melting existing snow cover on winter wheat fields. Meanwhile, temperatures were below normal across the eastern third of the nation. Freezing temperatures again extended to the Gulf Coast. In Florida, sugarcane harvest continued and most vegetable crops remained in good condition, though some crops were hurt by heavy rainfall and cold temperatures. The cotton harvest was essentially complete in California, and seeding of small grains was active. Vegetable and citrus harvest was active and crops were generally in good condition. The cotton harvest in Arizona was still behind normal, while harvesting of fruits, vegetables, and citrus was active. In Hawaii, most crops were in good condition and progressing well, though development and harvest of some crops was slowed by cool, cloudy weather and wet soil conditions. The next "Weekly Weather and Crop Bulletin" report will be released after 12 p.m. ET on December 30, 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. 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