We 1 (12-05) Weekly Weather And Crop Bulletin National Agricultural Statistics Service USDA Washington, D.C. Released December 6, 2005, 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 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET. National Weather Summary Volume 92, No. 49 November 27 - December 3, 2005 For additional information, call (202) 720-2397. Highlights: In the wake of an early-season blizzard, bitterly cold air settled across the northern and central Plains, where weekly temperatures generally averaged 5 to 15 degrees F below normal. During the blizzard, wind gusts in excess of 60 m.p.h. lowered visibilities to near zero in blowing snow and created towering drifts. In contrast, near- to above-normal temperatures prevailed across the nation's southern tier and New England. In fact, temperatures averaged as much as 10 degrees F above normal in northern Maine. Meanwhile, frigid weather trailed the November 27-28 storm across the northern and central Plains. Although temperatures below 0 degrees F on the northern Plains increased stress on livestock, much of the winter wheat was protected by a substantial snow cover. One exception was western Nebraska's wheat area, which received little snow. Farther south, windy conditions accompanied mostly dry weather in Oklahoma, Texas, and eastern New Mexico, causing further deterioration of pastures and winter grains. In contrast, widespread, locally heavy rain fell from the Mississippi Valley eastward, followed by much colder weather. Early to mid-week rainfall topped 2 inches in parts of the middle Mississippi Valley and in a broad area stretching from western Florida northeastward along the Appalachian Cordillera into Maine. Later in the week, snow blanketed much of the Midwest and Northeast as far south as northern Missouri and the central Appalachians. Elsewhere, heavy precipitation fell from the Rockies westward, excluding southern California and the Southwest. In the Northwest, heavy rain and snow aided winter grains, boosted high-elevation snow packs, and further eased long-term drought. Farther south, significant precipitation fell in central California for the first time this autumn. The week opened with an outbreak of severe thunderstorms and a post-Thanksgiving snow storm. There were approximately three dozen tornadoes reported from the eastern Plains (eastern Kansas and northeastern Texas) to the lower and middle Mississippi Valley on November 27, followed the next day by several tornadoes in Alabama. Very warm weather prevailed in advance of the storm, where daily-record high were set in locations such as San Antonio, TX (90 degrees F on November 27), Huntington, WV (76 degrees F on November 28), and Syracuse, NY (70 degrees F on November 29). Meanwhile, daily-record rainfall totals included 1.30 inches (on November 28) in Lincoln, IL, and 3.68 inches (on November 29) in Williamsport, PA. Farther west, heavy snow fell across the Intermountain West, while wind-driven snow paralyzed travel across parts of the northern and central Plains. In addition, freezing rain caused widespread electrical disruptions in parts of northern Nebraska, the eastern Dakotas, and western Minnesota. In Utah's Wasatch Range, 2 to 3 feet of snow blanketed the Alta area on November 26-27. Farther east, November 27-28 precipitation totaled 3.54 inches in Huron, SD, where a period of heavy freezing rain was followed by 14.8 inches of snow on the 28th. Elsewhere in South Dakota, storm-total snowfall reached 20.0 inches in Kennebec. Meanwhile, November 27-28 peak wind gusts were clocked to 79 m.p.h. in Flagler, CO, 77 m.p.h. in Ruleton, KS, and 74 m.p.h. in Broken Bow, NE. The storm closed many major highways, including nearly 350 miles of Interstate 70 from Denver, CO, to Russell, KS. Farther north, Great Falls, MT, received 19.8 inches of snow during the last 5 days of November, nudging the monthly total (23.2 inches) past its November 1955 record sum of 22.1 inches. Great Falls also set a 3-day (November 26-28) snowfall record of 18.1 inches, surpassing its 1973 (April 19-21) mark of 17.6 inches. Elsewhere in Montana, Billings collected measurable snowfall on 10 consecutive days (totaling 10.0 inches) from November 25 - December 5, breaking its record of 8 days set in December 1989 and 1996. The November 27-28 storm also affected the southern Plains, although winds in excess of 50 m.p.h. were accompanied by precipitation totals of 0.25 inch or less. On November 28, visibilities below 1 mile were reported near the Lubbock Airport, while winds were clocked to 62 m.p.h. just to the south near Tahoka, TX. During the week ending December 2, more than two dozen large wildfires (100 acres or greater) charred more than 50,000 acres of vegetation in Oklahoma, mostly across the eastern part of the State. In Oklahoma City, OK, the monthly precipitation of a trace (2.11 inches below normal) tied 1910 and 1949 for its lowest November total on record. No rain (1.68 inches below normal) fell during the month in Wichita Falls, TX, tying its November record most recently attained in 1949. Following a brief cool snap, very warm weather returned to the south-central United States at week's end, when daily-record highs in Texas for December 3 included 88 degrees F in San Angelo and 87 degrees F in Abilene. San Angelo last received measurable rain on October 27. Farther east, Little Rock, AR (80 degrees F on December 3), posted a monthly record high, tying a standard previously attained on December 31, 1951, December 24, 1955, and December 5, 1956. Additional snow fell across the northern Plains and Midwest on November 30, when South Dakota totals reached 6.6 inches in Sioux Falls and 5.0 inches in Huron. Snow also blanketed areas from the northern Plains to the Northeast in early December. In Iowa, Waterloo netted 11.0 inches of snow from November 30 - December 3, reporting at least an inch each day. Lake-enhanced snow fell in early December downwind of the Great Lakes. On December 2-3, consecutive daily-record totals (9.2 and 11.4 inches) buried Syracuse, NY. In the snow's wake, frigid weather settled across the northern Plains and the upper Midwest. In South Dakota, Huron's minimum temperatures fell to -10 degrees F or lower during the first 5 days of December, including a daily-record low of -15 degrees F on December 2. Elsewhere, daily-record lows scattered across the West included 30 degrees F (on November 27) in Salinas, CA, and -4 degrees F (on November 28) at Arizona's Grand Canyon Airport. Elsewhere in the West, snow depths in Oregon for the week ending December 3 increased from 47 to 82 inches at Mt. Hood Meadows and from 15 to 46 inches at Government Camp. Meanwhile in California's southern Sierra Nevada, early-December snowfall generally ranged from 1 to 4 feet at elevations above 8,000 feet. National Agricultural Summary November 28 - December 4, 2005 Highlights: Temperatures averaged below normal across most of the Nation. Across much of the western Corn Belt, northern and central Great Plains, and northern and central Rocky Mountains, minimum temperatures were below 0 degrees Fahrenheit. However, snowfall in these areas provided a layer of insulation, protecting winter wheat from the cold weather. The heaviest snowfall was in the Pacific Northwest, where high elevation snow pack exceeded 50 inches in some locations. In contrast, conditions in the southern Great Plains were mostly warm and dry, further stressing pastures and winter wheat. In the Southeast, thunderstorms early in the week improved soil moisture, though mostly dry conditions prevailed through the remainder of the week. Conditions were similar in the Ohio River Valley and along the Atlantic Coast, though some of the precipitation was in the form of snow. Heavy rainfall in northern and central California contrasted with mostly dry weather in the Southwest. In Florida, strawberry harvest was active, however rainfall limited fieldwork for some vegetable crops. Georgia pasture conditions continued to improve with late-season rainfall. Rainfall slowed fieldwork in North Carolina, where some unharvested crops were beginning to show signs of damage from excessive moisture. Harvest of Louisiana's sugarcane crop progressed well, with better yields and sugar content than earlier-harvested acreage. In Texas, dry weather aided cotton harvest but caused winter wheat condition to decline. With mostly dry weather in Arizona, harvest of cotton, alfalfa, citrus crops, and vegetables was active. California's tangerine harvest was over 50 percent complete, while some vegetable crops were showing the effects of whitefly damage. In Hawaii, the banana harvest was active under mostly dry conditions. ACCESS TO REPORTS!! 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