Snow Cover Now At 56 Year High In Northern Hemisphere

Gondwanaland

Well-known member
Interesting. Could be a very cold and snowy winter. (probably not the greatest for those dealing with energy issues, like much of Europe, who have been overly reliant on Russia and getting rid of coal and nuclear power).
Does it even seem possible that our planet may have the most snow cover to date on modern record? We will be looking at the Northern Hemisphere as a whole and areas with any snow cover. So that epic Lake Effect Snow Storm last week was impressive, but only covers about 1% of the area that includes the USA, Canada, Europe, Russia, and northern Asia.

It may seem far-fetched when many of us have not seen snow yet, and some are convinced we don’t see much anymore. This nugget of data may be enough to put you over the top with anticipation for the winter ahead. The snow cover across the Northern Hemisphere has reached its highest level since measurements began in 1967 by NOAA and Rutgers University. It is currently above the 56-year mean! The supporting data is below, along with links to follow up directly on your own.

If you are a snow lover like me, this is very exciting and puts our Faith in the Flakes into full force. On the flip side, this does bring up a sincere concern as well. A cold and snowy winter combined with high energy prices and other economic (inflation) factors may be difficult for many to afford.

Record Snow Measurements

The historic Lake Effect Snow across western and northern New York State in the middle of November was a headline grabber. We will begin with that, but there was much more across the Northern Hemisphere.

Historic Lake Effect Snow

Let’s back up to just a week ago when the nation was glued to updates of obscene snow measurements outside of Buffalo, NY. Orchard Park (home of the Buffalo Bills) led the charge off Lake Erie with 81.2 inches, most of which fell in two days. Meanwhile, the Lake Ontario band pushed 74 inches of snow up the Tughill Plateau to Natural Bridge, NY.

Something Interesting

The Lake Effect Event was from November 16 to 21, 2022. However, other parts of the US had their snow melting at that time. It is important to note that while one area can boom, others can be melting away.

Daily Snowfall October 11 to November 22, 2022


US Covered By Snow
  • On November 16: 41.1%
  • On November 21: 29.6%

National Snowfall Analysis Through November 28​

Notice the orange and red of over 3 to 4 feet of snow. Beyond the Lake Effect event in New York, check out the heavy snow that has fallen across the Rockies.

Record Snow Cover Extent

This is the fun part. Since 1967, NOAA has worked with The Rutgers University Global Snow Lab to measure the extent of snow across the globe. Sounds like a dream job, right?

In the 56th year, the cover of snow has reached beyond the previous high!

As of November 28, the Snow Coverage Extent is over 41 million square kilometers.

Looking at the chart, this current snow is almost one full month ahead of schedule.

Snow Mass as of November 25

The Finnish Meteorological Institute shows the Northern Hemisphere snow mass is 1 Standard Deviation ABOVE the mean.

Snow Water Equivalent

The Environment and Climate Change Canada program shows the Northern Hemisphere snow water equivalent is 1 Standard Deviation ABOVE the mean.

Sea Ice and Snow Depth

The National Institute of Polar Research combines the sea ice, water temperatures (where ice may form soon), and snow depth. All of these are factors that can increase planetary albedo, which is a reflection of solar energy back to space off the white covered surface.

Arctic Sea Ice

This is still troubling. The National Snow and Ice Data Center at the University of Colorado continue to measure Arctic sea ice well below the last 30-year average. This is the time of year with little to no sun and intense cold, where the ice cover can grow rapidly. But at this point, it is below 1 Standard Deviation.

The positive spin is that more snow across the continents can enhance the cold air masses, which can expand the cold and perhaps enhance sea ice growth.

Note: Ocean Water is salty and freezes at a lower temperature than fresh water. This begins at 29ºF.

Great Lakes Surface Analysis

Water Temperatures and Ice Cover
No ice yet and temperatures range from near 40ºF to mid 50s.

This was the observation on November 27, 2022. This will be a great tool to continue tracking through winter. The water temperature is a factor with available Lake Effect Snow Events. When ice forms, that mechanism shuts down.
Lake Erie is the most shallow of all the lakes and tends to freeze over first.
Pics for the graphs in link
 
Interesting. Could be a very cold and snowy winter. (probably not the greatest for those dealing with energy issues, like much of Europe, who have been overly reliant on Russia and getting rid of coal and nuclear power).

Pics for the graphs in link
"Children just won't know what snow is"

They sure know what snow days are.
 
Y'all better prepare for the coming ice age.

If you are old enough you'll remember the drill. Which consisted of nothing but hot air and dreams of everyone moving south.

All the hot air from the seventies ice age scare has now caused global warming.

Sheesh, good job Henny Penny's.
 
Interesting. Could be a very cold and snowy winter. (probably not the greatest for those dealing with energy issues, like much of Europe, who have been overly reliant on Russia and getting rid of coal and nuclear power).

Pics for the graphs in link
gee

I wonder why you posted this?

I actually went to NOAA’s website. April and January were above normal, a couple of months were average. The rest were below average.

“Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent for October 2022 was 18.66 million square kilometers (7.20 million square miles), which is 510,000 square kilometers (200,000 square miles) below the 1991-2020 average.”
 
gee

I wonder why you posted this?

I actually went to NOAA’s website. April and January were above normal, a couple of months were average. The rest were below average.

“Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent for October 2022 was 18.66 million square kilometers (7.20 million square miles), which is 510,000 square kilometers (200,000 square miles) below the 1991-2020 average.”
Spoiler alert: it is currently the end of November.

PS: the graphs from NOAA are right in the link, feel free to call them liars if you like.
 
Spoiler alert: it is currently the end of November.

PS: the graphs from NOAA are right in the link, feel free to call them liars if you like.
you are taking an anomaly and presenting it as a trend to cast doubt on the reality of global warming

“According to NCEI's Global Annual Temperature Outlook, there is a greater than 99% chance that 2022 will rank among the 10-warmest years on record but less than 11% chance that it will rank among the top five.



Earth had its 6th-warmest August on record Antarctic sea ice set record low; Northern Hemisphere saw its 2nd-hottest summer”
-NOAA
 
you are taking an anomaly and presenting it as a trend to cast doubt on the reality of global warming

“According to NCEI's Global Annual Temperature Outlook, there is a greater than 99% chance that 2022 will rank among the 10-warmest years on record but less than 11% chance that it will rank among the top five.



Earth had its 6th-warmest August on record Antarctic sea ice set record low; Northern Hemisphere saw its 2nd-hottest summer”
-NOAA
I made no statement ts about sea ice (the article briefly mentions it being low, which you'd know if you'd actually read) nor about 2022s overall temp. You seem to have constructed a windmill to tilt at.
 
I made no statement ts about sea ice (the article briefly mentions it being low, which you'd know if you'd actually read) nor about 2022s overall temp. You seem to have constructed a windmill to tilt at.
why do you want to cast doubt on the reality of climate change?
 
why do you want to cast doubt on the reality of climate change?
See there you are with another constructed windmill to tilt at. I never mentioned climate change once in my OP. Indeed my OP is about our coming winter and how difficult it may be if it turns out the way stated in the article, for those who are dependent on Russian energy
 
See there you are with another constructed windmill to tilt at. I never mentioned climate change once in my OP. Indeed my OP is about our coming winter and how difficult it may be if it turns out the way stated in the article, for those who are dependent on Russian energy
please

we all know what you are up to

Winter is always cold
 
Interesting. Could be a very cold and snowy winter. (probably not the greatest for those dealing with energy issues, like much of Europe, who have been overly reliant on Russia and getting rid of coal and nuclear power).

Pics for the graphs in link
So much for the FAITH of AGW
 
please

we all know what you are up to

Winter is always cold
You're welcome to back up your claim with any words of mine in this thread. But you can't.

Go have fun beating your strawman.

Let's review: I posted about our coming winter and how difficult it may be if it turns out the way stated in the article, for those who are dependent on Russian energy.

You responded by telling me the post was wrong because something not from this month but from a month prior, didn't match the numbers NOAA gave for this month. I gently corrected that foolishness.

Then, instead of accepting that correction, you started to ramble about sea ice and the year's temperature average. I then gently corrected you and noted that has nothing to do with my OP.

Then, instead of accepting that correction, you accused me of casting doubt on climate change (despite having been corrected numerous times on that falsehood in other threads, as I accept climate change). And after gentle correction on that absurdity, we have the above post.
 
you are taking an anomaly and presenting it as a trend to cast doubt on the reality of global warming
More hype
“According to NCEI's Global Annual Temperature Outlook, there is a greater than 99% chance that 2022 will rank among the 10-warmest years on record but less than 11% chance that it will rank among the top five.
Their stupid outlooks are usually wrong. Get a grip.


Earth had its 6th-warmest August on record Antarctic sea ice set record low; Northern Hemisphere saw its 2nd-hottest summer”
-NOAA
So you as a hockey sticker pivot to predictions instead of actual measured data.

It doesn't snow much in the northern Hemisphere in August.
 
You're welcome to back up your claim with any words of mine in this thread. But you can't.

Go have fun beating your strawman.

Let's review: I posted about our coming winter and how difficult it may be if it turns out the way stated in the article, for those who are dependent on Russian energy.

You responded by telling me the post was wrong because something not from this month but from a month prior, didn't match the numbers NOAA gave for this month. I gently corrected that foolishness.

Then, instead of accepting that correction, you started to ramble about sea ice and the year's temperature average. I then gently corrected you and noted that has nothing to do with my OP.

Then, instead of accepting that correction, you accused me of casting doubt on climate change (despite having been corrected numerous times on that falsehood in other threads, as I accept climate change). And after gentle correction on that absurdity, we have the above post.
so disingenuous

we all know what you are implying

why don’t you “correct” the other climate deniers who are applauding you? They see exactly what I see.

Winter 2022-23 will not be as bad as earlier winters because of global warming
 
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