November Climatological Notes

December, 2014, began on a warm note for Central Alabama, that in sharp contrast to what we saw during November. November was quite cold across Central Alabama, in fact, the National Weather Service in Birmingham said it was the coldest November experienced since 1976 in many places.

So, just how cold was November for Central Alabama? In Birmingham, the average temperature was 48.9 degrees. This value was 5.5 degrees below the 30-year average and was the eighth coldest November since 1896. It was also the coldest November since 1995 when the average temperature was 47.9 degrees. The coldest November on record for Birmingham occurred in 1976 when the average for the month was 45.4 degrees.

In Anniston, the average November temperature was 47.6 degrees, which was 5.9 degrees below the 30-year average. This was the fifth coldest November in Anniston since 1903, and the coldest since 1976. Anniston’s coldest November occurred in 1976 when the average temperature was 45.4 degrees.

Tuscaloosa’s average temperature in November was 49.2 degrees, or 5.8 degrees below the 30-year average. This was Tuscaloosa’s fourth coldest November since 1948, and the coldest since 1976. Tuscaloosa’s record cold November occurred in 1976 when the average temperature was 46.8 degrees.

Further south, Montgomery also had a cold November, with an average temperature of 51.0 degrees, which was 5.5 degrees below the 30-year average. This was Montgomery’s fourth coldest November since 1872, and the coldest since 1976. Montgomery experienced it’s coldest in November, 1976, when the average temperature was only 48.0 degrees.

You may recall that the record cold of November, 1976, was followed by a very cold winter season in Central Alabama. Could that happen again this year? The current outlooks from the Climate Prediction Center (CPC) indicate that the first half of December is likely to be rather mild, but there are indications that the second half of the month could trend colder. And the even longer range outlook for January through March projects increased chances for below seasonal temperatures across all of Central Alabama.

And the winter of 1977 also included two snow events, both in January. Looking at the most recent cold November, 1995, it was followed by two snow events in Central Alabama, one in January, 1996, and one in February, 1996. So if you like snow, there is some cause that we could see a couple of snow events as we go into 2015.

-Brian-

Category: Alabama's Weather