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FEBRUARY 2004 WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS FOR NEW MEXICO

February 2004 was cooler and wetter than normal across much of New Mexico.

February began unsettled with a couple of storms affecting the state during the 1st week of the month.  The first system crossed the state on the 1st with a round of snow across mainly the northern half of New Mexico.  The next system passed to the north on the 4th, but was able to draw moisture north into the land of Enchantment and brought a good dose of snow to the northern high country, as well as the south central mountains on the 4th.  A few snow showers lingered over the state on the 5th and 6th, then a relatively dry period ensued from the 7th through 10th.  The next storm took aim on New Mexico on the 11th and 12th, as it moved slowly south from the central Rockies into the Southwest.  This was the most impressive storm of the month, with widespread snow reported over the east slopes of the northern and central mountains and adjacent eastern high plains, with lingering snow showers on the 13th.  A break in the rather stormy first half of the month followed from the 14th through 18th as a ridge of high pressure developed over the Southwest.  Temperatures finally returned to near normal levels after a chilly first half of the month.  Another series of storms influenced the Land of Enchantment's weather from the 19th through the end of the month.  The storm on the 19th was a major wind producer, with gusts over 70 mph reported at a few locations.  Only a few rain showers and high elevation snow showers were reported across the north from this storm.  Much more precipitation was associated with the storm on the 23rd into the 24th.  In fact, this was the most significant and widespread snow and rain event of the winter season so far.  One to two feet of snow was common along the east slopes of the central mountain chain while one inch rain amounts were noted at several locations.  The final storm of the month brought rain and snow showers to the northwest on the 28th, with up to a foot of wet snow reported in the Jemez mountains.   

Snow Over the North to Start Off February

Another in a series of storms moved into the Pacific Northwest on January 30th and moved south into the Great Basin on the 31st, then east across New Mexico on February 1st.  At the same time a cold front dropped south across the state delivering a fresh shot of chilly air.  The result was another round of snow across mainly northern New Mexico, with the most snow in the northern mountains.  The table to the right lists some of the snowfall totals from this storm.  The infrared satellite image below, and water vapor satellite image below and to the right, clearly show the storm approaching late on the 30th.

Total Snowfall Amounts From the 31st - 1st Location Snow Amount (inches) Angel Fire 11 Taos, Pecos, Wolf Canyon 10 Chama, Red River 6 Ute Park 4.5 Eagle Nest, Villanueva 4 Tijeras, Sandia Park 3.5 Alto, Mountainair, Quemado 3 Clines Corners 2.5 Albuquerque Metro Area 0.5 - 2.5

Snow Event of February 3 - 4

Widespread Snows Central and East on the 11th - 12th 

A rather impressive storm moved slowly south from Wyoming on the 11th, into Utah and Colorado on the 12th, and Arizona and New Mexico on the 13th.  The water vapor satellite image above clearly shows the storm on the evening of the 11th.  Meanwhile, a cold front raced south across the eastern plains early on the 11th, sending temperatures downward, and creating a moist, upslope flow of low level air.  The surface plot above and to the right reveals the upslope northeast winds along with an image of current temperatures during the early evenings of the 11th and 12th.  The combination of the storm aloft and chilly, rather moist conditions at the surface created a widespread area of snow over the northern and central mountains into the eastern plains.  Colder air continued to pour into the state through the 12th.  The radar loop to the right shows a three hour period of the developing and expanding area of snow.  Along with the snow and cold was quite a bit of wind, creating considerable blowing snow across the east as well as some drifting snow.  The cold air piled up against the east slopes of the central mountain chain during the day of the 11th, then poured through the canyons and passes into the Rio Grande Valley from the evening of the 11th into the morning of the 12th.  The graph below lists both the sustained wind speeds and wind gusts reported every other hour at the Albuquerque Sunport from 600 pm on the 11th through 1200 pm on the 12th.  The table below and to the right shows some of the more impressive snowfall totals from the 11th into the 12th.
	Snowfall Totals From the 11th - 12th  Location Amount (inches)  Tres Piedras 16 La Madera 15 Corona 12-14 Los Alamos 12 Philmont Ranch 9 Mora 8-9 Red River 8 Pedernal 8 Vaughn 6-8 Mountainair/Willard 6 Ute park 5-6

Major Snow Event on the 23rd - 24th

The most significant storm of the winter season so far affected the Land of Enchantment from the 23rd into the 24th.  The storm took shape off the California coast on the 21st and moved inland on the 22nd.  This was a very slow-moving storm and there was plenty of time for Pacific moisture to race across the Southwest into the state ahead of the system.  At the same time a cold front moved south across the eastern plains on the 23rd with moist, upslope winds developing across much of the east. The area most impacted from the storm was from the east slopes of the Sangre De Cristo mountains south to the Sandia and Manzano mountains, east across the central high plains and northeast highlands, to the east central plains.  Snow amounts of 1 to 2 feet were reported in parts of this region.  In addition to the heavy snow, lowland rains, mixed with wet snow at times, dumped around an inch of water in places like Portales, Fort Sumner and Albuquerque.  The infrared satellite loop to the left shows the extensive cloud cover moving across the state from the evening of the 23rd into the morning of the 24th.  The visible satellite image below reveals the aftermath of the storm on the morning of the 25th, showing an extensive area of snow cover, with some snowfall totals overlaid onto the satellite image.  The table below and to the right lists the locations and amounts of the more impressive snowfall totals.

Snowfall Totals From the 23rd - 24th Location Snowfall (inches) Tajique/Torreon 12 - 24 Gascon 22 Edgewood area 13 - 20 Las Vegas 16 Sedillo Hill 15 Cedar Crest 14 Los Alamos 14 Corona 13 Jemez Springs 12 Philmont Ranch 12 Estancia 11 Ute Park 10 Santa Rosa 8 - 10

TEMPERATURE AND PRECIPITATION DATA FOR ALBUQUERQUE - FEBRUARY 2004

Albuquerque daily actual maximum (red bars) and normal maximum (purple line) temperatures - February 2004

Albuquerque daily actual minimum (blue bars) and normal minimum (purple line) temperatures - February 2004

Albuquerque daily precipitation - February 2004

Albuquerque daily snowfall - February 2004

SEVERE WEATHER ACROSS NEW MEXICO - FEBRUARY 2004