KIMBALL, Neb. – Longer days, warming sunshine, and a slow but steady rise in air temperatures have begun to work their seasonal magic. Calendar spring will arrive with the Vernal Equinox at 10:15 a.m. on Tuesday, March 20. Interestingly, the Autumnal Equinox will arrive at the same time in the southern hemisphere, although in Australia and New Zealand the date will be March 21 due to the international dateline.

Across most of the tri-state region snow drifts are shrinking away to nothing, tree buds are swelling and taking on a colorful hue, and at ground level the first sedges and cool season grasses are beginning to green up.

Winter wheat fields are greening as well, following a rather tough winter. Near Kimball many wheat stands are showing signs of significant winterkill, though overall the wheat is looking surprisingly good considering the pounding it took over the winter.

Regional Forecast and Conditions

As of Tuesday morning (March 13), the temperature at sunrise was 19 degrees under partly cloudy skies. Wind was southwest at 5 mph and the barometer was 30.31. The day was expected to be clear and warming. Air temperatures were expected to reach into the mid-50’s before falling to about 28 degrees overnight.

Today’s (Friday) weather is expected to be breezy with a chance of snow in the morning, followed by partly sunny skies and a chance of rain. The high temperature could touch 46 degrees before falling off to 28 degrees overnight. Saturday and Sunday are forecast to be mostly sunny and breezy with highs in the mid-50’s and lows falling into the mid-20’s. 

Monday through Wednesday are expected to be partly sunny and cooler with daytime highs ranging in the mid-40’s and overnight lows falling into the low-20’s. There is a slight chance of both rain and snow showers forecast for the Monday-Wednesday period.

Daytime air temperatures cooled very slightly across the region last week. At Kimball the March 6-12 daytime high averaged 51.14 degrees, about 1.5 degrees cooler than the previous week. The weekly high temperature was 62 degrees on March 8. Overnight lows cooled slightly as well, averaging 21.0 degrees, 2 degrees cooler than the previous week. The weekly low temperature was 15 degrees on March 7. The weekly mean temperature was 36.07 degrees, about 1.8 degrees cooler than the previous week, and almost exactly matching the March average of 36.0 degrees. The long term average high and low temperatures at Kimball for March are 49.8 and 22.2, respectively.

For the second week in a row It was extremely dry across the region. Alliance, Chadron, and Harrison each reported a trace of rainfall; otherwise across the Panhandle over the March 6-12 period all stations reported zero precipitation. Snowfall averaged zero inches and liquid equivalent precipitation averaged zero inches. Last week’s averages were 0.00 and 0.00 inches
respectively.

Soil temperatures warmed across the Panhandle over the March 6-12 period: (this week/last week/change): Alliance 31.0/30.9 (+0.1) degrees; Gordon 31.8/30.9 (+0.9) degrees; Mitchell 37.2/34.4 (+2.8) degrees; Scottsbluff 35.9/32.8 (+3.1); and Sidney 37.0/33.3 (+3.7) degrees.

Winds near Kimball averaged southwesterly and were once again quite breezy over the March 6-12 period. Gusts for the week averaged 33.42 mph. High gust for the week was 47 mph on March 10.

March 16 Weather Almanac

Here’s an overview of March 16 temperature and precipitation highs, lows, and averages over the preceding 125 years at Kimball. Data is taken from the High Plains Regional Climate Center (www.hprcc.unl.edu), where you can easily find and track data for your own particular location.

Last year (March 16, 2017): Daily high temperature 71 degrees, overnight low 32 degrees, average temperature 51.5 degrees. Precipitation zero inches, snowfall zero inches, snow depth zero inches.

The warmest March 16 on record was 80 degrees in 2015. The coolest March 16 high temperature was 11 degrees in 1906. The coldest March 16 overnight low was -11 degrees in 1906. The warmest March 16 overnight low was 39 degrees in 1905. Over the years since 1893 the high temperature on March 16 has averaged 49 degrees, the overnight low 23 degrees, the daily average 36.3 degrees, precipitation has averaged 0.03 inches, snowfall 0.2 inches, snow depth zero inches.

The highest March 16 precipitation total was 0.26 inches liquid equivalent in 1946. The greatest snowfall was 5.0 inches in 1958. Greatest snow depth was 5.0 inches in 1958.

Snow has fallen on March 16 at Kimball 17 times over the last 125 years, with quantities ranging from a trace to 5.0 inches.

U.S. Drought Monitor

(March 6) National Summary: Moderate to heavy precipitation evaded most areas of dryness and drought this week, falling on the lower Northeast, a swath from northeastern Texas eastward through the upper Southeast and Tennessee Valley, the Sierra Nevada, and parts of the West Coast. In areas of existing dryness and drought, precipitation exceeded 1.5 inches only in southeastern Tennessee and adjacent areas, the southeastern tier of the dry area in Arkansas, the Sierra Nevada, and portions of southwestern California. Windstorms were almost as noteworthy as precipitation patterns this past week. The mid-Atlantic and Northeast were buffeted by gusts frequently reaching 55-70 mph, and briefly climbing to over 90 mph in southern New England, during the first couple days of the month. Toward the end of the period, strong winds and similar gusts were observed across much of Kansas and the adjacent High Plains, spinning up dust storms in a few areas.

High Plains: Southern parts of the Plains (above central Texas) experienced another week with little or no precipitation, prompting large-scale deterioration across the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles, northeastern New Mexico, and central and western Kansas. This results in a broad area of D3 as noted in the South region write-up, with D1 and D2 areas also expanding northward through parts of central Kansas.and east-central Colorado.

In sharp contrast, heavy and generally wet snow covered much of the Dakotas and adjacent areas, with near-blizzard conditions observed at times during the storm. Up to a foot and a half of snow was measured in parts of the central Dakotas. This led to removal of drought from the east-central Dakotas and adjacent Minnesota, and abnormal dryness retracted out of east-central South Dakota. Much smaller areas of improvement were observed farther west, and in part of western South Dakota that missed most of the snowstorm, some slight D1 and D2 expansion was introduced. Conditions were generally unchanged in Montana, though D0 was pulled out of a small area in the interior southeast of the state.

West: A storm system pushed in from the Pacific Ocean, bringing heavy snow to most of the Sierra Nevada. The boost in snowpack was beneficial, but seasonal totals remained well below normal, and there was no marked change in the drought conditions that have covered the mountain range for several months. Farther south, Light to moderate precipitation kept most of southwestern California from deteriorating, but a small area of D3 was introduced in part of Ventura and adjacent Los Angeles Counties where less than 0.25 inch of precipitation fell. Livestock and rangeland have been severely stressed by the drought in this area.

Reports of deteriorating livestock and rangeland conditions led to broad deterioration near the California/Arizona border and in a broad swath across the middle of the Four Corners region. D3 now covers a nearly continuous stretch from northeastern Arizona and southeastern Utah eastward into central Kansas and Oklahoma. The Navajo Nation declared a drought emergency due to poor rangeland and reduced water stores.

For more information on the U.S. Drought Monitor visit: http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu

U.S. Conditions and Weather Report

(March 13) A much more tranquil weather pattern developed across the nation, allowing Midwestern flood waters to recede. Locally heavy showers persisted in a few areas, including the interior Southeast and the middle Mississippi Valley, perpetuating soggy field conditions.

In addition, significant snow continued to blanket portions of the northern Plains and upper Midwest, while parts of the Northeast endured a second major storm in less than a week. Although the second storm produced less wind than the early-March event, Northeastern snowfall was heavier in many locations.

In the storm’s wake, freezes reached deep into the Southeast on March 8-9, threatening blooming fruits and other temperature sensitive crops. Like last year, the Southeast’s sudden reversal in early spring temperatures (generally 5 to 10 degrees below normal for the week) followed record-setting February warmth.

Farther west, critically dry conditions persisted on the drought stricken southern High Plains, aggravated by above-normal temperatures. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, exceptional drought (D4) made its first appearance in Oklahoma since May 5, 2015. Warmth continued through a second consecutive week on the central and southern Plains, further increasing stress on rangeland, pastures, and winter wheat.

Elsewhere, generally light precipitation fell from the Pacific Northwest to the northern Rockies, while late-week showers affected portions of southern California and the Southwest.

Temperatures returned to near-normal levels in much of the West, following an extended cool spell, but remained as much as 5 to 15 degrees below normal across the northern High Plains and parts of the Great Basin.