Even though it may feel like it, saying we're getting a never-ending parade of snow this month in central Ohio is a bit of an exaggeration. It is safe to say that this April has been snowier than usual, though.
The average snowfall for the month of April is 1.1". By the second day of this month we had 1.4".
In fact, nine of the 17 days in April 2018 have had at least a trace amount of snow, that's more than half so far. And after the 0.3" of snow we got today (April 17th) we're sitting at a total of 2.6" of snow so far this month!
This has a lot of people wondering when will it all end? Sadly it's tough to pinpoint specifics of the forecast more than a week to 10 days out but we can look for trends along with reinforcements or reversals in the overall weather pattern that far out.
Having said that, computer forecast models are hinting at the possibility of a little snow very early on Thursday but that's the last of it expected in the extended 10-day forecast.
That's good news for those of us who are ready for warmer weather...on a regular basis. But how common is late season snow in the area?
Believe it or not snow in May is not unheard of. In the 132 years that snow records have been kept in Columbus the climate records show 16 years that the month of May has gotten at least a trace amount of snow. That's 12.1% of the time!
The latest we've seen snow was back on May 15, 1904 when a trace fell. The last time we had snow in May was back in 1989 when 0.8" fell on the 7th which is actually the highest one-day snow total of any day for the month.
As I mentioned before, it's tough to nail down forecast details a few weeks out but the overall pattern looks to be trending towards average if not slightly above average temperatures for the end of April and the beginning of May.
For a little perspective, the average high during that timeframe is in the mid-60s to right around 70.
That same time frame is calling for below average rainfall. If this comes to pass that would that mean we'll have a fairly quiet stretch of dry and pleasant weather to round out what has been a brutal month so far.
This could be great news for the May flowers that we're expecting to follow our April showers. We'll keep you posted on any changes in the forecast thinking.
