In Like a Lamb

Posted March 9th, 2010 by Jill Reale. 21 comments

The picture I posted is somewhat startling yet interesting. No, it is not blood streaming down from the glacier. It is actually is primordial ooze that dates back to 2 million years ago. From the article:

Roughly 2 million years ago, the Taylor Glacier sealed beneath it a small body of water which contained an ancient community of microbes. Trapped below a thick layer of ice, they have remained there ever since, isolated inside a natural time capsule. Evolving independently of the rest of the living world, these microbes exist without heat, light, or oxygen, and are essentially the definition of "primordial ooze." The trapped lake has very high salinity and is rich in iron, which gives the waterfall its red color. A fissure in the glacier allows the subglacial lake to flow out, forming the falls without contaminating the ecosystem within.
 
I just thought it was interesting that organisms can live under such extreme conditions. Anyways, back to present time....
Unlike the saying, "In like a lion and out like a lamb", this March has been more than a lamb than anything else. I was curious to see the origins of this infamous saying and it actually has to do with astrology. On March 1st, if you look out to the west, the constellation of Aries forms into the shape of a lamb and at the same time, you look to the east and the constellation of Leo forms into the shape of a lion. So the lion is rising into the night sky at the beginning of March. At the end of March, the constellations are reversed, so the lamb is rising into the night sky while the lion is falling.
As for our weather, it has been abnormally quiet for the beginning of March, with mild temperatures and plenty of sunshine. This is obviously helping the snowpack dwindle away for the area, especially across the Mohawk Valley. Snow actually has an impact on daily temperatures. While we wear and are in the mid 40s, areas to the east (Albany, Poughkeepsie, even Glen Falls) have seen temperatures in the low 50s because their snowpack is almost or completely gone. Most of the snow across the Mohawk Valley will be gone by the end of this week, while both the North Country and Southern Valleys will hold on to the snowpack a little longer. We will need to keep an eye on precipitation amounts as we head closer to the weekend because we could potentially have minor flooding issues, especially with areas that will still have some snowpack. I know some snow lovers are still waiting for one more blast of winter but as of right now, there really isn’t any cold air to tap into from our friendly neighbors to the north. Here is the Euro and GFS 8-10day outlook We have had significant snowfalls in the past during March. We average 15.6" of snow during March, so there still is a sliver of hope, just not for the next 10 days.
 
March Snowfall:
2000: 5.4"
2001: 47.7"
2002: 12.7"
2003: 6.6"
2004: 11.2"
2005: 26.0"
2006: 14.3"
2007: 16.9"
2008: 13.0"
2009: 0.0"

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Comments

  1. Mel (Westernville):

    Hi Jill – I think you had a typo there – snow lovers are probably waiting for one more blast of winter :-)

    Posted March 9th at 2:38 PM

  2. Jeff H (Sherburne Hills):

    Went out and measured snowpack today, still a solid 10” at the house average. Thats alot of water!!!

    Posted March 9th at 3:17 PM

  3. Jill Reale (Utica):

    Thanks Mel, the sunshine is making me wish for summer:)

    Posted March 9th at 3:55 PM

  4. Dave(Lairdsville):

    Can’t wait for the Thunderstorms to start rolling in!

    Posted March 9th at 8:15 PM

  5. Rob (Whitesboro):

    Me too Dave. It won’t be long. My best storm last year was in April. It was the best light show I saw since Labor Day. Non-stop lightning for at least 4 hours.

    Posted March 9th at 8:25 PM

  6. Anthony (Oriskany):

    Rob – It seems the most fantastic Thunderstorms have been produced by MCC’s during the early morning hours. Constant lightning, thunder and heavy rain… Unfortunately, it doesnt occur too frequently.

    Posted March 9th at 10:00 PM

  7. Mrboom:

    Ok my friends, i like you all but can we at LEAST see the snow gone and a few flowers or something bloom before we start talking about thunderstorms :) but yes i love em to .. the light shows are spectacular… but i think we shall have an early spring, YAY yardwork..lots of it. take care all

    Posted March 9th at 10:05 PM

  8. Rob (Whitesboro):

    The snowpack is bascially gone over this way. I still have a few inches left. I took a ride into Utica today and it was basically gone besides the snow banks. I can’t keep myself in winter mode with the lack of cold air in Canada. The end is near.

    Posted March 9th at 10:15 PM

  9. Bill Kardas (WKTV):

    What’s also interesting to point out is that March 2003 was an El Nino year. As mentioned in our winter weather outlook, the average snowfall in March during El Nino years is 6.2”. Normal march snowfall is over 16”.

    Posted March 10th at 5:57 AM

  10. Bill Kardas (WKTV):

    Mrboom,

    It does seem a little early talking about thunderstorms, although your name suggests otherwise :)....but if this pattern keeps up there could be some good ones later in the season.

    Posted March 10th at 5:58 AM

  11. randy Vitullo :

    Ski trails in HP are stilling running about 6 to 10 inches thick and very, very dense. No wash outs. If the rain skipped us this weekend, the snow on the trails would last another 10 days or so. Rain will, however, end it by Sunday or Monday. Earliest DEMISE since 1991….... Goodbye to winter. Let’s hope we have a nice spring and a hot, semi-dry summer.

    Posted March 10th at 8:21 AM

  12. deb in hartwick:

    crocuses spotted in cooperstown today ;-)
    mr.boom….

    Posted March 10th at 4:37 PM

  13. Gary in Utica:

    Deb…my neighbor’s crocuses popped up today as well! I even see the tulip leaves starting to sprout.

    Randy…I’m with you. I love to ski, but I think the end is near and it’s time to look forward to a nice spring. Just got a great deal on a snowblower @ Lowes…ready for next season!

    Posted March 10th at 5:49 PM

  14. Mrboom:

    Wow dep .. i work in cuse.. its been warm there. And Bill .. .what do you mean if this pattern keeps up we will have good ones. Can you explain how ya know this. Please keep in mind im a computer analyst.. not like most of you here who are super smart with weather. :) thank you bill

    Posted March 10th at 8:25 PM

  15. randy Vitullo :

    The GFS is not showing a monstrous rain event; it looks kind of spread out with total qpf around .75 by Monday. That lessens the chance for flooding around here.

    Posted March 11th at 6:17 AM

  16. Bill Kardas (WKTV):

    Mrboom,

    Unusually warm weather in mid spring tends to lead to stronger thunderstorms. My statement is generic…there’s nothing specific that I’m referring to.

    Posted March 11th at 8:10 AM

  17. Bill Kardas (WKTV):

    Randy,

    We’re going to fight dry air that’s trying to build in from the north. This pattern is similar to what we’ve been seeing this winter….with storms passing south. It’s going to be a close call this weekend as to where the heavy rain will fall.

    Posted March 11th at 8:11 AM

  18. Bill Kardas (WKTV):

    Randy,

    We’re going to fight dry air that’s trying to build in from the north. This pattern is similar to what we’ve been seeing this winter….with storms passing south. It’s going to be a close call this weekend as to where the heavy rain will fall.

    Posted March 11th at 8:11 AM

  19. randy Vitullo :

    Thanks Bill. Skiing may survive the weekend and the revelers may not get wet at the parade and the festivities.

    Posted March 11th at 12:15 PM

  20. Tony - CNYWeather.com (Westmo):

    Holding near 50 here. It’s in the lower 60’s in Buffalo and Syracuse.

    Posted March 11th at 1:52 PM

  21. Art (Oriskany Falls):

    Is there any chance we might get a couple more nights with below freezing temps ?
    This snow pac we got sure has got some moisture in it. The colder frosty nights help slow the melt down. We sure don’t need any heavy rain right now, not with all this snow with the high moisture content in it. This snow is so heavy I just might get my pot out and melt some down and check the moisture content in it tomorrow. Our high temp today was 63* and right now the temp is 38*

    Posted March 11th at 10:19 PM

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