Between fall and winter is November
By Russell Russ
Most of the leaves had fallen by early in the month and for most of the month it was not quite cold enough for snow. November, as usual, was somewhere between fall and winter. It may have felt cold, but this November’s temperatures were just about average for this time of year in Norfolk. Except for a couple of really wet days there wasn’t much rain and there were only a few days with a light dusting of snow. No records were set for either temperature or precipitation. Basically your typical cool, cloudy and some would say dreary month of November.
The month’s high temperature of 60 degrees was observed on November 13 and the low temperature of 20 degrees was observed on November 29. The average mean temperature this month was 37.6 degrees, just 0.7 degree above normal. Except for a week’s worth of above average daily temperatures during the middle part of the month the temperatures over the entire month were fairly uniform.
It was cold enough on November 28 for some of the smaller local ponds to freeze over, but their ice went out on November 30 when temperatures topped 50 degrees. It is highly likely that November passed without providing any local pond ice skating opportunities.
The total precipitation recorded for the month was 2.99 inches, 1.77 inches below normal. For the 2010 calendar year, through November, the total precipitation amount was 49.64 inches, 1.66 inches above normal.
The month of November average snowfall amount is 6.8 inches, but this November had five days with just flurries which all added up to only a trace amount. There was also one day with a little freezing rain and some sleet. The monthly total for snowfall was just 0.1 inch, which was in the form of sleet, not snow. The National weather Service includes sleet in their snowfall category. As of the end of November our 2010 snowfall total was 53.3 inches, 20.4 inches below normal. It is looking like another below average snowfall year. If December is a bust for snow this year we could easily be placing 2010 on Norfolk’s “top ten” list for least amount of yearly snowfall.
