Latest news with #ChristopherBurt
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
On This Date: Dust Bowl Heat, Rainfall Records Smashed
The Dust Bowl was infamous for its agricultural devastation in the Plains. It was also known for some of the most infamous heat waves, even floods, and not just in summer. From May 28-31, 1934, 91 years ago, a blistering heat wave smashed all-time May records in 11 states, according to weather historian Christopher Burt, all plotted in the map below. Highs soared into the 110s in six of those state, including Langdon, North Dakota; Maple Plain, Minnesota; and Maryville, Missouri. A 108 degree high in Morden, Manitoba, was a Canadian national May record, Burt noted. Four different locations in Michigan's Upper Peninsula hit 100 degrees on May 31. The next day, Houghton Lake set Michigan's all-time June record, soaring to 107 degrees. One year later, a pair of incredible rainfalls happened in late May. On May 30, 1935, two separate rain gauges, one northeast of Colorado Springs and another just north of Burlington, Colorado, recorded 24 inches of rainfall in just six hours. The resulting flash floods killed at least 21 and caused $8-10 million damage, among the state's biggest floods, Burt detailed in a 2013 Weather Underground blog post. Heavy rain also triggered catastrophic flooding along the Republican River in Nebraska, claiming 92 lives, there. Then, before dawn on May 31, 22 inches of rain fell in just 2 hours and 45 minutes near D'Hanis, Texas, about 45 miles west of San Antonio. That is a world record rainfall for that period of time, according to Burt. Jonathan Erdman is a senior meteorologist at and has been covering national and international weather since 1996. Extreme and bizarre weather are his favorite topics. Reach out to him on Bluesky, X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
On This Date: Two Freak Post-Memorial Day Snowstorms
Snow may be the last thing you want to think about now that Memorial Day is in the rear-view mirror. But past history has shown Mother Nature doesn't always follow the rules. On May 29, 1927, 98 years ago today, residents of Butte, Montana, were digging out from 40.5 inches of snow, an all-time record snowstorm for the city according to weather historian Christopher Burt. Less than a week prior to that, this city at an elevation of just over a mile high picked up 8 inches of snow. But there was another storm even more weird for this time of year. Seventy-eight years ago today, a late May snowstorm finished up hammering areas from tThis wasn't just a case of late spring "curiosity flakes" either. Solid bands of 6-inch-plus snow fell This wasn't just a case of late spring "curiosity flakes" either. Solid bands of 6-inch-plus snow fell Jonathan Erdman is a senior meteorologist at and has been covering national and international weather since 1996. Extreme and bizarre weather are his favorite topics. Reach out to him on Bluesky, X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
On This Date: Washington, D.C. Record Hail Was Radioactive
On May 26, 1953, 72 years ago today, a severe thunderstorm dumped hail up to 4.15 inches in diameter on the southeast side of Washington, D.C., according to the U.S. Weather Bureau (now, National Weather Service) and weather historian Christopher Burt. Roughly the size of a softball, this remains the largest hail on record for the District of Columbia. NOAA's database has only one other D.C. hail event of baseball size (2.75 inches) from July 10, 1975. (There is a report of 5-inch diameter hail on July 2, 1968 just northeast of Dulles Airport in Loudoun County, Virginia.) You'd think a record hailstorm in the Nation's Capital would be the headline of this story. But that's not the most bizarre aspect of it. At that time, the U.S. conducted some atomic tests in the Desert Southwest. One such test in Frenchman Flat, Nevada, happened only 29 hours before the D.C. hailstorm. The U.S. Navy's chief hydrographer, J. B. Cochran wondered whether the hail had elevated levels of radioactivity from the test. Scientists captured some of the hailstones atop the U.S. Navy Hydrographic Office in nearby Suitland, Maryland, along with some gravel atop the roof. In a study released in 1954, they measured elevated radiation levels in both the gravel atop the roof and especially in the hailstones, though levels were still considered "relatively small" and easily reduced by washing in distilled water. How did they know it came from the test site? The upper air wind pattern with a strong jet stream over Nevada spread the material lofted up to 40,000 feet from the atomic test over the Northern Plains, Great Lakes, and eventually into the mid-Atlantic states. "Strong (thunderstorm) large raindrops and hailstones to be recirculated several times through the contaminated air mass before they fall to earth," the study's authors concluded. Jonathan Erdman is a senior meteorologist at and has been covering national and international weather since 1996. Extreme and bizarre weather are his favorite topics. Reach out to him on Bluesky, X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
On This Date: A Maui Snow Record. Really.
Snow in Hawaii sounds like an oxymoron, but it's more common than you think. From April 9-10, 1968, 57 years ago this week, one place in Maui picked up 9 inches of snow, the heaviest snowstorm on record for that location, according to weather historian Christopher Burt. He told us that summit snowstorm was accompanied by 40 mph winds. But before you rebook your upcoming Hawaii getaway, there's a chief reason that snowstorm happened. It occurred at the 10,230-foot summit of Mt. Haleakala, a huge shield volcano on Maui. Snow is actually a fact of life each year over the islands' peaks. Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, slumbering volcanoes on the Big Island, are the highest points at over 13,000 feet. Given the elevation, sufficient snow covers the summits at least once each winter. In February 2019, a colder storm produced snow at elevations as low as 8,000 feet, and even some graupel or small hail down to 6,200 feet elevation in Polipoli State Park on Maui. Mt. Haleakala also holds the state's all-time 24-hour snowfall record, when 6.5 inches blanketed the summit on Groundhog Day 1936, according to NOAA. (MORE: The Strangest Places It Has Snowed) Jonathan Erdman is a senior meteorologist at and has been covering national and international weather since 1996. Extreme and bizarre weather are his favorite topics. Reach out to him on Bluesky, X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
On This Date: An April Fools' Blizzard In The Northeast
Spring is the transition between winter's cold and summer's heat. Sometimes a late-season snowstorm can play a cruel joke on those ready to move on. On April 1, 1997, 28 years ago today, a snowstorm was finishing up in the Northeast, leaving over 10 inches of wet, heavy snow from southern New England to the Hudson Valley north of New York City, Catskills and Poconos. Boston's Logan Airport picked up 25.4 inches of snow, their fourth heaviest snowstorm on record, and almost equal to the snow they measured for the entire 1996-97 season prior to the storm. That was accompanied by snowfall rates up to 3 inches per hour, with thunder and lightning reported, which prompted the airport to shut down from the afternoon of March 31 through late night on April 1. The April Fools' snowstorm set Massachusetts' all-time 24-hour snowfall record in Milford, where 36 inches fell, according to weather historian Christopher Burt. This combination of heavy, wet snow and wind downed numerous trees and left hundreds of thousands of customers without power. Given how fast the snow came down, plows couldn't keep up and thousands of vehicles were stranded, prompting assistance from the National Guard to dig out some vehicles. Prior to the storm, Boston soared to 63 degrees on March 30. That's a scenario many in the northern U.S. are painfully familiar with in early spring. (MORE: Major Winter Storms Can Happen In April) Jonathan Erdman is a senior meteorologist at and has been covering national and international weather since 1996. Extreme and bizarre weather are his favorite topics. Reach out to him on Bluesky, X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook.
