Despite the chill from January’s snowstorm, Oklahoma averaged out an exceptionally warm winter season this year.
A report from the Oklahoma Mesonet shows climatological winter ended with an average statewide temperature of 44.3 degrees, about 4 degrees above normal. February also shattered previous records with an average of 51.1 degrees, which is 8.7 degrees warmer than normal.
By the end of last month, drought covered nearly all of the state.
State Climatologist Gary McManus writes the mild temperatures and continued drought helped create conditions for recent wildfires. The fires scorched hundreds of thousands of acres across the state and injured four firefighters. No people were reported to have died.
An analysis from science research nonprofit Climate Central shows most of the country is experiencing milder winters as the planet heats up.
Most analyzed cities, including Oklahoma City and Tulsa, have had more unusually warm winter days since 1970. The climbing temperatures are consistent with the scientific consensus that the planet is warming, primarily because of human activities like burning fossil fuels.
According to the National Weather Service in Norman, the coldest day of an average February in Oklahoma City has a high of about 27 degrees. This year, data show the city didn’t exceed a high below 49 degrees.
March still favors higher-than-normal temperatures, though the month could see rainfall, according to the Mesonet’s report. Some sections of the state could see relief from the drought.
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