BLUE HILL METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATORY
MILTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02186
ELEVATION 635 FEET, 10 MILES SSW OF BOSTON, MA
 
DAILY DISCUSSION AND CLIMATE SUMMARY
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 10, 2010 
ALL TIMES ARE IN EASTERN STANDARD TIME
 
SPELL OF VERY SUNNY, MILD AND DRY WEATHER
REACHES A FIFTH CONSECUTIVE DAY TODAY
MONTHLY TEMPERATURE AVERAGE NEARING +6 DEGREES
ICE CLEARING OUT OF NEARBY PONDS
 
High clouds are gathering in the southwest today, the
harbinger of wet times to come and signaling the end of a
beautiful very sunny, mild and dry 5-day stretch of
early March weather.  The sunshine averaged 98% of
possible for the four days ending yesterday and that
percentage is not likely to change much after a fifth
very sunny day today.  The air is again very dry with
dew point temperatures down in the teens after being
as low as the single numbers yesterday.  High temper-
atures have again reached 50 degrees  today for
a fifth day with a daily average running 9 degrees
on the warm side of normal for March 6-10.
 
Ponkapoag Pond was considered thawed and free of ice
on March 3rd and Houghtons is quickly losing its ice
cover today dropping from 80 to 90% covered to about
half covered by early this afternoon.
 
Today's observations:
 
7 A.M.
Weather: Clear, perfectly clear, SKC
Temperature: 31F, Dew point: 11F, Wind: NW at 9 kts
Sea-level pressure: 30.05 inches Hg, rising
Visibility: 60 miles, except 70 miles northwest,
thin dark smoke layer just above the horizon extending
from west-northwest to north-northeast  
6-hour minimum temp: 30F
24 hour precip: 0.00 in.
Average snow depth: 0  
BHO SA 1155 CLR 60 176/31/11/3209/005/
DRK K LYR XTDNG ALG/ABV HRZN WNW-NNE
VSBY NW 70/ 53012 10036 20030 
 
10 A.M.
Weather: Clear, cirrus distant south thru west
Temperature: 42F, Dew point: 16F, Wind: WNW at 6 kts,
Sea-level pressure: 30.07 inches Hg, falling
Visibility: 60 miles, 70 miles northwest
BHO SA 1455 CLR 60 184/42/16/2906/007/
CI DSNT S-W VSBY NW 70/ 8/001 51008
 
1 P.M. 
Weather: Clear, cirrus and cirrus layers distant south-southeast
thru south thru west slowly invading the sky
Temperature: 49F, Dew point: 17F, Wind: W at 6 kts,
Wind: Wind light
Sea-level pressure: 30.05 inches Hg, falling
Visibility: 60 miles, 70 miles northwest 
6-hour max. temp: 50F 
BHO SA 1755 CLR 60 176/49/17/2806/005/
CI/CI LYRS SSE-SW-W INVDNG VSBY NW 70 WND LGT/
8/005 58008 10050 20031
 
WEATHER SUMMARY FOR TUESDAY, MARCH 9
 
TEMPERATURE (DEGREES F)
MAX.....51     NORMAL.....43
MIN.....33     NORMAL.....26
MEAN....42     NORMAL.....34
 
DEPARTURE FROM 30-YEAR AVERAGE..............+8
TOTAL DEPARTURE FOR THE MONTH..............+52 [+5.6 DEGREES/DAY]
 
HEATING DEGREE DAYS
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR YESTERDAY............23    DEPARTURE........-8
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE MONTH...........237    DEPARTURE.......-54
TOTAL HEATING UNITS FOR THE SEASON.........4637    DEPARTURE......-224
TOTAL HEATING UNITS LAST SEASON TO DATE....4828    DIFFERENCE.....-191
 
PEAK GUST AND AVERAGE WIND SPEED (MPH)
PEAK WIND GUST FOR YESTERDAY.............31 WNW AT 11:48 A.M.    
                   AEROVANE..............31 WNW AT 11:48 A.M.   
                   ASOS..................31 WNW AT 11:49 A.M.           
                   DAVIS.................33 W   AT 10:25 A.M.             
THE FASTEST MILE FOR YESTERDAY...........22 W   AT 10:33 A.M.   
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE ASOS AVERAGE............23 WNW AT 11:49 A.M.           
MAXIMUM 2-MINUTE DAVIS AVERAGE...........25 W   AT 10:36 A.M.            
AVERAGE WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION.........10.9 WNW    
                   ASOS...................9.4 
                   DAVIS.................11.3 W [280 DEG]
 
PRECIPITATION (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST)
TOTAL PRECIPITATION 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M....0.00   DEPARTURE....-0.15
                         ASOS..............0.00
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE MONTH .........0.81   DEPARTURE....-0.54
                         ASOS..............0.75
TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR THE YEAR ..........9.91   DEPARTURE....-0.28
                         ASOS..............9.87
 
SNOWFALL (INCHES) THROUGH THIS MORNING (EST)
TOTAL SNOWFALL 24 HRS ENDING 7 A.M..........0.0  DEPARTURE......-0.4
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE MONTH............... 7.3  DEPARTURE......+3.1
TOTAL SNOWFALL FOR THE SEASON THRU FEB.....63.8  DEPARTURE.....+14.2
 
PRELIMINARY CLIMATE SUMMARY FOR MARCH 2010 CALENDAR DAY DATA
DATA REPORTED:
DATE: MAX/MIN/MEAN/DEP/PRECIP/SNOW/SUN(MIN.)/SUN(%)/ PEAK GUST/AERO GUST
AERO: Aerovane wind recording system gust when significant
TSTM: Thunderstorm day (thunder heard some time during day)
....: Data not yet available, records not finalized
 
3/1  44/33/38/+6/0.38/3.2/047/07    43 NW    AERO 42 MPH NW
3/2  43/32/38/+6/0/0/352/52         22 NNE
3/3  34/31/33/+1/0.18/1.7/000/00    45 NNE   AERO 43 MPH NNE 
3/4  33/30/32/-1/0.19/1.9/000/00    32 NNW
3/5  39/28/34/+1/0.06/0.5/226/33    28 N
3/6  54/27/41/+8/0/0/689/100        25 WNW
3/7  55/31/43/+10/0/0/684/99        28 W
3/8  58/36/47/+13/0/0/680/98        38 W
3/9  51/32/42/+8/0/0/656/94         31 WNW
 
3/10 our morning low temp: 30F; the normal low is now 26F
 
NEW DAILY RECORDS FOR MARCH 2010
None.
 
DAILY EXTREMES
Temperature and precipitation records back to 1885, and
wind records back to 1940 (e = estimated):
 
RECORDS FOR MARCH 10
HIGH 69 IN 1977
LOW 2 IN 1984
PRECIP 2.00 INS. IN 1994
SNOWFALL 4.0 INS. IN 1997
PEAK GUST 80 MPH NW IN 1974
 
RECORDS FOR MARCH 11
HIGH 65 IN 1967
LOW 4 IN 1939, 1960
PRECIP 2.11 INS. IN 1901
SNOWFALL 6.3 INS. IN 1934
PEAK GUST 66e MPH W IN 1980
 
TODAY'S REPORT PREPARED BY: Robert Skilling