http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_thelookout/temperature-swings-100-degrees-in-one-week-in-okla-town This is the kind of thing you would expect on another planet or some shit. One hundred (count em') one hundred degree temperature rise. Residents in the Northern Oklahoma town of Nowata experienced a nearly 110-degree shift in the weather this week after a cold front brought temperatures down to a record-setting -31 degrees. Today, it's a balmy 72 degrees in Nowata. Yesterday, it reached 79 degrees. "Isn't it crazy? I love it," Nowata resident Julie Koupe told local channel News on 6. On Feb. 10, it was slightly colder in the region than it was on the South Pole, notes Tulsa World writer Cary Aspinall. More than 3,000 Nowata homes lost power and residents spent the next few days digging their cars and homes out of the snow. There was so much snow in Tulsa last week that city officials began debating provisional plans to truck it out of town. On Thursday, the 79 degree weather tied for the warmest Feb. 17 since 1907. Climate scientists note that extreme swings in weather are associated with the gradual warming of the earth's climate. And the Oklahoma Climatological Survey has verified that the state's average temperature readings have been trending upward, with some year-to-year variations, since the late 1980s. You can read the survey's findings and recommendations here (pdf). But broader climate trends notwithstanding, Oklahoma has long been known for its unpredictable weather. The local saying (attributed to Will Rogers) goes, "If you don't like the weather in Oklahoma, wait five minutes." This time, Oklahomans had to wait a week.
It happens. It was colder than usual, but it's not unusual for Oklahomans to have a snow/ice storm then to turn around and have it melt 2 days later. We just had to wait a little longer for it to melt this last time. Especially since it snowed again a week later. Then it got really warm and melted away.
I see they also brought in global change, but it's the way it's always been here. As you can see even Will Rogers said so.
Having it snow + then melt is one thing. I lived out West for quite a while. But -30 is way beyond "just snowing" and 70 above is way beyond "just melting." It's about as extreme as you can get in that short amount of time.
It happens. Not unusual for us to swing a lot in temperature. Yes I know this was extreme just not that far off from usual. They like to make a big about it because they can, but let's face it, it's not the hurricane that re-formed over us 5 years ago.
And just as a reminder this is the state I live in. I have friends who live close to the area and are actually further north of there. Their reaction is the same.
Wow - imagine how this type of weather must have been for people living in crude sod homes way back in the day! Worse yet, Native Americans.
Actually sod is an excellent insulator and they probably had it pretty warm in that sod house with a fire. Especially if it was built into a hill. As for Native Americans it's probably a good reason for sleeping a lot of people to a Tepee.
No, silly! There weren't fat, lazy Americans driving their SUVs to Walmart back then, so they never had to deal with extreme climate change!
