NORTHERN AND EASTERN MAINE MONTHLY CLIMATE NARRATIVE:

Although January 2013 averaged 1 to 2 degrees above normal across

the region...the term average this month had little meaning since

It was an average of extreme temperature occurrences...especially

across the north. Both precipitation and snowfall was below average

with snow depth...especially at the close of the month...much below

average.

The month began with below average temperatures on the 1st through

7th then turned mild on the 8th through 17th...culminating with

record high temperatures on the 14th. Following the morning of the

17th...sharply colder temperatures occurred on the 18th followed by

another brief mild spell on the 20th. This in turn was followed by

bitterly cold weather on the 21st through 26th which featured sub

30 below morning readings in far northwest Maine on the mornings of

the 22nd and 23rd. After a period of less cold on the 27th through

29th...the month finished with recording breaking warmth on the 30th

and 31st. In fact...the high temperature of 53 degrees at caribou on

the 31st tied the highest January temperature of record last set on

January 15th 1995. This topsy-turby roller coaster of temperatures...

especially from the 22nd to the end of the month amounted to as much

as 80 degrees or more from coldest to warmest at some locations of

the western Saint John valley.

No widespread heavy snow storms occurred this month...unusual for

January. This helped the month be dry for liquid equivalent

precipitation...with the area only receiving only 25 to 65 percent

of normal. An example of this...Bangor which only received only 0.87

inches of liquid equivalent precipitation...experienced there 5th

driest January on record. Several storms that could have resulted in

more precipitation (and snowfall) either moved well west or southeast

of the region. The one storm that brought significant precipitation

occurred at then end of the month with record warmth and was in the

form of rainfall to all of the region. This same system was

accompanied by damaging southerly winds ahead of and westerly winds

behind a cold front on the 31st.

Due to inconsistent snowfall...two major thaws and a month ending

rainfall...snow depth at most locations actually trended downward

during the month with snow depth at caribou on morning of the 31st

only 2 inches (where 18 inches is typical on this date) and zero at

Bangor (where 9 inches is typical). At caribou...the average of 7

inches for the month was 6 inches below normal and tied as 5th

lowest compared to the lowest average of 2 inches recorded in 1962.

at bangor...an average of 7 inches for the month was actually 1 inch

above normal...thanks to above average snow pack during the first

third of the month.