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Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Weather columnist Kevin Myatt: 70-degree temperature leap can't last

Kevin Myatt is The Roanoke Times' weather columnist.

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It felt like we jumped right from winter to summer last week.

Statistically, those feelings were accurate.

On Tuesday morning (March 3), Roanoke's low temperature was 13 degrees. On Saturday afternoon (March 7), Roanoke's high was 83 degrees.

That 70-degree shift in four days represents a jump from being 12 degrees colder than the normal low at the peak of January chill to the normal high temperature for mid-June.

Blacksburg also made a 70-degree shift in four days, vaulting from 6 to 76.

One question I would like to delve into a little deeper is whether such a 70-degree margin over four days has precedent in the recorded weather history of Southwest Virginia.

Winter periods moving quickly from the teens to low 70s, or vice versa, in a few days happen every few years. But to leap from the teens to the 80s so quickly is extremely rare.

The pendulum is set to swing back the other direction. Expect below-normal temperatures starting this weekend and stretching toward the middle of next week.

But it probably won't plummet 70 degrees.

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