NOVEMBER
2004 WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS FOR NEW MEXICO
November 2004 was wetter and whiter than normal over much of New Mexico,
especially over the east and south. Record precipitation was recorded in a
few locations of the southeast plains. Temperatures were generally a little
below normal.
The month began with quite a punch, as a vigorous storm system aloft combined
with a strong cold front to deliver some snow, strong and gusty winds, and very
cold temperatures. The storm looked harmless on the 31st of October as it
dropped south through the Rockies. But by the 1st of November, the storm
had intensified over western New Mexico and northern old Mexico. The storm
turned east, then northeast on the 2nd and slowly plowed through the Texas
Panhandle. In the storms wake was the season's
first snowfall for portions of the east, primarily between Raton and Des
Moines, and from Quay county south into Lea county. Although amounts were
not that impressive, there was plenty of blowing snow as strong north winds
blasted the eastern plains and sent temperatures plummeting into the 30s, and
wind chills into the teens and single digits. The weather quieted
down from the 3rd through the 8th, only to be followed by an active weather
pattern from the 9th through the 16th, as three storms brought a variety of
weather to the Land of Enchantment. The first storm moved across the
Colorado and New Mexico border on the 9th, delivering scattered showers,
isolated thunderstorms with small hail, and high elevation snow showers to
roughly the northern half of the state. The second storm was colder, bringing snow
to the mountains and even parts of the valleys and eastern plains. Moving
into central California on the 11th, the storm tracked across the Great Basin on
the 12th and weakened as it traversed the four corners area on the 13th.
The final storm in this series ended up being the most impressive in terms of
moisture, with plenty of precipitation across the southeast half of the state on the 14th
through the 16th. The storm
developed along the northwest coast and deepened rapidly as it dropped south
into Baja California on the 14th. From there it moved slowly east, drawing
plenty of moisture north into the southwest states. This system also drew
warmer air north into the state, so snowfall was less widespread than the
previous storm, being mainly confined to the south central mountains. Yet
another storm affected the Land of Enchantment from the 19th through the 23rd.
This slow moving storm gathered strength over the Great Basin on the 19th and
20th, dropped south into old Mexico on the 21st, then turned east to northeast
and crossed New Mexico on the 23rd. Several weak upper level disturbances
raced out ahead of the main storm delivering some rain and snow on the 19th
through the 21st. The main storm then brought more widespread and substantial
precipitation late on the 22nd through the 23rd. Two cold fronts pushed
south across the eastern plains to bring chilly temperatures during this five
day period. The final storm of the month affected the state on the 28th
and 29th with wind, snow and very cold temperatures.
Two
Storms
Bring Snow, Rain and Wind to the State From the 12th Through 17th
|
 |
|
Two storms brought a variety of weather, including a taste
of winter, to the Land of
Enchantment during the middle of the month. The first storm moved
into central California on the 11th, then tracked across the Great Basin on
the 12th and weakened as it traversed the four corners area on the 13th.
At the same time, a strong cold front barreled south across the state,
supplying the low levels with moisture, especially across the eastern
plains. The first widespread snowfall of the fall season was the result, with the
greatest amounts across the east slopes of the central mountain chain and
adjacent high plains, as well as the northeast. East winds
also blasted through the canyons and passes of the central mountains into
the Rio Grande Valley. The graph above and to the left shows both
the sustained winds and gusts from the afternoon of the 12th through the
early morning of the 13th, at two hour intervals. The
second storm
developed along the northwest coast and deepened rapidly as it dropped south
into Baja California on the 14th. From there it moved slowly east, drawing
plenty of moisture north into New Mexico. The water vapor satellite image
above and to the right shows the storm on the 14th, centered over the Gulf
of California, as it started its trek east. It was also a warmer
storm, with snow confined primarily to the south central mountains on the
14th. However, a good amount of rain fell over the southeast half of the
state. The tables below show snowfall (on the left) and
rainfall/precipitation (on the right - through 5pm on the 17th) totals from the combined two storm events. |
| Snowfall
Totals From Late 12th Through 14th |
| Location |
Amount
(inches) |
| Ski
Apache |
14 |
| Cloudcroft |
14 |
| Ruidoso |
13.5 |
| Rociada |
12 |
| Las
Vegas |
8 |
| Quemado |
8 |
| Trujillo
& Villanueva |
7 |
| Mineral
Hill & Gascon |
6 |
| Roy |
6 |
| Clayton
& Rosebud |
5 |
| Springer |
5 |
| Sedillo
Hill |
5 |
| Acoma |
5-6 |
| Laguna |
5 |
|
| Rainfall/Precipitation
Totals From Late 12th - 17th |
| Location |
Amount
(inches) |
| Carlsbad |
2.86 |
| Ruidoso |
2.64 |
| Clovis |
1.86 |
| Roswell |
1.74 |
| Antelope
Wells |
1.44 |
| Portales |
1.42 |
| Melrose |
1.28 |
| Las
Cruces |
1.21 |
| Cloudcroft |
1.16 |
| Tucumcari |
1.16 |
| Picacho |
0.99 |
| T
or C |
0.95 |
| Quemado |
0.91 |
| Santa
Rosa |
0.88 |
|
Another
Storm Brings Rain and Snow to New Mexico From the 19th Through 23rd
 |
 |
| Another storm affected New Mexico from the 19th
through the 23rd. This long duration event brought more rain and snow to
much of the state, along with some gusty winds and chilly
temperatures. The main storm deepened over the Great Basin on the
19th and 20th, dropped south into old Mexico on the 21st, then turned east
on the 22nd and crossed New Mexico on the 23rd. Meanwhile, a few
weak upper level disturbances raced out ahead of the main storm,
delivering some rain and snow as early as the 19th and 20th to the
northern half of the state. Two cold fronts also moved south into
the state, one on the 19th and another early on the 23rd. The water vapor image above, overlaid
with 500 mb heights, shows the position of the storm on the evening of the
22nd. The infrared satellite image above and to the right, with an
enhanced color curve, is from nearly the same time and shows the thick cloud cover
over the northern two thirds of New Mexico. The Doppler radar
precipitation image
below and to the left is from the evening of the 22nd, revealing plenty of rain
across the Albuquerque metro area. While rain fell in much of the
middle and lower Rio Grande Valley, deserts and the east central and
southeast plains, snow was observed over the western and central mountains and much of the northeast. Hardest hit was the Santa Fe to
Las Vegas area. The visible satellite image below and to the right
shows the snow cover following the storm on the 24th. The tables
farther below show the five day snow and precipitation (rain and/or melted snow)
totals from
the 19th through 23rd. |
 |
 |
| Snowfall
Totals From the 19th - 23rd |
| Location |
Snow
Amount (inches) |
| Westner
Springs (20 nw Las Vegas) |
18 |
| Sandia
Crest |
16 |
| Cloudcroft |
14 |
| Glorieta |
12 |
| Pecos |
10 |
| Santa
Fe area (from sw to ne) |
2-3
to 8-10 |
| Eagle
Nest |
9 |
| Capulin |
8 |
| Tolby
(east of Eagle Nest) |
8 |
| Sierra
Blanca |
8 |
| Las
Vegas area |
4-6 |
| Springer |
5 |
|
| Rainfall
Totals From the 19th - 23rd |
| Location |
Precipitation
Amount (inches) |
| Roy |
1.51 |
| Cloudcroft |
1.47 |
| Albuquerque
Valley |
1.36 |
| Albuquerque
Sunport |
1.26 |
| Roswell |
1.09 |
| Las
Vegas |
1.07 |
| Albuquerque
Foothills |
1.06 |
| El
Dorado (7 se Santa Fe) |
1.00 |
| Clayton |
0.96 |
| Tucumcari |
0.90 |
| Springer |
0.75 |
| Clovis |
0.65 |
|
A
Change to Colder Weather With Some Snow on the 28th and 29th
The final storm system of
the month strengthened over Utah on the 28th and ushered in cold air
and areas of snow on
the 28th and into the 29th. The water vapor satellite image below and
to the left shows the upper level low reaching the state before noon
on the
29th. The light gray and green areas indicate that sufficient moisture across the northwest
third of the state
accompanied this system. The surface map looping below and to the right
is overlaid with surface temperature analyses. Cold air spread across
the state during the day on the 28th resulting in steadily decreasing
temperatures
during the day and early evening. Snow first accumulated over the northwest
corner of the state early on the 28th and spread across much of northern
New Mexico overnight. Snow accumulations ranged from 1 to 2 inches in
and around Albuquerque
to 8 to 10 inches over the north central mountains. |
 |
 |
|
|
 |
| Total
Snowfall From the 28th - 29th |
| Location |
Snowfall
(inches) |
| Southern
San Juan Mountains |
7
to 10 |
| Sandia
Ski Resort |
8 |
| 7
miles south of Las Vegas |
7 |
| Angel
Fire |
6 |
| Red
River |
6 |
| Chama |
5 |
| Taos |
5 |
| Edgewood |
4 |
| Gallup |
3 |
| Santa
Fe |
2
to 4 |
| Around
Albuquerque |
1.5
to 3.5 |
|
SPECIAL
FEATURE: METAR OBSERVATIONS
|
Have you ever wondered how to read the plots similar to the one
on the right? Weather stations around the world report weather
conditions at least once an hour using a format called METAR (a routine
aviation weather observation). METAR stands for "METeorological
Aerodrome Report," which is the primary code used to report
meteorological surface data. The data is collected by the NWS and distributed for viewing by the public. METARs
are converted from a complicated text format into a simple and readable
format as shown on the right. This helps weather observers and meteorologists ascertain the current conditions at a quick
glance.
Temperatures (upper left corner of the METAR plot) and dew points (lower left) are
converted from degrees Celsius (oC) in the raw report to
degrees Fahrenheit (oF). Mean sea level pressure (MSLP) is
displayed in the upper right hand corner to the nearest tenth of a millibar
(mb) with the first "9" or "10" truncated. If
the first digit on the plot is high (for example; an "8"), then
the truncated digit is a "9." If the first number is low (for
example; an "1"), the pressure value will start with a
"10". In the sample plot below, the displayed value (997)
starts with a high number, therefore; the MSLP will be 999.7 mb.
Right below the MSLP plot is the pressure tendency during the last three hour
period, displayed to the nearest
tenth of a millibar. The symbol to the right indicates whether the
pressure has risen, fallen, or remained steady during this time. In the example
below, "04" represents a 4 mb change in pressure compared to the
observation three hours ago. The symbol to the right indicates that the pressure fell
shortly after the last pressure tendency observation, then rose to a value
(in this case, 4 mb) higher than the observation three hours ago.
Wind barbs indicate
the direction where winds are coming from and the speed to the nearest
five knots (1 knot is approximately 1.15 mph). If winds are light and
variable, then the wind barb will be replaced with a circle around the
cloud cover portion of the plot. If a wind gust was noted at the time of
observation, it will be displayed on the opposite end of the plot with an
arrow and a numerical value. The amount of sky obscuration is displayed with a circle at
the center of the plot. The amount of cloud cover will determine how the
circle is filled. Present weather conditions such as rain,
snow, fog, and even thunder are reported to the left of the sky
condition. The links in the next section show a more in-depth look at
additional weather symbols available for a METAR plot. |
METAR
observations over southwest Utah around
1100
AM on Monday, November 8th, 2004. |
|
Sample
METAR plot. |
The links below
direct you to the charts related to
each element of a
METAR observation:
Cloud
Cover
Pressure Tendency
Present Weather
Wind Speeds
The following
observations explain the sample METAR plot on the left:
Temperature = 49oF
Dew Point = 41oF
Cloud Cover = Cloudy Present
Weather = Fog Pressure
= 999.7 mb Pressure
Tendency = Increased 4 mb in the last 3 hours Wind
Direction = South (180 degrees) Wind
Speed = 15 knots (or approximately 17 mph) Wind
Gust = 22 knots (or approximately 25 mph) |
TEMPERATURE
AND PRECIPITATION DATA FOR ALBUQUERQUE - NOVEMBER 2004
Albuquerque daily actual
maximum (red bars) and
normal maximum (purple line) temperatures - November 2004
 |
The average maximum temperature for November 2004
was 54.1o, which was 3.0 degrees below the 30 year
normal of 57.1o. This was the 6th month in a row with
below average maximum temperatures. |
Albuquerque daily actual minimum (blue bars) and
normal minimum (purple line) temperatures - November 2004
 |
The average minimum temperature for the month was 35.3o, which
was 3.7 degrees above the normal of 31.6o.
The average temperature for November was 44.7o which
was 0.3 degrees above the normal of 44.4o.
|
Albuquerque daily precipitation -
November 2004
|
|
There was 1.37 inches of rain recorded at
the Albuquerque Sunport in November 2004. This was 0.75 inches
above the normal of 0.62 inch, making it the 5th wettest on
record. Total precipitation for the year so far
is 11.50 inches, which is 2.52 inches above the normal of 8.98 inches
through November. |
SEVERE
WEATHER ACROSS NEW MEXICO - NOVEMBER 2004
| There was no
severe weather reported across New Mexico in November 2004. |
