Warm and Dry Winter 2021-2022 for northeast Kansas

By Kyle Poage, Meteorologist for Topeka NWS

Although January and February had their share of cold temperatures and wintry precipitation events, a very warm and dry December pushed the winter season of 2021-2022 into the warm and dry categories. Temperatures for the season averaged to be around two degrees above normal across north-central, northeast, and east-central Kansas with precipitation around one-third of normal. In particular, for Topeka, where weather records date back to 1887, the winter was the ninth-driest with a total of 1.43 inches of precipitation, which is 2.40 inches below normal. It was also the twelfth-warmest winter with an average temperature of 35.4 degrees, which is 2.6 degrees above normal. The average low temperature for the season was close to normal, but the average high temperature was 5.5 degrees above normal, placing it as the second-warmest average high temperature on record. Only the winter of 2011-2012 had a warmer average high temperature. The total snowfall for the winter season was 14.8 inches, which is 0.9 inches above normal. For Concordia, where weather records date back to 1885, it was the third-driest winter with only 0.49 inches of precipitation falling, which is 2.10 inches below normal. The average temperature tied for the sixteenth-warmest winter season on record, 3.0 degrees above the normal of 34.0 degrees. As was the case for Topeka, the average high temperature was what made the winter warm. The average high temperature tied for the highest average on record at 47.1 degrees, 6.0 degrees above normal, tying with the 1991-1992 season.

Again for Topeka, December 2021 was the secondwarmest and eighth-driest December on record. The high temperature on December 15th was 76 degrees and the high temperature on December 24th was 74 degrees. These readings were the second- and thirdhighest temperatures on record for any December, respectively. The first measurable snow of the season came January 1st. This was the eighth-latest first snowfall of the winter season on record. This area’s first snowfall of the season was heaviest in northern areas with 4.0 inches measured at Belleville, Concordia, and Holton with around an inch falling south of the Kansas Turnpike. Wind chill values were rather cold January 1st and 2nd with readings of -10 to -20 degrees being common. Another round of cold followed on January 6th with wind chills of -8 to -15 that morning. Another moderate snowfall occurred from late January 14th to late January 15th with around three inches accumulating in northeast and east-central Kansas. A somewhat longer-lived snow fell from the afternoon of February 1st to around sunrise of February 3rd with the heavier amounts falling in east-central Kansas, including five inches at Osage City, 4.6 inches at Topeka, and four inches at Gridley. Wind chills as the storm ended fell to -8 to -13 degrees across the area. A shorter duration but heavier snow fell from around midnight to the afternoon of February 17th, with again the heaviest snow falling in east-central Kansas, with 9.1 inches measured at Eudora, eight inches at Osage City, and six inches at Garnett. This event began as a wintry mix of precipitation with freezing rain and some thunderstorms. February 23rd saw the final cold snap of the season with wind chills of -8 to -20 that morning.

Source: https://www.weather.gov/media/top/newsletter/Spring%202022%20Topeka%20Tiller.pdf