North America Snow Cover in October Sets Record

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11/02/2020, 2:17 pm EST
October 2020 Global Soil Moisture Outlook
11/09/2020, 9:49 am EST
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Discussion: In October 2020 the Rutgers University Snow Laboratory snow cover analysis reveals 10.26 million square kilometers across North America which is (by far) the highest amount for the month observed in the 1970-2020 climatology. Note the upward trend during recent years for October across North American. Proposed is the upward trend is due to the constricted polar ice cap leaving more open water for seasonably cold air to travel across to produce advection snows which spread south across Canada. Additionally, unique to the past 6-7 years is presence of a persistent “warm blob” of ocean water across the northeast Pacific basin likely contributing to the climate pattern helping to produce the steady increase in early season North America snow cover.