From staff reports OKLAHOMA CITY – State Climatologist Gary McManus is concerned regarding Oklahoma’s recent weather patterns. Amidst discussions of hotter temperatures lately, McManus warns of a potentially false spring.
“That is what you worry about when you get this above-normal temperature regime setting in, and then in March or early April, even, you get this big-time freeze event, and then, of course, that does a lot of damage to the wheat crop, it does a lot of damage to our orchards and things of that nature,” McManus said. “It is something to keep an eye on.”
out by summer and La Niña should follow up quickly. “We will just have to wait and see on the strength,” McManus said. “Strength does matter with La Niña, of course, as it does with El more heat waves and subsequently more intense precipitation due to increased evaporation. There should be longer periods between rainfall, but more intense showers when it does rain. Additionally, there is less snow, but when it does snow, it snows hard, he emphasized. “One of the things we are going to be watching for with the increase of temperatures over the next couple of decades or so would be an increase in drought severity,” he said. “So, you take a normal drought and you transform that into a more severe drought.”
McManus’ presentation conveys that since the early 20th century, average temperatures have risen by 1 to 2 degrees Fahrenheit, mostly in the winter. Extreme heat events are more frequent and intense, while we have seen fewer extreme cold events. Winters have become wetter, and spring rainy seasons have shifted into the summer. Overall predictions for Oklahoma include extreme heat, longer summers, earlier springs, and warmer winters.