December weather History

• December 5, 1953, a tornado struck Vicksburg, Mississippi causing destruction and ending in 38 deaths.

• December 8, 1938, the temperature in La Mesa, CA reached 108°, setting a December record for highest temperature ever recorded in this month in the U.S.

• December 12-20, 1967, a blizzard struck the southwestern part of the United States, resulting in 51 deaths.

• December 14 and 15, 1924, the temperature in Helena, Montana dropped 88°, going from 63° (on Dec. 14) to -25° (on Dec. 15).

• December 15, 1965, a windstorm struck Bangladesh, causing 10, 000 deaths.

• December 29, 1919, the American Meteorological Society (AMS) was founded in St. Louis.

• December 31, 1882, three inches of snow fell in San Francisco.

Tip: Geese tend to fly higher in the sky during good weather. High pressure associated with good weather makes for better flying conditions aloft. Geese tend to fly lower in the sky when bad weather is on its way. The lower the pressure (which is associated commonly with an approaching storm), the closer better it is to fly closer to the ground.

"Snowmen fall from the sky....unassembled"

–      Author Unknown

Weather to go: Virga is an unusual phenomenon that you might see coming from clouds. It is, essentially, precipitation that is coming from a cloud, but does not touch ground because it evaporates in the air. Often, a person can see virga when they notice small wisps coming from the bottom of a cloud. On occasion, virga can be confused with a funnel cloud . You tend to see virga with altostratus or cumulonimbus clouds.

POEM: Christina Rosetti