It’s March 1, the first day of meteorological spring and as we look forward to warmer days in southwest Virginia, we can also look back at what was one of the warmest and least snowy winters on record for our area.
Recommended Videos
Roanoke recorded an average temperature of 42.8 degrees from December 2019 through February 2020. That is the fifth warmest winter on record for the Star City and only 0.6 degrees behind second place. The winter of 1931-32 is a runaway winner in these rankings with an average temperature of 46.1 degrees.
With it being so warm, it was very difficult for snow to fall in the Roanoke Valley. Only 1.6 inches were recorded, the 9th least snowy winter on record.
Lynchburg’s winter was even warmer in comparison to the past than Roanoke’s was! 2019-2020 came in a tie for third place with 1949-1950. The average temperature from December to February this year was 42.6 degrees in the Hill City. Once again, 1931-1932 was much warmer than any other year on the list.
Snowfall records have been kept for 128 years in Lynchburg, but only two winters have been less snowy than this one. The Hill City only received a trace of snow from December to February.
Finally, Blacksburg also recorded a top five-warmest winter in 2019-2020. The average temperature there was lower than Roanoke and Lynchburg, but still about five degrees above average and less than one degree away from the warmest ever winter there!
Blacksburg was slightly more snowy than Roanoke and Lynchburg this winter, but still in the bottom 10 for snowfall on record at 4.6 inches.