JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Meteorologists are welcoming the end of winter across the Northern Hemisphere Feb. 28 and it was a warm one for the record books in Jacksonville.
February 2018 was the all-time warmest on record for the city at 66.1° based on climate records dateing back to 1871.
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Jacksonville normally gets about 15 freezes a year but not this season with only 4 days at or below 32°.
This ties as the least amount of days with four other winters since records have moved from downtown to JAX in 1956.
The other warm winters were 2018-19, 2016-17, 1997-98, 1992-93 and 1971-72.
For five cities in the Jacksonville area, winter never really showed up. Their winters were among the top five warmest on record based on NOAA ACIS climate data.
During what should be the “coldest part of the year,” Gainesville Regional Airport recorded its second-warmest winter on record followed by Hastings with its third-warmest and Jacksonville Beach's fourth-warmest.
If you thought spring started on March 20, you’re correct. But that's the “calendar” or astronomical spring and not the beginning of meteorological spring season.
Meteorologists refer to Dec. 1 through the end of February as winter because the coldest temperatures of the year typically align with this period, rather than the astronomical definition.
Meteorologists always keep the seasons at 90 to 92 days, depending on whether it's a leap year. This method simplifies comparing statistics since every season starts on identical dates of the month, rather than astronomical seasons.
A typical calendar winter runs Dec. 21 through March 21. This year, spring on the calendar begins March 20.