Comments on: The Hope Graph

By: Slow-Motion Thaw: Last Week’s Snow/Ice Storm – Economic Losses Equivalent to a Moderate Hurricane

Mon, 17 Feb 2014 15:00:12 +0000

[…] by early March. Here’s an excerpt of an interesting post from Minnesota climate scientist Greg Laden that caught my eye – and gave me hope: “…About this time of year, some time in […]

By: What Is Up With The Jet Stream? (snowy Monday commute – risk of a midweek thaw) || Conservation Minnesota

Sun, 16 Feb 2014 22:44:16 +0000

[…] by early March. Here’s an excerpt of an interesting post from Minnesota climate scientist Greg Laden that caught my eye – and gave me hope: “…About this time of year, some time in […]

By: Greg Laden

Greg Laden — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 23:22:03 +0000

I lived in New England then moved to Minnesota. It’s really true in Minnesota.

Of course, in the Boston area, the impossibility of going anywhere any time is already there so it sort of masks the effect. Also, road work, some of it, does continue during much of the winter in New England. It totally stops here .. zero. The only construction equipment you see here is when a water main breaks.

By: Eric Lund

Eric Lund — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 22:57:17 +0000

two seasons, Winter and Road Construction

I think that’s true throughout the northern US. We have that saying in New England as well.

By: Greg Laden

Greg Laden — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 22:11:57 +0000

Hold on a second there! It is HERE, in Minnesota, where we talk about two seasons, Winter and Road Construction!

By: wyldwing

wyldwing — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 22:10:57 +0000

Laughing and laughing at this blog. Thank you. Here in Colorado, there’s an old saying that there are two seasons, July and winter. Otherwise known as “Road construction and winter.”

By: oldebabe

oldebabe — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 17:08:07 +0000

Don’t complain (if you are). Here, we’re hoping for a couple of years now for a drop of rain, let alone a drop in temps…

By: Eric Lund

Eric Lund — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 14:30:37 +0000

In places where winter cold is usually strong enough to cause the ground to freeze (like northern New England, and presumably Minnesota as well), early spring brings mud season. Which is a big reason why people (excluding city slickers who move up here for the scenery) prefer to live on paved roads–in a particularly nasty year, even 4WD vehicles can get stuck on dirt roads. It also means no walks in the woods (you can do severe damage to trails). One reason for the timing of town meetings is that mid-March has historically been before the onset of mud season, while people could still travel to the meetinghouse but while farmers don’t have much else to do.

Lately, our snow cover has been highly variable. Some years the snow melts off in early March (or sooner), while other years I don’t see my back yard until mid-April. And while it doesn’t happen every year, snow in April is common enough in these parts that most people aren’t surprised when it happens.

By: Robert

Robert — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 03:16:23 +0000

I also go to West Virginia University where I am a junior and this is the first year where we have had a day off of school because of the snow. Now WVU does not experience winter nearly as bad as Minnesota and i expect the last of our snow and ice to be melted by February 23rd. I believe Minnesota will have a late Point Out Dog Doo Day. If West Virginia doesn’t melt until the 23rd then I estimate Minnesota’s Point Out Dog Doo Day will be about a week late. This chart is a great way to estimate important dates and from what I have learned about estimating from my physics class this seems like a very legit way of doing that. A hope chart around WVU would have a lot of early ends and some late starts excluding this current year due to the polar vortex.

By: Greg Laden

Greg Laden — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 03:13:40 +0000

Frost, thanks for stopping by and ruining it for everyone!

That is a great map, thanks for the link to it.