It could have broken a dodging record that has been strong for nearly 122 years during the snowstorm monster that has hit New Jersey for the past three days.
The National Weather Service announced Tuesday night that it received a preliminary report of 35.5 inches of snow on the ground in Mount Arlington, Morris County.
If this report is confirmed, it would surpass the state’s 34-inch snow record that fell during a multi-day snowstorm that stretched from February 11-14, 1899.
However, the weather service has not yet declared a record, said agency meteorologist Patrick O’Hara. While the agency has no reason to doubt the veracity of the snowfall report, it has yet to go through a strict process to confirm it.
O’Hara said the 35.5-inch snow report in Mount Arlington came from a trained weather observer, someone who probably knows the right way to accurately measure snow. But to declare a new statewide record, more research is needed.
And it’s not a quick process.
“It will go through a lot of control,” O’Hara said. “It will not be days, it will not be weeks. I will probably do it for months ”.
On Monday, after the National Weather Service received initial reports of 30-centimeter snowfall, New Jersey state climatologist David Robinson echoed what O’Hara said, saying all snowfall measures are considered preliminary. until they can be confirmed.
Robinson, the Rutgers University office overseeing state climate data and records dating back to 1895, said any snowfall report for something as significant as a statewide record should be subjected to a major control according to the procedures established by the National Environmental Information Centers, formerly known as the National Climate Data Center.
Robinson said the process involves determining the procedure used by the weather observer who reported snowfall measurement and making sure the procedure meets the appropriate standards for measuring snow.
Climate and weather experts don’t take it lightly, Robinson noted. That’s why the National Weather Service can’t declare the 35.5-inch snow report as a record at this time.
If the measure is maintained, it would be among the heavy total snowfall of more than 30 inches that was reported Monday night and Tuesday, the second and third days of this three-day winter storm.
This map shows how much snow has fallen in New Jersey and neighboring states as of Tuesday, February 2nd.National Meteorological Service
MAIN REPORTS OF SNOW IN NJ
Right now, these are New Jersey’s highest preliminary snow totals during this monster storm:
- 35.5 inches reported in Mount Arlington, Morris County
- 33.2 inches reported in Montague, Sussex County
- 32.0 inches reported in Andover, Sussex County
- 31.3 inches reported in Hope, Warren County
- 31.0 inches reported in Chester, Morris County
- 31.0 inches reported in Oxford, County Warren
- 31.0 inches in Stanhope, Sussex County
- 30.4 inches reported in Chatham, Morris County
- 30.3 inches reported in Sparta, Sussex County
- 30.0 inches reported in Mendham, Morris County
- 30.0 inches reported in Sandyston, Sussex County
Current weather radar
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