In this December 2009 file photo, frost-covered goldenrod glows at sunrise in a field south of Tulsa. KELLY BOSTIAN/ Tulsa World File
It seems like just yesterday that I was broken record, reminding you all how many weeks it had been since it last rained, since the temperatures were last in double digits and not triple.
And now, the National Weather Service is forecasting lows in the 30s and potential frost today and Thursday in the Tulsa area.
As of Tuesday afternoon, there were already freeze watches just north of Oklahoma-Kansas border.
The U.S. Drought Monitor continues to show fewer areas statewide in "exceptional" drought thanks to the lower temperatures.
It's the changing season, folks.
Need some music to set the tone? Here's Fantasia's "Waltz of the Flowers," circa 1940:
While you let Tchaikovsky's masterpiece play in the background, here is some info from Tulsa National Weather Service meteorologist Karen Hatfield:
"The middle part of this week will likely feature the first widespread frost and/or freeze for parts of the state, and while we don't have any frost or freeze watches/warnings up yet, it is possible that something like that will be posted -- most likely for Wednesday morning," Hatfield said.
We are actually not too far away from the average first freeze for Tulsa, Nov. 3. However, Hatfield said the earliest freeze for Tulsa occurred on Oct. 8 in 1952 and in 2000.
The latest first freeze? Hatfield said that only two years ago, Tulsa's first freeze Nov. 26 was only two days shy of tying the record latest freeze, Nov. 28, set in 1990.
Alas, this is not another weather record to add to the big list for 2011. Speaking of, would our insanely high temperatures and crazy low precipitation have any impact on a freeze/frost?
"There really isn't any correlation between the temperatures in the summer and what occurs in the winter," Hatfield said. "In theory, a persistent dry spell could hinder the production of frost because there would be less ground moisture."
--Althea Peterson
