News - Blogs - Weather quiz Tulsa 2011 versus Tulsa 2012

Weather quiz: Tulsa 2011 versus Tulsa 2012
Published: 7/23/2012 12:35 PM
Last Modified: 7/23/2012 3:17 PM

Tulsa only received 1.2 inches of snow on Feb. 13, but some motorists, including this one on U.S. 169 near 106th Street North in Owasso, experienced troubles. MIKE SIMONS/Tulsa World File

Bonus question: Did Tulsa's high temperatures of 106 and 107 degrees last week set any records?

Bonus answer: NO! We hit 107 on July 19 and 106 on July 20. Tulsa's records for those days are 113 (set in 1936, also happens to be July's all-time record high) and 109 (set most recently in 1936).

And now, a reader inquiry:
Tulsa heat wave comparison of 2012 to 2011: You had a blog entry on this about a month earlier. How about updating it considering our latest spate of hot weather? Thanks -V.A.

I'll go one-better: Let's test all of you on how well you've been paying attention to your Tulsa weather during these past two VERY eventful years.

As always unless otherwise noted, all information will be taken directly from the National Weather Service, which gets its Tulsa weather information from the Tulsa International Airport.

Each and every answer will either be "2011" or "2012." Or even "both."

Let's start off with an easy one...

1. Which year had more snowfall (as of July 22)?

2. Which year had the higher temperature (as of July 22)?

3. Which year had the least spring rainfall (Note: Meteorologically, spring is March, April and May)?

4. Which year had the coldest temperature (as of July 22)?

5. Which year had the least rainfall in June-July (as of July 22)?

6. Which year had the higher average temperature, January-June?

7. Which year set the all-time record for having the hottest March?

8. Which year had more rain (through June)?

9. Which year set a calendar day record in the month of June?

10. Which year had less total precipitation (rain and snow) in January?

Here are the answers:

1. 2011. I hope you didn't get this one wrong. 2011 shattered snowfall records for a 24-hour period (14 inches), a month (22.5 in February) and nearly for the entire year (26.1, second-all time)

2. Both. Aren't I tricky. 2011 had its highest temperatures in August, not July. We only reached 107 in July 2011, same as July 2012. Makes you wonder what's coming next month, huh?

3. 2011, but it's closer than you might think. We received 9.99 inches in 2011's spring, and 11.04 in 2012's.

4. 2011. We had such a mild winter this year that we had no chance of matching our lows of 2011. We hit 16 degrees in February this year, but hit minus-12 degrees in February 2011.

5. 2011. 1.83 for 2011, whether we include all of July or just up till July 22. Those "trace amount" days were the most depressing as I recall, when rain chances only turned into unmeasurable amonts of rain. Tulsa's received 5.61 inches so far in June-July 2012.

6. 2012. A big thank-you to the meteorologist at the weather service for helping me figure this one out. January through June, Tulsa had an average temperature of 56.93 degrees. Thanks to our mild winter, 2012 had an average temperature of 61.92 degrees.

7. 2012. Credit our mild winter again for giving our March an average temperature of 61.5 degrees, the hottest March in Tulsa's history. March 2011? 52.5 degrees.

8. 2012. Even if we include July, 2012 wins here. In 2011, Tulsa had 14.6 inches in January through June. In 2012, 17.55 inches.

9. Both. I need to stick a few trick questions in a quiz like this! June 27's all-time high temperature of 106 degrees was set in 2011, while June 25's all-time high of 105 degrees was set in 2012.

10. 2012. Blame the mild winter once again. January this year had only 0.61 of an inch of rainfall and 0.5 of an inch of snowfall. While January 2011 had only 0.57 of an inch of rainfall, it also had 3.6 inches of snow!

How did you do?

10 correct: Above-average rainfall. Keep Green Country green!
9 correct: Summer highs in the 80s and 90s. You can really tell the difference if you've had to endure 100s.
8 correct: Average rainfall. It's just what Tulsa needs and hopes for on a dry, hot, summer day.
7 correct: Thunderstorm. The power might go out, but there's usually more rain with this type of storm, and can also give you an excuse to watch the sky!
6 correct: Wind gusts. They make a warm day feel cooler, but a cold day feel colder.
5 correct: Ozone Alert Day. People with lung or heart disease should be aware that increased air pollution may cause them to experience adverse health effects. However, it is also a good excuse to put off mowing the lawn.
4 correct: Light snow. It's pretty to look at, but only 1.2 inches of it may cause school to be called off.
3 correct: Below normal rainfall. Get out the sprinkler if you don't have water rationing rules, it's going to be a long summer.
2 correct: Heavy snow. The kids might like playing in it, but many streets are impassible and offices and schools are closed. And, let's face it, it's going to melt away quickly, anyway.
1 correct: D4 for exceptional drought. The U.S. Drought Monitor reserves this rating for a once-every-50-years event involving agricultural emergencies.
0 correct: Ice Storm 2007. The power is out from downed trees and roadways are difficult to pass through, if not impossible, but neighbors helping neighbors gives people hope for the future.

Reader Comments

4 Total

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Tulsa World Staff Writer Althea Peterson (7 months ago)

I will admit that I only knew 8 of them. I thought I knew all 10 when writing them out, but then had to add in the "both" option when I realized that two applied to both years.

Thunder196 (7 months ago)

I got more right then I thought I would. I guess I'm better at guessing then I thought.

Always remember, at least guess at an answer. At least you have a chance of getting it right.

39091 (7 months ago)

Althea, this is VA, the person that requested this info. Thanks for the update. I got a 7. We can hope that the temp doesn't get higher than 110 this summer.

Tulsa World Staff Writer Althea Peterson (7 months ago)

Bad news, VA -- we have forecasted highs of 110-111 through Thursday here in Tulsa. 106 and rising currently :(

4 comments displayed

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Almanac

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun
Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec

	Temperature		Precipitation
Date	High Temp	Low Temp	Total	Month to date	Historical average
1	44°	16°	0	0.00	0.05
2	59°	24°	0	0.00	0.11
3	57°	33°	0	0.00	0.16
4	68°	37°	Trace	0.00	0.21
5	69°	29°	0	0.00	0.26
6	66°	33°	0	0.00	0.32
7	59°	38°	0.05	0.05	0.38
8	51°	34°	0	0.05	0.44
9	44°	36°	0.01	0.06	0.51
10	62°	37°	0.07	0.13	0.57
11	54°	28°	0	0.13	0.64
12	44°	30°	0.25	0.38	0.70
13	55°	40°	0.01	0.39	0.76
14	°	°			0.83
15	°	°			0.89
16	°	°			0.95
17	°	°			1.02
18	°	°			1.09
19	°	°			1.16
20	°	°			1.23
21	°	°			1.31
22	°	°			1.38
23	°	°			1.46
24	°	°			1.53
25	°	°			1.61
26	°	°			1.69
27	°	°			1.77
28	°	°			1.85

TEMPERATURE

RAINFALL

SNOWFALL

Weather World

Follow Jerry Wofford on Twitter for updates during severe weather conditions.

Tulsa weather milestones of 2013 (as of Feb. 12)

Highest temperature: 70 on Jan. 11 (Record: 115 on Aug. 15, 1936)
Lowest temperature: 15 on Jan. 16 (Record: Minus-16 on Jan. 22, 1930)
Hottest month (average): 40.5 degrees in January (Record: 91.7 degrees on July 1980)
Coldest month (average): 40. 5 degrees in January (Record: 21.7 in January 1918)
Most snowfall (day): 0.1 of an inch on Feb. 12(Record: 13.2 inches on Feb. 1, 2011)
Most snowfall (month): 0.1 of an inch in February(Record: 22.5 inches in February 2011)
Most rainfall (day): 0.91 of an inch on Jan. 29 (Record: 9.27 inches on May 26-27, 1984)
Most rainfall (month): 1.54 of an inch in January (Record: 18.18 inches on September 1971)
Highest wind speed: 30 mph on Jan. 30
Previous day with any rain: Feb. 12
Previous day with 1 inch or more of rain: Oct. 17, 2012
Previous day with any snow: Feb. 12
Previous day with freezing temperatures: Feb. 12
Read regular updates on Oklahoma's unpredictable weather and learn more about meteorology from the Tulsa office of the National Weather Service.

>> Visit the main weather page
>> Send us your weather photos
>> Meet the forecasters

Contributors
Staff Writer Althea Peterson started writing for the Tulsa World in March 2007 after previous stops at the Norman Transcript in 2006 and the Oklahoma Gazette in 2005. She followed her older brother from rural Wisconsin (with a public school that never seemed to call snow days) to the University of Oklahoma, but did not follow his pursuit to study meteorology. However, she tries to find as many opportunities to report on the weather as possible.

Staff Writer Jerry Wofford came to the Tulsa World in 2010 from The Manhattan Mercury in Manhattan, Kan. Originally from western Arkansas and a graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Jerry has lived in Tornado Alley his entire life and is one of those people who goes outside when the sirens go off.

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