March 2014 Review - Jyväskylä

Like December and February during the winter period, Jyväskylä saw a very warm and above average March. March last year was exceptionally cold, but the average maximum for 2014 was more than 7C higher. It felt like spring came early and, like February, the month ended up as the second warmest since at least 1961. The warm weather also brought along dry conditions resulting in below average precipitation.

March averages at Jyväskylä Airport for the period 2009-2014

According to the Finnish Meteorological Institute, Jyväskylä saw its equal second warmest March on record. Only 2007 was warmer, with 1920 its equal.

During the previous 5 years, the highest recorded March temperature at Jyväskylä Airport was 7.2C in 2011. March 2014 beat that by almost 5C with a top of 12.1C on the 29th. The highest minimum of 2.1C was recorded earlier in the month on March 13. This was also the highest such figure of the past 6 years. A brief period of cooler weather not long after saw both the coldest overall temperature and the lowest daily maximum; -17.3C on the 17th and -3.2C a couple of days later on the 19th respectively.

The highest temperature recorded in Finland was 13.5C at Jomala. Despite the month being one of the warmest on record for many locations, this figure was lower than at least 6 other months of March since 1961. The lowest temperature recorded was once again at Kilpisjärvi in the far north; -34.3C recorded on the 17th.

The warmth of March 2014 is highlighted by looking at the number of days with a minimum below -10C and the number of days with a maximum above 5C, and comparing it to previous years.

Number of March days below -10C and above 5C for the period 2009-2014

FMI reports that 28mm was recorded at Tikkakoski during the month. Despite being above last year's recording of 21mm, it was below the 1981-2010 average of 36mm. Based on recordings I took via the FMI site, I had a monthly total of 29.8mm at Tikkakoski. The day with the highest total was March 3 when 6.3mm fell, while a total of 12 days saw precipitation of some kind.

Jyväskylä spent most of March without any snow. The lack of snow was not surprising when looking at the number of days above 5C. There was some snow though. A depth of 10cm was recorded on the 20th and it stuck around for a few days. Warm temperatures towards the end of the month melted that snow quickly though and paths and roads were already being cleared of stones and sand by the last week.