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Tuesday March 20, 2018

Assignment: Predict the 24 hr minimum temperature (deg F) for Springfield, VT (KVSF)

The vernal equinox occurs on Tuesday, meaning that everywhere on earth has almost exactly the same amount of day and night (12 hours each). The word vernal refers to spring, and the equinox is often taken to be the beginning of the spring season in the Northern Hemisphere. But the Southern Hemisphere is transitioning from summer to fall, so sometimes the vernal equinox is called the March equinox instead, in an attempt to avoid confusion.

In the U.S. we have many towns with the name Springfield. In Springfield, Vermont, Tuesday will not feel very spring-like, with forecasts of the minimum temperature in the single digits. On Monday morning, the low temperature dropped to 2 F with calm winds, and the Tuesday morning low could do that again if the wind goes calm again. Let's predict Tmin for Springfield and see what happens.

Question: Why can lighter winds at night allow the minimum temperature to decrease?

Forecasts for Springfield, VT (KVSF)
Forecaster Tmin, deg F (error) Comment Day Score