2015

The first two weeks of February in Oklahoma were a nice preview of spring with temperatures rising at times into the 70s and 80s with just a few mildly cold days scattered here and there. The final two weeks were a different story altogether, however, as the frigid arctic air ensconced across the eastern half of the country slid its way west and into the state. The forgotten season flexed its muscles at that point with several rounds of wintry weather, punctuated during the month's final few days with several rounds of snow, sleet and freezing rain.

The old adage "numbers never lie" is a good principle in theory, but often dangerous if used within the context of Oklahoma's eccentric weather patterns. For example, the statewide average temperature and precipitation values for January ended very close to normal, but the journey to those numbers was anything but. The first half of the month was frigid and mostly dry, somewhat typical of a cold Oklahoma January. Around the 15th, however, the weather decided it was time for spring a couple of months early.