April 2017 Weather and Climate Summary and Forecast

Instead of roaring like a lion, March provided generally warm conditions and variable precipitation amounts for much of the west. The question is whether the rhyme will hold and April will behave like a lamb? The general pattern in temperatures for the western US in March was largely warmer than normal except right along the coast in Northern California and Oregon as well as throughout much of Washington (Figure 1). Temperatures elsewhere were 3-6°F above normal in the Rockies, Four Corners and the southwest. Conditions in California warmed to the point of ushering in spring growth, but more in line with average bud break compared to the past few years. The warm March extended eastward into the Plains, the southeast, and Ohio River valley before giving way to average conditions in the mid-Atlantic then a cooler than average month for New England. The seesaw in the east has wreaked havoc with the spring, including a muting of the cherry blossoms in Washington, DC.

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