Spring is about three weeks ahead of schedule in South Jersey

With the recent mild weather, it might be easy to forget that it’s still February and yes, winter. 

Over the last two weeks, temperatures on numerous day have either approached or smashed records.

In South Jersey, the average high temperatures for middle to late February are in the middle to upper 40s, but 50s, 60s, and even 70s a few days have been the norm. 

The culprit this month in the eastern two-thirds of the Unites States is a jet stream that has mostly kept frigid air bottled up far north into Canada. Record high temperatures have been recorded as far north as Nova Scotia and Toronto. 

And that’s been telling Mother Nature to press fast forward to spring, which officially arrives on March 20. 

According to the USA National Phenology Network, spring is three or more weeks ahead of schedule across most of the Unites States, meteorologists Bob Henson and Jeff Masters wrote in a Weather Underground blog earlier today.  

“These estimates were made using nature’s calendar — for example, when flowers bloom, trees begin to leaf out, and birds build their nests,” the meteorologists wrote. 

Spring, according to the blog post, has come on average more than five days early in New Jersey when comparing the period 1991 through 2010 and 1961 and 1980. 

The authors cite a study that found that an early spring in late February will be typical by the year 2100. 

While the mild surge benefits heating bills and spurs spring fever earlier, it’s potentially devastating for farmers when their crops bloom too early and are later damaged or destroyed by freezes, according to the USA National Phenology Network.

The organization also says an early spring can negatively impact human health, including an earlier presence of disease carrying insects and a longer pollen season.

With the recent mild weather, it might be easy to forget it’s still February and yes, winter. 
 
Over the last two weeks, temperatures on numerous day have either approached or broken records. 
 
In South Jersey, the average high temperatures for middle to late February are in the middle to upper 40s, but 50s, 60s, and even 70s a few days have been the norm. 
 

The culprit this month in the eastern two-thirds of the Unites States is a jet stream that has mostly kept bitter cold bottled up far north into Canada. Record high temperatures have been recorded in Nova Scotia and Toronto. 

 
And that’s been telling mother nature to press fast forward to spring. 
 
According to the USA National Phenology Network, spring is three or more weeks ahead of schedule across most of the Unites States, meteorologists Bob Henson and Jeff Masters wrote in a Weather Underground blog earlier today.  
 
“These estimates were made using nature’s calendar — for example, when flowers bloom, trees begin to leaf out, and birds build their nests,” the meteorologists wrote. 
 
Spring, according to the blog post, has come on average five years in New Jersey when comparing the period 1991 through 2010 and 1961 and 1980. 
 
They cite a study that found that an early spring in late February will be typical by the year 2100. 
 
While the mild surge benefits heating bills and spurs spring fever earlier, it’s potentially devastating for farmers that rely on their crops blooming too early and being destroyed by spring freezes.