One climatologist says Canada just had the warmest winter in 77 years. What does that mean for spring?
CTV
Despite unseasonably high temperatures, the start of spring is bound to bring some snow, showers and sunshine with it, one climatologist says.
Despite unseasonably high temperatures, the start of spring is bound to bring some snow, showers and sunshine with it, one climatologist says.
A seasonal forecast published by the government of Canada on February 28 suggests that Toronto will experience a warmer than usual spring, with there being a 77 per cent chance of temperatures higher than normal.
There is a 19 per cent chance that temperatures in Toronto will be seasonably normal, according to the forecast, and a four per cent chance of temperatures being lower than normal.
“One season doesn’t really give you a clue to the next season,” Senior Climatologist David Phillips said to CP24. “But there is a connection between what kind of winter you have and then of course how the spring goes.”
Phillips said that because Canada, on average, had its warmest winter in 77 years, the transition into spring will be easier.
“You’ve got to get rid of the winter – the look and the feel of winter and the snow, the cold and frozen ground, the ice and the rivers and the lakes – and when you get rid of that, then it feels more like spring.”
Over the winter, Toronto set two new temperature records and received minimal amounts of snow.
For the last seven-and-half months, Toronto resident Heather McArthur has been living out what she describes as her 'worst nightmare.' On Feb. 7, her then three-year-old son Jacob along with his father Loc Phu 'Jay' Le departed for what was supposed to be a week-long visit to Vietnam to celebrate the Lunar New Year with family, McArthur says.