Snow in Florida

It is very rare for snow to fall in the U.S. state of Florida, especially in the central and southern portions of the state. With the exception of the far northern areas of the state, most of the major cities in Florida have never recorded measurable snowfall, though trace amounts have been recorded, or flurries in the air observed few times each century. According to the National Weather Service, in the Florida Keys and Key West there is no known occurrence of snow flurries since the European colonization of the region more than 300 years ago. In Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Palm Beach there has been only one known report of snow flurries observed in the air in more than 200 years; this occurred in January 1977. In any event, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Palm Beach have not seen snow flurries before or since this 1977 event.

Due to Florida's low latitude and subtropical climate, temperatures low enough to support significant snowfall are infrequent and their duration is fleeting. In general, frost is more common than snow, requiring temperatures of 32  °F (0  °C) or less at above sea level, a cloudless sky, and a relative humidity of 65% or more. Generally, for snow to occur, the polar jet stream must move southward through Texas and into the Gulf of Mexico, with a stalled cold front across the southern portion of the state curving northeastward to combine freezing air into the frontal clouds. While light snowfall occurs a few times each decade across the northern panhandle, most of the state is too far south of the cold continental air masses responsible for generating snowfall in the rest of the country. The mean maximum monthly snowfall in most parts of Florida is zero. The only other areas in the continental United States with this distinction are southern and southeast Texas (around McAllen and Houston) and parts of coastal southern California at low elevations.

Much of the known information on snow in Florida prior to 1900 is from climatological records provided by the National Weather Service meteorological station in Jacksonville, and information for other locations is sparse. The earliest recorded instance of snow in Florida occurred in 1774; being unaccustomed to snow, some Jacksonville residents called it "extraordinary white rain." The first White Christmas in northeastern Florida's history resulted from a snow event that occurred on December 23, 1989.

Events

The vast majority of snow events in Florida occurred in north Florida and the Jacksonville area. According to the National Weather Service, the record snowfall for the city of Jacksonville is 1.9 inches (4.8 cm), which fell on February 12, 1899. Tampa has a record snowfall of 0.2 inches (5.08 mm) which occurred on January 18, 1977.

Due to larger populations and more advanced communication networks, snow events are witnessed and reported much more frequently in recent years than in historical eras. Interpretations of this timeline must therefore be made with caution, as observed patterns may not reflect actual climate-related trends in annual snowfall but rather improved reporting. Additionally, the presence of rime or sleet being mistaken for snowflakes should also be considered. Finally, many of the reports below are not "official" National Weather Service reports, many being compiled by the newspapers and media, personal observations, and stories passed down through the years.

Pre-1900 (21 reported events)

* December 19, 1765: A "white frost" fell in the northern part of the British colony of East Florida "of short duration, and of no material detriment to the agricultural interests."
* 1774: A snowstorm extended across much of the territory. The affected residents spoke of it as an "extraordinary white rain."
* January 10/11, 1800: Land surveyor Andrew Ellicott erected an observatory at Point Peter, a location near the mouth of Saint Marys River, now in the far southeast side of the City of St. Marys, Georgia. After recording a sunrise temperature of , he observed "snow and hail the whole day" until 10 pm. The temperature then fell below freezing, the wind shifted to northwesterly, and the skies cleared at midnight. At sunrise the morning of January 11, he reported snow deep and a temperature of . This snowstorm perhaps extended from Louisiana to Georgia.
* January 13, 1852: Snow fell all morning, accumulating to at Jacksonville.
* February 28, 1855: A few flakes of snow fell at Jacksonville.
* January 29, 1868: Light sleet fell during the night at Jacksonville.
* February 28, 1869: During the morning, snow flurries fell at Jacksonville.
* January 10, 1873: At 7:25 am, a few snowflakes fell at Jacksonville.
* February 4/5, 1875: Between midnight and sunrise on both dates, light sleet occurred.
* December 1, 1876: According to the observer at Punta Rassa, Florida, snow fell for 5 minutes on the morning of December 1.
* January 4/5, 1879: At Jacksonville at 7 pm, sleet began, which turned to rain 90 minutes later. The freezing rain covered trees, shrubbery, and everything else outdoors by morning. The weight of the ice broke the limbs of many orange trees. At Fernandina, snow occurred.
* December 5, 1886: At Pensacola, following a heavy rain and wind storm, light snow fell from 4:25 pm to 8:20 pm, accumulating to .
* January 5, 1887: of snow fell at Pensacola, and sleet fell elsewhere in the state.
* January 14, 1892: of snow was reported at Pensacola. The first snowfall of the season occurred at Fort Barrancas. Monthly snowfall totaled at Pensacola.
* January 17, 1892: At 10:30 am, sleet fell for a few minutes only at Madison, Florida.
* February 14, 1892: Pensacola reported of snow.
* December 26/27, 1892: On both days, precipitation fell as sleet and snow at Pensacola. On December 26, sleet also occurred at Cerro Gordo, Florida, and slight trace of snow fell at Tallahassee. On December 27, a slight trace fell at Moseley Hall, Madison County, Florida. At intervals during daytime on December 27, light snow flurries occurred at Jacksonville.
* January 16–19, 1893: On January 16, snow occurred at Palatka. On January 17, sleet fell at Oxford, and at Pensacola. Shortly after midnight on January 18, sleet began in the city of Jacksonville and then turned to snow and then to rain. That day, sleet also fell at Moseley Hall, Pensacola, and Tallahassee, and snow occurred at Lawtey. On January 18 and 19, sleet fell at Bristol.
* December 29, 1894: Brooksville reported snowfall from 9 am to 11 am, and a few flakes fell at Mosquito Lagoon near Oak Hill, Florida. The press reported snow at towns in middle and west Florida. The temperature morning fell to lows unprecedented in decades, and this freeze destroyed 2 million to 3 million boxes of not yet gathered oranges, severely damaged pineapple plants, and killed or destroyed almost all other fruits and vegetables.
* February 14, 1895: From 6:22 pm to 6:27 pm, light sleet fell at Jacksonville, followed by light snow until 6:32 pm. At 7:20 pm, light snow resumed until 8 pm. Snow also fell at Tampa, and at Pensacola, snow reportedly reached depths allowing for sleighing.
* February 12/13, 1899: At 9:45 pm, rain changed to sleet at Jacksonville. Sleet then changed to snow at 10:15 pm and continued through the night, accumulating to before sunrise at 7 am as the temperature plunged to . The accumulation reached at Lake Butler. In sheltered locations, the snow melted only several days later. This Great Blizzard of 1899 also affected much of the rest of the American South, and even brought the only ever subzero temperature to Florida.

20th century (21 reported events)

* December 16, 1901: At 1 pm, light snow fell at Jacksonville; at intervals through the afternoon, sleet followed.
* February 7, 1907: During the afternoon, a light snow flurry occurred "in the immediate vicinity" of the city of Jacksonville.
* November 27, 1912: An overnight period of snow covers the ground and trees with a layer in northern Florida.
* January 22/23, 1935: Snow falls until the next morning, with Pensacola recording .
* February 8/9, 1947: A cold wave entering from Canada, accompanied by winds of up to , causes snow as far south as Clearwater.
* February 2/3, 1951: Snowfall accumulates to at Saint Augustine and Crescent City.
* December 14, 1952: Sleet and snow falls across the northern portion of the state, though there is very little accumulation.
* December 14, 1953: Light sleet occurs in the morning in Marianna.
* March 6, 1954: of snow accumulates at Milton Experimental Station, Santa Rosa County, within a 24-hour period, the highest such total for Florida according to official modern records.
* March 28, 1955: Snowfall accumulates to in Marianna along the Florida Panhandle. To this date, this is the only instance of snowfall in Florida occurring after the spring equinox.
* December 12–13, 1957: It reaches even South Florida, although with less intensity than in other portions. Spanning south of Miami-Dade County, though it does not reach the inhabited coastal areas.
* February 13, 1958: An overnight rainfall changes to snowfall in Jacksonville and accumulates to . Additionally, Tallahassee reports a record .
* February 9, 1973: Snow falls over the northern portion of the state, including a total of in Pensacola, with unofficial reports of up to .
* January 18, 1977: The pressure gradient between a strong ridge over the Mississippi Valley and a Nor'easter over Atlantic Canada sends very cold temperatures southward into the state. Areas around Pensacola are the first to receive the snow, then the rest of the Panhandle. Pensacola accumulates of snow. Following record accumulations for the Nature Coast, areas from Orlando to Tampa receive light snow accumulations, between to . Before sunrise on January 19, West Palm Beach reports snow flurries in the air for the first and only time on record, with snow flurries reaching as far south as Homestead. The snow causes little impact as it was of the dry variety, melting on contact and lasting less than 40 minutes. Cold air results in hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to the winter citrus industry (Orlando ties the 1899 record of more than six consecutive nights well-below freezing). On January 20, ''The Miami Herald

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