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NOUS44 KLZK 161248
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ARZ003>007-012>016-021>025-030>034-037>047-052>057-062>069-180000-

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LITTLE ROCK AR
650 AM CST SUN DEC 16 2012

...ODDS OF A WHITE CHRISTMAS IN LITTLE ROCK...

SINCE SNOWFALL RECORDS BEGAN IN LITTLE ROCK IN 1875...THERE HAVE 
BEEN RELATIVELY FEW TIMES WHEN SNOW WAS SEEN ON CHRISTMAS DAY. 

LOOKING AT THE ENTIRE PERIOD OF RECORD FROM 1875 TO 2011...

MEASURABLE SNOW FELL ON CHRISTMAS DAY IN THREE OF THOSE YEARS...WITH 
TRACE AMOUNTS IN EIGHT YEARS. IN THREE OTHER YEARS...NO SNOW FELL...
BUT THERE WAS MEASURABLE SNOW ALREADY ON THE GROUND. 

ONLY THREE TIMES...IN 1876...1963 AND 2004 WAS THE GROUND COVERED 
WITH SNOW THE ENTIRE DAY. OVERALL...THERE HAS BEEN SNOW COVER FOR AT 
LEAST PART OF CHRISTMAS DAY ELEVEN TIMES. THIS INCLUDES BOTH 
MEASURABLE SNOW AND TRACE AMOUNTS. 

LIKELIHOOD...

GOING JUST BY THE AVERAGES...SNOW ON CHRISTMAS IN LITTLE ROCK IS 
SEEN ABOUT ONCE EVERY EIGHT YEARS. THIS INCLUDES MEASURABLE SNOW 
FALLING OR SNOW ALREADY ON THE GROUND FROM PREVIOUS STORMS...AS WELL 
AS TRACE AMOUNTS.

MEASURABLE SNOW FALLING ON CHRISTMAS...OR MEASURABLE SNOW LEFT OVER 
FROM PREVIOUS STORMS IS SEEN ABOUT ONCE EVERY 25 YEARS. 

JUST BY THE AVERAGES...MEASURABLE SNOW FALLING ON CHRISTMAS IS SEEN 
ABOUT ONCE EVERY 50 YEARS. HOWEVER...IN LITTLE ROCKS CASE...THERE 
HAS BEEN NO MEASURABLE SNOW ON CHRISTMAS SINCE 1926. 

EXAMINING THE DATA...

IN 1887...1914...1918...1935...1939...1975...AND 2009 SNOW FELL WITH 
NO ACCUMULATION. 

IN 1876...TWO INCHES OF SNOW WAS ON THE GROUND FROM A SNOWFALL ON 
CHRISTMAS EVE. 

IN 1879...RAIN BEGAN AROUND 7 AM CHRISTMAS EVE...CHANGING TO A MIX 
OF SLEET AND SNOW DURING THE AFTERNOON. BY NIGHT...THE GROUND WAS 
LIGHTLY COVERED WITH SNOW. THE SNOW HAD STOPPED BEFORE MIDNIGHT...
BUT THE GROUND REMAINED COVERED CHRISTMAS MORNING. 

IN 1897...ONE INCH OF SNOW FELL ON CHRISTMAS DAY BETWEEN 450 AM AND 
1245 PM. BY 700 PM THAT NIGHT...ONLY A TRACE OF SNOW REMAINED ON THE 
GROUND. 

IN 1913...SNOW STARTED AT MIDNIGHT AND CONTINUED UNTIL 1130 AM 
CHRISTMAS DAY. A TOTAL OF ONE AND ONE HALF (1.5) INCHES OF SNOW 
FELL...BUT DURING THE AFTERNOON THE TEMPERATURE ROSE TO 40 DEGREES 
AND MOST OF IT MELTED. BY THAT EVENING ONLY A TRACE OF SNOW REMAINED 
ON THE GROUND. 

ON CHRISTMAS DAY IN 1926...SLEET BEGAN FALLING AROUND 600 AM...AND 
THEN CHANGED OVER TO SNOW. THE SNOW CONTINUED UNTIL 130 PM. 1.7 
INCHES OF SLEET ACCUMULATED...WITH 2.5 INCHES OF SNOW ON TOP OF 
THAT. THE SNOW STAYED ON THE GROUND THROUGH THE 28TH. IRONICALLY...
THERE WAS A SERIOUS TORNADO OUTBREAK IN ARKANSAS ON THANKSGIVING 
THAT YEAR. 

ON CHRISTMAS EVE IN 1962...IT SNOWED AN INCH AND A HALF (1.5) DURING 
THE DAY BUT MELTED QUICKLY DURING THE NIGHT...LEAVING ONLY PATCHES 
OF SNOW ON THE GROUND CHRISTMAS MORNING...WHICH MELTED THAT DAY. 

IN 1963...FOUR INCHES OF SNOW WAS ON THE GROUND CHRISTMAS DAY...LEFT 
OVER FROM A 9.8 INCH SNOWFALL ON DECEMBER 22. 

IN 1975...IT SNOWED ON CHRISTMAS AFTERNOON. IN MANY OF THE HILLS 
AROUND THE CITY UP TO TWO INCHES OF SNOW ACCUMULATED. FOR THOSE 
LIVING IN THE LOWER ELEVATIONS OF THE CITY...RAIN AND SNOW WAS MIXED 
AND LITTLE OF THE SNOW REMAINED ON THE GROUND. BY THE NEXT 
DAY...MOST OF THE SNOW HAD MELTED. NO SNOW ACCUMULATED AT LITTLE 
ROCK. 

IN 1983...A TOTAL OF TWO INCHES OF SNOW FELL IN THE METROPOLITAN 
AREA EARLIER IN THE WEEK AND THERE WAS SOME ICE ON TOP OF THAT. DUE 
TO MELTING AND REFREEZING...THERE WAS ABOUT AN INCH OF ICE AND SNOW 
LEFT ON THE GROUND BY CHRISTMAS DAY IN OTHER PARTS OF THE AREA...BUT 
NONE REMAINED ON THE GROUND AT LITTLE ROCK. 

IN 1990...2.4 INCHES OF SNOW AND SLEET FELL ON DECEMBER 22-23 AND 
MOST OF IT REMAINED ON THE GROUND THROUGH CHRISTMAS DAY IN SOME OF 
THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS OF THE METRO AREA...BUT NONE REMAINED AT 
LITTLE ROCK. 

IN 2000...THERE WAS SOME SNOW ON THE GROUND IN NORTHERN AND WESTERN 
ARKANSAS ON CHRISTMAS DAY. AT LITTLE ROCK...A TRACE OF SLEET AND 
FREEZING RAIN HAD ACCUMULATED ON THE GROUND. THAT DAY...ONE OF THE 
LARGEST ICE STORMS IN RECORDED HISTORY OVERSPREAD THE STATE...
SHUTTING THE STATE DOWN THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE YEAR.  

IN 2004...SNOW FELL IN MUCH OF NORTHERN AND CENTRAL ARKANSAS ON 
DECEMBER 22ND. IN LITTLE ROCK...ROUGHLY THREE INCHES OF SNOW WAS 
MEASURED...WITH ONE INCH STILL ON THE GROUND ON CHRISTMAS DAY. 

IN 2009...LIGHT SNOW BEGAN A LITTLE BEFORE MIDNIGHT ON CHRISTMAS 
EVE. IT ENDED AROUND 3 AM CHRISTMAS MORNING...WITH PATCHES OF SNOW 
ON THE GROUND THROUGH EARLY MORNING. 

$$