This spring has been a temperature roller coaster throughout the northeastern U.S., but why is that? AccuWeather expert Dave Dombek explains.
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00:00AccuWeather Northeast expert meteorologist Dave Dombek and Dave, you've been forecasting the
00:04weather here with us at AccuWeather for several decades and you've always been dialed into the
00:08northeast specifically. Spring is a fascinating time to live near the northeast coast and it can
00:15really make or break the weather experience when you're outside. So Dave, can we talk a little bit
00:19about this past weekend? We have a graphic that shows a Central Park temperature drop that was
00:24pretty spectacular in just one hour's time. Yeah, and from what I understand, that is a
00:31record for Central Park. That is a huge drop. Typically when these backdoor cold fronts,
00:38and of course when we talk about backdoor cold fronts, Jeff, most cold fronts, you know,
00:43in North America, United States, they kind of come in from the west, maybe the northwest.
00:48Backdoor cold fronts are actually coming in from the opposite direction, from some easterly
00:53direction, either from the northeast or from the east. They're kind of backing in through New
00:57England or backing in from the Atlantic Ocean. This time of the year, the ocean is still very
01:01chilly. Water takes a lot longer to warm up than the land and so we've got that big source of
01:08chill out there called the Atlantic Ocean and, you know, that's typical to get these backdoor
01:16cold fronts during the spring months. And the early part of spring typically is when you have
01:21the most aggressive and the sharpest pushes of this, the chillier air coming in behind
01:28these backdoor cold fronts and that's exactly what we saw here on Saturday. And Dave, I like this
01:33depiction of the sea surface temperatures, ocean water temps, because it clearly shows, this time
01:38of the year, you can clearly see the Gulf Stream, that warm water off the Carolina coast, but the
01:44orientation of Cape Hatteras and the Outer Banks, it kind of launches that away from us and Virginia
01:49Beach doesn't benefit from that. That's right and it takes a while. I mean, you watch those water
01:55temps, they come up gradually, but boy, it takes a long time. How many times, you know, you're at
02:01the Jersey Shore and it's, you know, almost the 4th of July, you're still dealing with water
02:05temperatures in the upper 50s, near 60. So yeah, it does take a long time, but that this is very
02:12typical, you know, these swings back and forth. I always say, you know, the spring is the roller
02:18coaster month with temperatures, wild ups and downs. That's actually very, very typical
02:25to happen this time of the year and these backdoor cold fronts, everyone, there's a lot of similarities,
02:30but I always say everyone is a little bit different. Everyone is unique. Absolutely and right now,
02:36if you are in places like New England, you do have a chilly flow from the northwest, but it's not
02:40because of the ocean. Sometimes when you're down in the Delmarva Peninsula, a wind from the northwest
02:45isn't all that cold compared to a wind that comes in off of the ocean. So it is all about the wind
02:50direction, isn't it, Dave? Yeah, right, because like today, here's a very good example, Jeff. Yesterday
02:57it was a warm day in Philadelphia. It got pretty warm in New York City. I think
03:02it got to 73, but they got past 80, I think 82 in Philadelphia officially and so today with
03:08the northwest flow, it was a cooler, actually a much cooler day. However, on Long Island,
03:15coastal Connecticut, the Jersey Shore, today northwest flow, it actually ended up being the
03:20same temperatures or even a little bit warmer, believe it or not, because they were cooled by way
03:26of the flow off of the chilly ocean yesterday. So yeah, it is a different story. It depends
03:32on where you are in relation to the water this time of the year in the northeast. All right,
03:37well we appreciate your insight. As always, Dave Dombek, longtime AccuWeather meteorologist for
03:41breaking down the whole concept of what chilly air and chilly water can do to the air temperature
03:46here, especially at cold water lurking just off the east coast. Thanks again, Dave. Sure, Jeff.