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Easter weather history

Easter is just one week away, here’s a look at how the last 5 years played out in Cedar Rapids. Over the past 66 years, the average temperature on Easter, no matter what day it falls on, is 57 degrees. Last year, in 2019, we had the warmest Easter over the past recorded 66 years at 84 degrees. 80s have only happened 3 other times on the holiday, in 2014, 1987, and 1977. In 2018, it was a pretty chilly Easter with highs only at 33 degrees. Above average weather again in 2017 with a high of 69 degrees. The earliest Easter over the past 5 years happened in 2016, on March 27th with a high of 46. The high on Easter in 2015 was 71 degrees. This year, right now, we are predicting highs in the 50s.

April is usually reliable for rain

April is known as a wetter month, especially when compared to March. Average rainfall for the month is a little over three inches in Cedar Rapids, up about 50% compared to what March offers. Over the past 50 years, the wettest April on record occurred in 2013 when 8.55” of rain fell. In contrast, the driest April occurred in 2018 when only 0.43” of rain fell. Recent trends point toward April routinely bringing at least three inches of rain. Of the past 15 years, 13 of them have exceeded three inches.

Climate review for March 2020: mild and not snowy

Unlike last year, winter passed into spring when it was supposed to. This past month had temperatures that were actually warmer than average. Precipitation was above normal, but that wasn’t because of snow. In fact, monthly snowfall totals were once again below average. March 2020 climate summary Cedar Rapids Warmest high: 70 on the 8th Coldest low: 22 on the 15th Average high temperature: 49.8 degrees, 3.3 degrees above normal Average low temperature: 31.5 degrees, 4.8 degrees above normal Average temperature: 40.6 degrees, 4.0 degrees above normal Precipitation: 2.50”, 0.20” above normal Snowfall: 2.4”, 1.6” below normal Dubuque Warmest high: 65 on the 8th Coldest low: 24 on the 15th and 21st Average high temperature: 46.3 degrees, 2.1 degrees above normal Average low temperature: 31.5 degrees, 4.9 degrees above normal Average temperature: 38.9 degrees, 3.5 degrees above normal Precipitation: 3.23”, 0.82” above normal Snowfall: 1.5”, 4.8” below normal Iowa City Warmest high: 73 on the 8th Coldest low: 28 on the 2nd and 7th Average high temperature: 52.9 degrees, 4.7 degrees above normal Average low temperature: 34.8 degrees, 5.7 degrees above normal Average temperature: 43.9 degrees, 5.3 degrees above normal Precipitation: 4.00”, 1.78” above normal Snowfall: 1.0”, 2.4” below normal Waterloo Warmest high: 71 on the 8th Coldest low: 19 on the 15th Average high temperature: 50.0 degrees, 4.4 degrees above normal Average low temperature: 32.4 degrees, 6.4 degrees above normal Average temperature: 41.2 degrees, 5.4 degrees above normal Precipitation: 3.00”, 0.94” above normal Snowfall: 2.2”, 2.4” below normal

Weather Academy Wednesday: Colors and Letters

Join Chief Meteorologist Joe Winters as he talks about colors and letters relating to weather for this week's Weather Academy Wednesday. This Facebook Live is geared towards children in grades Kindergarten through 2nd Grade.

March was warmer than normal for many

March 2020 will go down as a warmer than normal for most of the United States. While the map suggests the month was pretty smooth, it was packed with ups and downs throughout. For us in Iowa, our weather was downright wild throughout the month. At the Eastern Iowa Airport, our warmest day occurred on March 8th with a high of 70. Our coldest low occurred one week later with a low of 22. There were several light snow events throughout the month as well along with several storm complexes. Rainfall was about a half-inch above normal. The first week of March was generally the quietest as little to no precipitation fell anywhere in eastern Iowa.