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F.5 METEOROLOGY<br />

F.8<br />

The general climatic regime <strong>of</strong> the site is that <strong>of</strong> a marked continental type character-<br />

ized by wide variations in temperature, scanty winter precipitation, normally ample summer<br />

rainfall, and a general tendency to extremes in all climatic features. Temperature data,<br />

obtained by adjusting 54-year climatological summaries for G and B, indicate that January<br />

is the coldest month, with average daily maximum, mean and minimum temperatures <strong>of</strong> -6, -11<br />

and -16 0 C, respectively. July is the warmest month, with corresponding temperatures <strong>of</strong> 28,<br />

22, and 16 0 C. Table F.5.1 shows monthly statistics.<br />

The number <strong>of</strong> days with maximum temperatures <strong>of</strong> 32°C and above is estimated to be 12.<br />

The numbers <strong>of</strong> days with a minimum temperature <strong>of</strong> 0 0 C or below and -180C or below are esti-<br />

mated to be 168 and 40, respectively. The January relative humidities at 7:00 a.m.,<br />

1:00 p.m., and 7:00 p.m., EST, are estimated to be 76, 68, 70%, respectively. The corre-<br />

sponding humidities for July are 86, 55, and 55%. Monthly average humidities are shown in<br />

Table F.5.2.<br />

The annual average rainfall is about 76 cm. The maximum 24-hr total rainfall for the<br />

period 1894-1965 for B was 13 cm and occurred in May. Thunderstorms have an annual frequency<br />

<strong>of</strong> 36 and are the chief source <strong>of</strong> rain from May through September. Snowfall in the<br />

area has an annual average <strong>of</strong> 110 cm, with occurrences recorded in all months except June,<br />

July and August. The extremes in annual snowfall <strong>of</strong> record are a 15-cm minimum and a 220-cm<br />

maximum.<br />

Annually, the winds are predominantly from the northwest or from the south through<br />

southeast. This bimodal distribution is characteristic <strong>of</strong> the seasonal wind distributions<br />

as well. The average windspeed for spring is 11 km/hr and for the other seasons about<br />

16 km/hr. The maximum reported windspeed <strong>of</strong> 160 km/hr, reported in July 1951, was associated<br />

with a tornado. Tornadoes and other severe storms occur occasionally. Eight tor-<br />

nadoes were reported in the period 1916 to 1967 in county A. The theoretical expected<br />

frequency <strong>of</strong> a tornado striking a given point in this area is 5 x 10 - per year. For<br />

design purposes a maximum windspeed <strong>of</strong> 580 km/hr is assumed to be associated with tornadoes.<br />

TABLE F.5.1. Monthly Temperature Statistics (OC)<br />

Jan Feb March Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec<br />

Maximum -6.1 -4.4 3.3 12.8 20.0 25.0 28.3 26.7 22.2 15.0 4.4 -3.3<br />

Minimum -16.1 -14.4 -6.7 1.7 7.8 13.3 16.1 15.0 10.0 3.9 -4.4 -12.2<br />

Mean -11.1. -9.4 -1.7 7.2 13.9 18.9 22.2 21.1 16.1 9.4 0.0 -7.8<br />

Extreme Max 15.0 16.1 27.8 32.8 40.6 39.4 41.7 40.0 40.6 32.2 23.9 17.2<br />

Extreme Min -38.9 -36.7 -34.4 -15.6 -5.7 6.0 5.6 3.3 -5.6 -13.3 -27.8 -33.9<br />

TABLE F.5.2. Mean Monthly Relative Humidity percent<br />

Jan Feb Mar Apr May June Ju.ly Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec<br />

74 75 73 66 62 66 68 70 70 66 73 78

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