Double the snow, slightly above average temperatures for February in Albuquerque

Mar. 1—Across the state, daily temperatures were slightly above average in February, according to Matt DeMaria, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Albuquerque.

"We were above average everywhere during the day ... generally about 0 to 2 degrees, particularly in the east, for as much as 6 degrees above average," DeMaria said.

"Precipitation is a little bit more of a mixed bag, generally near average, but barely any precipitation in the southeastern portion of the state and above-average precipitation in the northeastern portion of the state," DeMaria said.

In Albuquerque, DeMaria said, the daytime and nighttime temperatures hovered 2 or 3 degrees above average, and the rainfall was "the exact normal precipitation for the month."

DeMaria said the average rainfall for February is 0.41 inches, and the city reached that.

Snowfall for the month was 2.7 inches, most of it falling during the big snow day on Feb. 10. That is double the amount usually seen in the metro area, which DeMaria said is 1.4 inches.

DeMaria said the wind has come a little earlier than expected; the windy season usually starts later in March and into April.

On Tuesday, gusts of 63 mph were recorded at the Sunport International Airport, and gusts as high as 75 mph were reported in Magdalena and Socorro County.

"Unfortunately, around Sunday, Monday timeframe, we are expecting another windy day," DeMaria said. "Probably not as windy as this past storm, but potentially looking at gusts around 40 mph or so in Albuquerque on Sunday ... So it's going to be, breezy, dry southwest- west, winds."

DeMaria said slightly above-average precipitation with near-average temperatures are expected in the coming weeks.

"But we are in a transition from an El Niño into a La Niña, a pretty rapid transition," DeMaria said.

DeMaria said an El Niño means there are warmer water temperatures in the eastern Pacific Ocean and that brings storms farther south, so New Mexico gets more clouds and rain. During La Niña years, which DeMaria said we had last winter, storms stay farther north in Colorado and Utah into the Pacific Northwest, meaning drier conditions for Albuquerque.

As the transition between the cycles continues, the weather outlook for mid- to late spring will also change.