Decorah weather observer Richard Bernatz has studied Decorah weather statistics from November 1st through February 28th and has concluded this winter ranked 9th out of 120 years in severity.
Bernatz calculated severity using 15 different measures: six involving high temperatures. six involving low temperatures and three involving snowfall.
He discovered that we've had 44 days with below zero temperatures since November 1st--nearly double the average of 23 days. We have also had 41 days with a high temperature below 20 degrees--double the average of 20 days.
But Bernatz says the snowfall we received was "less remarkable." Decorah residents have shoveled away 35 inches of snow--just seven inches more than average. That's a long way from the terrible winter of 1977-78, when 58 inches of snow fell. That winter was followed by the winter of 1978-1979, which still holds the title of most severe winter of the last 120 years.