EcoWatch
Facebook 573k Twitter 238k Instagram 37k Subscribe Subscribe
  • Climate
  • Energy
  • Policy
  • Renewables
  • Culture
  • Science
  • Go Solar Today
      • Top Companies By State
        • California Solar Companies
        • Texas Solar Companies
        • New York Solar Companies
        • Florida Solar Companies
        • See All States
      • Top Incentives By State
        • California Solar Incentives
        • Texas Solar Incentives
        • New York Solar Incentives
        • Florida Solar Incentives
        • See All States
      • Solar Panel Costs By State
        • Solar Panel Costs in California
        • Solar Panel Costs in Texas
        • Solar Panel Costs in New York
        • Solar Panel Costs in Florida
        • See All States
      • Value of Solar by State
        • Is Solar Worth It In California?
        • Is Solar Worth It in Texas?
        • Is Solar Worth It New York?
        • Is Solar Worth It In Florida?
        • See All States
      • Company Reviews
        • Tesla Solar Review
        • Sunrun Solar Review
        • SunPower Solar Review
        • Vivint Solar Review
        • See All Companies
      • Common Solar Questions
        • Can You Get Free Solar Panels?
        • Does Solar Increase Home Value?
        • What’re The Best Solar Batteries?
        • Can You Finance Solar?
        • Where To Buy Solar Panels?
        • Payback On Solar Panels?
      • Solar Resources
        • Interactive Solar Calculator
        • Federal Solar Tax Credit 2023
        • Best Solar Panels For Most Homes
        • Tesla Solar Roof Review
        • Cheapest Solar Panels
      • Companies Compared
        • SunPower vs Tesla Solar
        • SunRun vs Tesla Solar
        • SunRun vs SunPower
        • SunPower vs Momentum Solar
        • SunPower vs ADT Solar
EcoWatch
  • Climate
  • Energy
  • Policy
  • Renewables
  • Culture
  • Science
  • Go Solar Today
    • Go Solar Today
    • Top Companies By State
      • California Solar Companies
      • Texas Solar Companies
      • New York Solar Companies
      • Florida Solar Companies
      • See All States
    • Top Incentives By State
      • California Solar Incentives
      • Texas Solar Incentives
      • New York Solar Incentives
      • Florida Solar Incentives
      • See All States
    • Solar Panel Costs By State
      • Solar Panel Costs in California
      • Solar Panel Costs in Texas
      • Solar Panel Costs in New York
      • Solar Panel Costs in Florida
      • See All States
    • Value of Solar by State
      • Is Solar Worth It In California?
      • Is Solar Worth It in Texas?
      • Is Solar Worth It New York?
      • Is Solar Worth It In Florida?
      • See All States
    • Company Reviews
      • Tesla Solar Review
      • Sunrun Solar Review
      • SunPower Solar Review
      • Vivint Solar Review
      • See All Companies
    • Common Solar Questions
      • Can You Get Free Solar Panels?
      • Does Solar Increase Home Value?
      • What’re The Best Solar Batteries?
      • Can You Finance Solar?
      • Where To Buy Solar Panels?
      • Payback On Solar Panels?
    • Solar Resources
      • Interactive Solar Calculator
      • Federal Solar Tax Credit 2023
      • Best Solar Panels For Most Homes
      • Tesla Solar Roof Review
      • Cheapest Solar Panels
    • Companies Compared
      • SunPower vs Tesla Solar
      • SunRun vs Tesla Solar
      • SunRun vs SunPower
      • SunPower vs Momentum Solar
      • SunPower vs ADT Solar

The best of EcoWatch right in your inbox. Sign up for our email newsletter!

    • About EcoWatch
    • Contact EcoWatch
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Learn About Solar Energy
    Facebook 573k Twitter 238k Instagram 37k
    EcoWatch
    • About EcoWatch
    • Contact EcoWatch
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Learn About Solar Energy
    Facebook 573k Twitter 238k Instagram 37k
    Home Uncategorized

    ‘It Is Surprising When You Live Through It’: Parts of Eastern U.S. Experience Earliest Spring on Record

    By: Olivia Rosane
    Updated: February 26, 2023
    Edited by Irma Omerhodzic
    Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon
    US-CLIMATE-WEATHER-WINTER-HEAT
    A person dons summer attire for Washington, D.C.’s warmest Feb. 23 on record. ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP / Getty Images
    Why you can trust us

    Founded in 2005 as an Ohio-based environmental newspaper, EcoWatch is a digital platform dedicated to publishing quality, science-based content on environmental issues, causes, and solutions.

    Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon

    The weather in the U.S. has been a study in contrasts this week. While Seattle, Washington experienced its coldest Feb. 24 on record, Washington, D.C. saw its warmest ever Feb. 23. 

    In fact, locations across the East coast saw temperatures this week closer to the average for spring or early summer, raising concerns about how the climate crisis is altering the rhythm of the seasons. 

    “It’s a little unsettling, it’s certainly something that is out of the bounds of when we’d normally expect spring,” National Phenology Network Director and University of Arizona environmental scientist Teresa Crimmins said, as The Guardian reported. “It perhaps isn’t surprising, given the trajectory our planet is on, but it is surprising when you live through it.”

    Phenology is the study of the seasons, so the National Phenology Network has plenty to study this year. According to the network, spring conditions have arrived at least 20 days before normal in many parts of the U.S. East and Southeast. In parts of central Texas, south-east Arkansas, southern Ohio and Maryland, those conditions have arrived at the earliest date on record. This is also the case for New York, where spring is 32 days early. 

    Status of Spring update: Spring leaf out has arrived in New York City, 32 days ahead of normal (period of 1991-2020). Spring leaf is earliest on record in parts of the SE, southern MW, and mid-Atlantic, latest on record in parts of AZ. Follow spring at https://t.co/IBXIxQmQiw pic.twitter.com/SXpkgimSYT

    — USA National Phenology Network (@USANPN) February 21, 2023

    What does this mean exactly? It means that daffodils and violets are blooming in New York City, lilacs are blooming in Pennsylvania and the capital’s famous cherry blossoms have started to bud.

    The National Mall division of the National Park System announced on Twitter Thursday that the famous Yoshino cherry trees had entered the first of six bloom stages with the emergence of green buds.

    It's happening! Small green buds are on the Yoshino cherry trees, marking the first of six stages on the way to peak bloom.
    🌸/🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸
    Learn more about the blossoms: https://t.co/h04Gu0ksc1

    NPS photo #Cherryblossom #BloomWatch #NationalMall #WashingtonDC pic.twitter.com/pbjqjjCY0Q

    — National Mall NPS (@NationalMallNPS) February 23, 2023

    The last time the trees budded so early was in 2008 on Feb. 19, The Washington Post reported. 

    In addition to early blooms, the early spring weather brought record temperatures for the day Thursday, with the high temperature at Reagan National Airport reaching 81 degrees, which is only the fourth time that D.C. has hit the 80 degree mark in February. Overall, Jan. 1 through Wednesday is D.C.’s warmest start to the year. 

    More From EcoWatch
    • What Is Solar Energy & How Does it Work?
    • Solar Tax Credit Calculator

    Hundreds of other warm records were set in the east this week, as The Washington Post reported further. These included a record February high of 81 degrees for Atlanta, a February and winter record of 77 degrees for Beckley, West Virginia and a whopping 102 degrees in Falcon Lake, Texas, which is the warmest temperature recorded so far in 2023 and one of the warmest ever recorded in the lower 48 states by this time of year.

    While Se USA is having its harshest winter heat wave in history with up to 102F/39C in Texas,second hottest February day in US history, the West had severe cold for late February,albeit no records were beaten.
    The lowest was -35C at Lyman in Wyoming. pic.twitter.com/3bxdBElNuy

    — Extreme Temperatures Around The World (@extremetemps) February 24, 2023

    At the same time, the U.S. West saw extreme cold, with Lyman, Wyoming, reaching negative 35 degrees. The usually mild West Coast experienced snow and ice, with Seattle recording a Feb. 24 low of 22 degrees, as King 5 News reported. Portland, Oregon, meanwhile, experienced its heaviest snowfall on record to occur so late, as KGW8 reported. And the Los Angeles National Weather Service issued a rare blizzard warning. 

    Due to the potential for strong winds and heavy snow, a BLIZZARD WARNING was issued for the #LACounty and #VenturaCounty mountains from 4 am Friday to 4 pm Saturday. Snow accumulations up to 5 feet and wind gusts in excess of 55 mph are expected. #CAsnow #CAwx pic.twitter.com/wJUzMrqLim

    — NWS Los Angeles (@NWSLosAngeles) February 22, 2023

    While the unseasonable warmth of the East might be more pleasant than the unusual cold of the West, it raises concerns about how seasons are shifting as global temperatures warm. Plants can bloom too early for their insect pollinators and birds might head north too early and starve when the food hasn’t kept pace with them, The Guardian pointed out. Ultimately, the risk to pollinators threatens the entire food system.

    “I’m seeing the trends I rely upon, the calendar I have trusted to see rare plants in bloom, just completely disappear,” the Maryland/ D.C. chapter of the Nature Conservancy Director of Ecological Management Dr. Deborah Landau told The Guardian. “Everything has been thrown out of whack, species that have evolved together for millennia are now off-kilter. There is this cascading effect on everything that is more than just a missed cherry blossom season.”

    Subscribe to get exclusive updates in our daily newsletter!

      By signing up, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy & to receive electronic communications from EcoWatch Media Group, which may include marketing promotions, advertisements and sponsored content.

      Olivia Rosane

      Olivia Rosane is a freelance writer and reporter with a decade’s worth of experience. She has been contributing to EcoWatch daily since 2018 and has also covered environmental themes for Treehugger, The Trouble, YES! Magazine and Real Life. She holds a Ph.D. in English Literature from the University of Cambridge and a master’s in Art and Politics from Goldsmiths, University of London.
      Facebook icon Twitter icon Pinterest icon Email icon

      Read More

      Despite Scientists' Warnings, House Republicans Pass Bill to Boost Fossil Fuels Amidst Climate Crisis
      Ten days after the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released
      By Olivia Rosane
      <strong>U.S. Auctions Giant Stretch of Gulf of Mexico for Oil and Gas Drilling</strong>
      The U.S. held its first auction of oil and gas
      By Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
      UN Asks International Court of Justice to Weigh in on Climate Crisis for First Time, in Diplomatic Victory for Vanuatu
      In a major diplomatic win for a Pacific nation extremely
      By Olivia Rosane

      Subscribe to get exclusive updates in our daily newsletter!

        By signing up, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy & to receive electronic communications from EcoWatch Media Group, which may include marketing promotions, advertisements and sponsored content.

        Latest Articles

        • Despite Scientists’ Warnings, House Republicans Pass Bill to Boost Fossil Fuels Amidst Climate Crisis
          by Olivia Rosane
          March 31, 2023
        • Miami Aquarium to Release Tokitae/Lolita, an Orca Who Spent 50 Years in Captivity
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          March 31, 2023
        • How Plastics Threaten Human Health From ‘Cradle to Grave’
          by Olivia Rosane
          March 31, 2023
        • Train Carrying Ethanol Derails and Catches Fire in Minnesota
          by Olivia Rosane
          March 31, 2023
        • U.S. Auctions Giant Stretch of Gulf of Mexico for Oil and Gas Drilling
          by Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
          March 30, 2023
        • UN Asks International Court of Justice to Weigh in on Climate Crisis for First Time, in Diplomatic Victory for Vanuatu
          by Olivia Rosane
          March 30, 2023
        • EPA’s Internal Watchdog to Investigate Agency’s Response to East Palestine Train Derailment
          by Olivia Rosane
          March 30, 2023
        • Another Train Derails, Spilling Toxic Petroleum Products
          by Olivia Rosane
          March 29, 2023
        EcoWatch

        The best of EcoWatch right in your inbox. Sign up for our email newsletter!

          • Climate Climate
          • Animals Animals
          • Health + Wellness Health + Wellness
          • Insights + Opinion Insights + Opinion
          • Adventure Adventure
          • Oceans Oceans
          • Business Business
          • Solar Solar
          • About EcoWatch
          • Contact EcoWatch
          • EcoWatch Reviews
          • Terms of Use
          • Privacy Policy
          • Learn About Solar Energy
          • Learn About Deregulated Energy
          • EcoWatch UK
          Follow Us
          Facebook 573k
          Twitter 238k
          Instagram 37k
          Subscribe Subscribe

          Experts for a healthier planet and life.

          Mentioned by:
          Learn more