How Does this Season Rank on the ‘Winter Misery Index’?
MINNEAPOLIS -- Fresh off our two-day winter storm now followed by frigid cold temperatures again, many hearty Minnesotans are starting to grumble about our long cold Minnesota winters.
In reality, how is this winter stacking up compared to Minnesota winters of the past? The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources actually puts together something called a "Winter Misery Index" in an attempt to weigh the relative severity of each winter.
They assign points for daily counts of maximum temperatures 10 degrees or colder, and daily minimums of zero degrees or colder.
Snowfall totals of one inch or greater in a day receive one point. Four-inch totals generate four points, and an eight-inch total gets 16 points.
All measurements are taken at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
According to the DNR's latest measurement, this winter has 73 points (40 points for cold and 33 points for snow). That total puts this winter in the moderate category.
Last winter finished with 68 points, also a moderate winter.
The last time we had a severe winter on the misery index was the winter of 2013-2014 with 207 points.
The most severe winter was in 1916-1917 with 305 points.