January one of driest months in Salt Lake

SALT LAKE CITY — January 2010 was the fourth driest January on record at the Salt Lake City International Airport.

There was .38 of an inch of moisture at the airport for the month, compared to a normal level of 1.37 inches.

In contrast, December 2009 boasted precipitation that was .12 inches above normal. The records for January are 3.23 inches of moisture in 1993 and only 0.09 inches in 1961.

January also saw the third lightest snowfall on record. The Salt Lake airport received just 2.3 inches of snow for the month, or only 14 percent of the normal 14.5 inches for a January.

Seasonally (September-January), snowfall is only 62 percent of normal thus far in Salt Lake.

Despite a dry Salt Lake, portions of southern Utah received extreme moisture during January. For example, Escalante was dumped on, with 3.06 inches of precipitation, or 340 percent of normal. Hanksville, Ferron, Panguitch, Bullfrog, Capitol Reef and Castle Dale all received more than 200 percent of normal moisture during January. Kanab was also above normal at 3.59 inches, or 193 percent of normal.

According to Grant Weyman, KSL-TV meteorologist, a Pacific storm is headed for Utah. It appears that the stronger part of this storm will take a southern route. Clouds were expected for the Wasatch Front Friday, with showers at times. More rain showers are likely Saturday. Then a falling snow level on Sunday could produce valley floor accumulations.

The overnight low Saturday morning was expected to dip to 30 degrees. Saturday will climb to a relatively balmy high of 47 degrees. However, Sunday the snow level is predicted to fall to 4700 feet, and up to a half inch of snow is possible. Sunday's daytime high will drop to about 41 degrees.

Monday should be partly cloudy, with a high near 40 degrees.

e-mail: lynn@desnews.com