Random Climate Questions

[Brennan]

Abbotsford BC averages 59.35 inches of rainfall per year, while Bellingham International Airport averages 34.84" of rainfall per year. Serious question. What about the geography of the land causes THAT much more rainfall at Abbotsford than Bellingham? 

 

Also does anyone have a site that contains Abbotsford monthly snowfall/temp data that goes way back?

[Guest happ]

Abbotsford BC averages 59.35 inches of rainfall per year, while Bellingham International Airport averages 34.84" of rainfall per year. Serious question. What about the geography of the land causes THAT much more rainfall at Abbotsford than Bellingham? 

 

Also does anyone have a site that contains Abbotsford monthly snowfall/temp data that goes way back?

 

Major rain shadow

[BLI snowman]

Bellingham is simply shadowed a lot more in WSW flow, which is predominant in the wet months, as they're not entirely out of the Olympic Rainshadow. As you go north and east, that's less of an issue even at the same elevation. Blaine averages 40-41" of precip and Lynden averages 46-47". Abbotsford in particular is close enough to the Cascades to see a fair amount of orographic lift in westerly flow.

 

And if you want to find their data, look it up on Environment Canada. As such

 

 

http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_data/monthly_data_e.html?hlyRange=1953-01-01%7C2012-06-21&dlyRange=1944-10-01%7C2012-06-20&mlyRange=1944-01-01%7C2012-06-01&StationID=702&Prov=BC&urlExtension=_e.html&searchType=stnName&optLimit=yearRange&StartYear=1840&EndYear=2017&selRowPerPage=25&Line=3&searchMethod=contains&Month=6&Day=21&txtStationName=abbotsford&timeframe=3&Year=2012

[Brennan]

Bellingham is simply shadowed a lot more in WSW flow, which is predominant in the wet months, as they're not entirely out of the Olympic Rainshadow. As you go north and east, that's less of an issue even at the same elevation. Blaine averages 40-41" of precip and Lynden averages 46-47". Abbotsford in particular is close enough to the Cascades to see a fair amount of orographic lift in westerly flow.

 

And if you want to find their data, look it up on Environment Canada. As such

 

 

http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_data/monthly_data_e.html?hlyRange=1953-01-01%7C2012-06-21&dlyRange=1944-10-01%7C2012-06-20&mlyRange=1944-01-01%7C2012-06-01&StationID=702&Prov=BC&urlExtension=_e.html&searchType=stnName&optLimit=yearRange&StartYear=1840&EndYear=2017&selRowPerPage=25&Line=3&searchMethod=contains&Month=6&Day=21&txtStationName=abbotsford&timeframe=3&Year=2012

 

Ok thanks for the information. I know that Bellingham and as it seems even more-so Ferndale are shadowed pretty bad. It's astounding how big of a difference a few miles makes when it comes to shadowing. Water district 10 in the Geneva area averages nearly 20" more rainfall per year than Bellingham. Those two stations are less than 10 miles away and only 250 feet elevation difference. 

 

Being on the leeward side of a mountain makes any given location drier, but how big of a mountain range does it take to have an effect on precipitation? Would the valley of highway 9 area EAST of Stewart Mountain on the eastern side of Lake Whatcom receive less rainfall in your opinion? It sucks not having any station over there. 

[Scott]

Being on the leeward side of a mountain makes any given location drier, but how big of a mountain range does it take to have an effect on precipitation?

 

 

Not very big especially by the ocean and even more so if the winds usually come from one direction.

 

This is especially impressive on tropical islands, where it happens in very short distances.

 

Dominica for example, is a tiny island in the Caribbean.   At it's widest point, the island is 18 miles wide, coast to coast.

 

Check out the precipitation map:

 

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TvwjCf4coSk/TZ4qXRhkeBI/AAAAAAAAABs/ZWe-KhQ2u00/s1600/dominica+rainfall.gif

 

The Hawaiian Islands are similar.  

 

Maui (the precipitation comes from the northeast):

[Brennan]

Not very big especially by the ocean and even more so if the winds usually come from one direction.

 

This is especially impressive on tropical islands, where it happens in very short distances.

 

Dominica for example, is a tiny island in the Caribbean. At it's widest point, the island is 18 miles wide, coast to coast.

 

Check out the precipitation map:

 

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TvwjCf4coSk/TZ4qXRhkeBI/AAAAAAAAABs/ZWe-KhQ2u00/s1600/dominica+rainfall.gif

 

The Hawaiian Islands are similar.

 

Maui (the precipitation comes from the northeast):

Thanks for all of the input! However, Haleakala on Maui is like 10,000 feet i think.

 

I am mainly thinking being on the east valley of a cascade foothill, west of the mountains.

[Scott]

Thanks for all of the input! However, Haleakala on Maui is like 10,000 feet i think. 

 

 

The summit is that high, but the top is actually pretty dry.    The maximum precipitation actually falls between 1000-3000 feet elevation, on the northeast side and then rapidly diminishes beyond that.