I got an email a week or so ago. It was from a Connecticut resident, now a student at Boston University. Chris wanted to know if I’d answer a few weather questions for an article in the BU daily… and so I did.
Boston — when it sizzles, and shivers
Why Hub’s weather may be the ‘world’s worst’
Chris Bianchi
Posted: 9/6/06
With wintertime temperatures rivaling those of southern Alaska and summertime heat akin to south Florida’s, it is no wonder Boston’s climate is often referred to by locals as the “world’s worst.”
It is not difficult to find a Boston University student who will admit that on frigid January mornings any exposed skin feels as though it will turn to ice.
“I don’t want to leave my room in the winter for fear that my ears are going to fall off,” said Lizzy Bleck, a College of Engineering sophomore and Massachusetts local.
On the other hand, for the cold-weather-lovers the summer heat is anticipated with dread. According to Weather.com average summertime highs for Boston measure in the low 80’s — but they often climb higher than that. This past summer, the thermometer read 100 on two separate occasions.
“I hate the Boston heat,” said Ryan Steele, a College of Communication sophomore. “I really just feel like staying cooped up in the air conditioning all day.”
While Boston has many less-than-desirable possible weather conditions, compared to other cities with notoriously poor weather Beantown looks fortunate.
Geoff Fox, a meteorologist at New Haven, Conn.’s WTNH-TV, described Boston’s weather as ‘samples’ rather than a set climate.
“Truth is, in New England we don’t get weather, we get samples,” Fox said in an email. “Think about it. Whatever happens anywhere else also happens here. That includes heat waves, hurricanes, blizzards and flooding. We even get tornadoes from time to time.”
Fox then outlined the cause of Boston’s wacky weather.
“Weather is attracted to us because of our location,” he said. “We’re far enough north to get the full brunt of winter weather … Being close to the ocean, we also get Atlantic storms. When really cold air blows over the relatively mild Atlantic, storms form on the spot — and they can be our worst.”