PITTSBURGH — It’s been a little breezy today, but you’ve probably noticed through the ups and downs that it has been unusually windy and specifically gusty so far this spring. In fact, since March 1st, going back to the 1940s, it is our gustiest start to a spring on record with 26 days of peak wind gusts over 30 mph.
The spring season becoming more gusty has been a trend over the last decade or so, but it’s been most noticeable this year.
So far this season, lower-than-average pressure has been occurring to our north, with higher-than-average pressure to our east. In between, the tightening pressure gradient or “difference in pressure” allows the winds to pick up at the ground.
But the key this year has been a faster-than-usual ribbon of winds aloft (about 3,000-5,000ft up) across the northeast. With daytime mixing, we’ve mixed those higher gusts to the surface consistently, hence why it’s been so windy.
March is, on average, our windiest month, with January, February, and April all closely following. Winds tend to back off significantly by June and July as we see less clashing of air masses.
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