It is a lovely bright late winter day with clear skies and a temperature of -9C. Perfect for skiing. I checked the snow depth and it is an average depth of 520 mm near my study plot.
The temperatures were not that cold, certainly not as cold as February can often be. This is very different from what the rest of the northern US has been experiencing. Even as I write this letter there is a big snowstorm moving up the East Coast, which is causing much trouble.
The sunshine is so wonderful! The Vernal Equinox is only a couple of weeks away so we have close to 12 hours of daylight and since it has been clear and there is snow on the ground and the sun is higher than we've seen it for several months, it is very, very bright. Wonderful! This is the time of the year I have named "Bright Winter". The sun rose today at 7:56 am and will set at 6:12 pm, for a total day length of 10 hours and 16 minutes.
