This Winter Was a Hot and Snowy Mess

While the east dealt with incessant snowfall — with some areas setting all-time snowfall records — the west saw one of the warmest and driest winters ever recorded. The period from December 1 through February 28 (known as meteorological winter) was the warmest ever recorded in California, while the lack of precipitation during those three months caused the third driest winter on record in California, Arizona, and New Mexico.

On the whole, the United States saw below average temperatures and its 9th driest winter on record.

[Images: AccuWeather, via Steve Rudin on Twitter / NOAA's NCDC]