BETTENDORF, Iowa — The winter season in the Quad Cities usually isn't known for generous amounts of sunshine, according to past history anyway. Ron, from Bettendorf, Iowa asked "Has the Quad Cities seen more sunshine compared to other years? According to the data, yes!
The National Centers for Environmental Information, a subsidiary of NOAA, keeps records on sky cover data for various locations throughout the United States. For the Quad Cities, we have 53 years' worth of sky cover data to comb through. Here's what I found.
We have indeed seen a marked increase in the number of sunny days so far this winter. The winter season itself runs from December 1 until February 28, meteorologically speaking.
Let's examine what we've observed here at the Quad Cities International Airport in Moline, Illinois. During the months of December 2021 and January 2022, the airport logged only seven days of cloudy skies. That's well below the average of 34 days for the entire period. A dramatic 80% decline.
Sunny days tallied up to an impressive 23 days, increasing by 153% versus the normal 15 days. Partly cloudy days also saw an impressive rise, logging 32 total days versus the average of 13 days. That's a 246% increase!!!
Why the change? We can point to a few things that likely lead to the increase in sunshine.
The Ongoing Drought: Moderate to at times severe drought continues to impact much of the Quad Cities region. This drought has remained in place since the previous summer and can limit the amount of moisture needed to produce widespread clouds at times.
Active Storm Track Position: Much of this winter has featured a trough (or dip in the jet stream) to the east of the Quad Cities. This is where the active storm track has resided for the past several months. The end
Lack of Snowfall: Seasonal snowfall continues to run below normal for this time of year. Pile that on top of the ongoing drought and you've got another reason why clouds have been potentially lacking this winter season so far.
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