The Accumulated Winter Season Index (AWSSI) was developed to objectively quantify and describe the relative severity of the winter season. It factors in intensity and persistence of cold weather, the amount of snow, and the amount and persistence of snow on the ground. If you use it to calculate how bad this year’s winter is, most of the Southeast ends up looking pretty mild, and even a lot of the Upper Midwest, which has been experiencing frigid temperatures, does not look too bad over the whole winter. You can see the map and learn more at https://mrcc.illinois.edu/research/awssi/indexAwssi.jsp.
