The calendar may say it’s July, but a small piece of winter is still clinging on for dear life somewhere in the United States. And no, we’re not talking about expected places like Alaska or the top of the majestic Rocky Mountains.
Tucked away along the side of the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport sits “Mount MAC,” the mound of snow the grounds crew pushes off the runways so planes can keep passengers safely traveling.
On July 7, airport officials shared photos of Mount MAC still standing despite summer’s relentless heat.
“The snow pile at @mspairport just wants to hang around and enjoy the warm weather!” according to the airport’s official Twitter account.
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The snow pile at @mspairport just wants to hang around and enjoy the warm weather! pic.twitter.com/k0iNshxJs1
— MSP Airport (@mspairport) July 7, 2023
MSP Field Maintenance Planning Manager Mark Rudolph spoke to KARE 11 News and said that beneath a mound of sand sits about two feet of snow. That is down from the mound’s peak height of 80 feet during the winter. The unusual weather conditions in the area have led to the snow sticking around for longer than usual this year.
“I really think this year without the rain, the drought conditions that we’ve had locally, it’s probably extended the stay of the snow,” he told the news station.
Wild weather is nothing new to the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport. Winters always bring snow and frigid temperatures. However, the winter of 2022 broke a record for days of consecutive snow cover.
On March 26, 2023, a 116-day streak of having at least 1 inch of snow on the ground ended based on data from the National Weather Service.
Well, with the 1am observation (6 UTC), the weather observer at MSP took the snow depth down to a trace. This means our streak of having at least 1" of snow on the ground officially at the Twin Cities will come to an end at 116 days (Nov 30 – Mar 25), 9th longest on record. #mnwx pic.twitter.com/H2TxluBy8o
— NWS Twin Cities (@NWSTwinCities) March 26, 2023
That streak marked the 9th longest since the National Weather Service started collecting data in 1899.
With so much snow in the winter and so little rain in the water months, the remaining snow pile is a dreary reminder of what’s to come in the future months.
Rudolph said he hopes there is a time between last year’s snow on the ground and new accumulation this year.
“There are some over and under possible bets within the department on when this snow will actually be totally melted,” he told KARE 11. “I’m going with August 4th because that’s one of my child’s birthdays. But we definitely hope it melts before the first snowfall!”
This story originally appeared on Simplemost. Check out Simplemost for additional stories.
