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dallas snowfall


North Texas hasn’t seen a winter this white in 32 years.

The 11.2 inches of snow that had fallen by midnight Thursday at Dallas/Fort Worth Airport topped the previous record for snowfall in one day of 7.8 inches recorded in 1917 and 1964.

The 12.5 inches that had fallen by 4 a.m. Friday also broke the 24-hour record of 12.1 inches Jan. 15-16, 1964.

Thursday’s snow also catapulted seasonal accumulation to 15.7 inches, according to the National Weather Service in Fort Worth.

That ranks as the second snowiest season ever.

Most snowiest was the 17.6 inches that fell in 1977-78.

That year, 13.5 inches fell in February alone, also a record.

The snow appeared to have finally stopped falling by 6 a.m. Friday

The ingredients for a snowy season are simple: multiple upper-level storm systems supported by temperatures low enough to turn moisture to snow.

Those two elements have collided more than once over North Texas this season.

"It's definitely one of those winters," said Bill Bunting, a meteorologist with the weather service. "You never really know when you’ll get one."

Staff writer Mitch Mitchell contributed to this report

The extreme snowfall of February 11-12, 2010 goes down as THE snowiest 24-hour period in the history DFW weather records, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).

An amazing 12.5" was measured, 11.2" of which fell on the 11th.

This also sets the new one calendar day record.

The tally also pushes the winter of 2009-2010 into second place, just behind 1977-78 for all time snowiest, and second snowiest February (also behind 1978).

See list compiled by NWS below for complete numbers rundown:

DALLAS/FORT WORTH - SNOWIEST SEASONS

1 17.6 1977-78
2 15.7 2009-10*
3 15.3 1963-64
4 13.5 1923-24
5 10.4 1976-77
6 9.5 1909-10
7 9.2 1916-17
8 8.8 1947-48
9 8.1 1937-38
10 7.3 1965-66
7.3 1941-42

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DALLAS/FORT WORTH - MOST SNOW IN FEBRUARY

1 13.5 1978
2 12.5 2010*
3 7.5 1924

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DALLAS/FORT WORTH - GREATEST 24-HOUR SNOWFALL TOTALS

1 12.5 FEBRUARY 11-12, 2010*
2 12.1 JANUARY 15-16, 1964
3 8.2 JANUARY 14-15, 1917
4 7.5 FEBRUARY 17, 1978
7.5 FEBRUARY 25, 1924
6 6.0 MARCH 13, 1924
7 5.5 DECEMBER 9, 1898
8 5.0 NOVEMBER 22, 1937
5.0 JANUARY 5, 1910
10 4.7 NOVEMBER 13, 1976