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Second month is becoming first in snowfall
By Matt Rocheleau
Globe Staff

Lots of snow in February — it’s become as routine as Tom Brady hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.

Historically, January and February are virtually tied as the snowiest months of the year in Boston, each bringing a little more than a foot of snow, on average, according to National Weather Service records dating back to the 1890s.

But lately, the shortest month of the year has been by far the cruelest (or the sweetest, depending on your affinity for snow).

Each of the last four years, February has been the snowiest month in Boston, with an average of more than 34 inches, almost twice January’s average of 17.7 inches.

Boosting those averages, of course, is the historic winter of 2014-15, the snowiest ever recorded in Boston. That winter dropped 34.3 inches of snow in January and a whopping 64.8 inches in February.

Last winter, 15 inches fell in February, compared with 9.5 inches in January. In 2014, February edged out January again, 22.9 inches to 21.8 inches.

In 2013, February crushed January, 34 inches to 5 inches.

This February, just 2 inches of snow has fallen in Boston so far. But a storm scheduled to hit the area on Thursday could leave around a foot, more than the 8.9 inches that fell in January.

“That will make it five years in a row’’ that more snow will have fallen in February, said Dave Samuhel, senior meteorologist for AccuWeather.com.

The recent trend is “mostly random,’’ he said.

Samuhel said he expects the rest of the month to resemble this week — “stormy, with some huge temperature swings.’’

“Chances are we will get another snowstorm at some point this month,’’ he said.

Matt Rocheleau can be reached at matthew.rocheleau@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @mrochele.