Following a taste of spring this past weekend, the colder temperatures have returned to New Jersey. Maybe we shouldn't be complaining, though; the Garden State has experienced much colder winters than this one.

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Looking at preliminary numbers from December through last week, New Jersey state climatologist David Robinson at Rutgers University said the 2013-14 season may end up ranking as just the 40th coldest winter in New Jersey over the past 120 years.

"It has not been that cold this winter when you lump it all together," Robinson said. "We've had our cold spells, but we've also had several periods of pretty mild conditions."

Saturday and Sunday saw temperatures rise above 50 degrees, but the dreaded "polar vortex" is closely following with its third visit to the region this winter.

Robinson said New Jerseyans may be feeling colder, or having "illusions" of colder weather, because of all the snow coating the ground over the past few weeks. In central, northern and southwestern New Jersey, there has already been more than twice the number of days, on average, with more than an inch of snow on the ground.

Snow has been the real story this winter. An entire season would usually bring approximately 25 inches of snow to the Garden State. With several weeks of winter still left, New Jersey has already seen more than 47 inches.

"That ranks as the 10th snowiest winter, should not another flake even fall," Robinson said. "Every corner of the state is running above their long-term average."

Winter in New Jersey certainly isn't over in the temperature department. The current cold period could last into the second week of March, and there are a few threats of precipitation during that time.

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