NEWS: 1983

As 1983 begins, it's partly cloudy and 34 degrees F at Baltimore's weather station (at BWI Airport). The wind is from the southwest at 6 miles an hour.

It's the beginning of World Communications Year with emphasis on Development of Communication Infrastructures, as declared by the United Nations.

This year, the camcorder for consumer use is introduced. It uses a videocassette inside a combination video camera/video recorder, and is designed for portable use. Sony introduces the Betamovie BMC-100P which uses a full-sized videocassette (same as in its standard Betamax videocassette recorders) and is operated while resting on the operator's shoulder, due to no single-handed grip. Also in 1983, JVC introduces its first VHS-C camcorder, with "C" meaning "compact" because the VHS-C videocassettes are smaller than standard VHS videocassettes. VHS-C tapes recorded in a VHS-C camcorder can be played in a standard VHS VCR, but require an adapter to do so. Camcorders continue to use analog videocassette recording tapes until 2006, when digital means of video recording such as Digital Video Disc (DVD) and flash memory are introduced.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Mostly cloudy, then cloudy, then mostly cloudy, then cloudy; High temp. 49 F; Low temp. 29 F; Precipitation: None.  No snow on the ground.

Kate Bosworth is born Catherine Anne Bosworth in Los Angeles, California. She's an actress and model. Following minor roles in the films The Horse Whisperer (1998) and Remember the Titans (2000), she rose to prominence with her role as a young surfer in the box-office hit Blue Crush (2002). She also had roles in independent films, playing Dawn Schiller in the true crime film Wonderland (2003) and Sandra Dee in the Bobby Darin biographical drama Beyond the Sea (2004). She portrayed Lois Lane in Superman Returns (2006), and had roles in 21 (2008), Straw Dogs (2011), And While We Were Here (2012), and Still Alice (2014). She starred in the horror films Before I Wake (2016) and The Domestics (2018). Also, she starred as KC in the Netflix science fiction miniseries The I-Land (2019).

Anthony Carrigan is born in Boston, MA. He's an actor. Since 2018, he has portrayed Chechen mobster NoHo Hank in the HBO series Barry, for which he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series in 2019. He is also known for playing Tyler Davies in the television series The Forgotten (2009–2010), Victor Zsasz in the FOX series Gotham (2014–2019), and robot Dennis Caleb McCoy in Bill & Ted Face the Music (2020).

The musical "Annie" has its final performance of its original Broadway production run, number 2,377.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Cloudy, then clear, then cloudy; High temp. 45 F; Low temp. 29 F; Precipitation: None.

Spencer Chamberlain is born in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He's a musician, best known for being the lead vocalist for the metalcore band Underoath. Before fronting Underoath, Chamberlain was the vocalist for the band This Runs Through in which his brother, Phil Chamberlain, was the drummer (who is also the drummer for To Speak of Wolves).

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Clear most of the day, then partly cloudy to mostly cloudy in the evening; High temp. 37 F; Low temp. 24 F; Precipitation: None.

U.S. President Ronald Reagan announces his nomination of Elizabeth Dole to be the new U.S. Secretary of Transportation. (She takes office on February 7, 1983, and Dole becomes the first woman to head a Cabinet department in Reagan’s administration, and also the first to head the Department of Transportation. She earlier had been a commissioner on  the Federal Trade Commission and Director of the Office of Public Liaison.)

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Clear, becoming cloudy; light rain showers from late morning to mid-evening; High temp. 41 F; Low temp. 27 F; Precipitation: 0.21 inch.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: High temp. 50° F; Low temp. 28° F, Precip.: None.

The total precipitation for Baltimore during January 1983 is 2.21 inches, including melted snow and ice, below the normal of 3.08 inches.  The average daily high temperature for Baltimore during January 1983 is 41.8 degrees F, below the normal of 43.2 degrees.  Te average daily low temperature for Baltimore during January 1983 is 27.4 degrees F, above the normal of 25.4 degrees.  A total of 1.2 inches of snow falls at Baltimore's official weather station during January 1983, well below the normal of 6.4 inches.

The Blizzard of 1983 occurs in Baltimore, in Maryland, and in much of the northeastern U.S.  In the Baltimore area, it snows all day with few breaks, but the heaviest snow falls from about 8:00 AM to about 6:00 PM. In the southern and eastern suburbs there is thunder heard between 2:00 and 3:00 PM during heavy snow. Winds of 12 to 22 MPH with gusts to 38 MPH cause substantial drifting.  A total of 22.8 inches of snow fall at BWI (now BWI Marshall) Airport, but areas farther north in the Baltimore region report snowfall as high as 30 inches. Schools and many businesses close for the day.

A whopping 3.26 inches of (liquid) precipitation falls in Baltimore -- the largest-ever amount in Baltimore on any February 11th since recordkeeping begn in 1870. This translates to the aforementioned 23 inches of snow.

BWI Airport gets 22.8 inches of snow, the greatest snowfall on one day for BWI Airport in 1983.

The highly popular TV series "M*A*S*H" ends after 11 seasons with a special two-hour finale that is watched by an estimated 121.6 million people. The series began on September 17, 1972 on CBS Television and it ran for 256 first-run episodes.

The total precipitation for Baltimore during February 1983 is 4.81 inches, including melted snow and ice.

The low temperature in Baltimore reaches 40 degrees F, a tie for the lowest temperature ever recorded for Baltimore on any September 23rd (up to this point) since recordkeeping began in 1871. This low temperature ties the 40 degrees F that was recorded in Baltimore on September 23, 1904.

Baltimore weather: Clear, then mostly cloudy, then clear; High temp. 62 degrees F, Low temp. 40 degrees F., Precipitation: None.

The low temperature in Baltimore reaches 39 degrees F, a tie for the lowest temperature ever recorded for Baltimore on any September 24th (up to this point) since recordkeeping began in 1871. This low temperature ties the 39 degrees F that was recorded in Baltimore on September 24, 1963, and again on September 24, 1974.

Baltimore weather: Clear, then partly cloudy, then clear; High temp. 66 degrees F., Low temp. 39 degrees F., Precipitation: None.

It snows in Baltimore and vicinity for the first time this snow season.  A thin layer of snow coats the ground in some places, and there is drizzle later on.  The temperature is in the 30s (F), but the weather does not interfere with the playing of the World Series game.

In the first game of the 1983 World Series, the Orioles lose to the Philadelphia Phillies, 2-1, at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore.  Jim Dwyer hits a home run for the Orioles but is countered by two Phillies homers.  Scott McGrfegor pitches a solid 8 innings for the Orioles, but gets the loss.  Attendance is 52,204.

Maurice Bishop, the Prime Minister of Grenada, is shot dead by Grenadian armed forces at the Caribbean island's military headquarters.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Cloudy; a light rain shower at midday; breezy at times in the afternoon; High temp. 55 F, Low temp. 49 F; Precipitation: 0.12 inch.

By the end of 1993, Heathkit introduces its Most Accurate Clock, available as an electronic kit or already assembled.  It's a plug-in clock with a red LED display and a radio that receives time signals (and audio) from a radio station that transmits the time signals from an atomic clock in Fort Collins, Colorado.  The clock automatically sets itself to the correct time.  It is the first practical consumer clock with "atomic" accuracy.  However, it requires a long antenna and it is not designed to be hung on a wall.

The total precipitation for Baltimore during December 1983 is 6.72 inches, including melted snow and ice. This amount is about double the normal amount for December.

Total precipitation for Baltimore in 1983 is 51.03 inches, about 9 inches above normal.

Baltimore weather at BWI Airport: Clear; High temp. 30 F; Low temp. 9 F; Precipitation: None.