Day 359: The Day After Christmas Nor’Easter
A quick look at tonight’s National Weather Service’s (NWS) National Watch/Warning/Advisory graphic shows that much of the east coast of the United States is covered in some form of winter weather product. In fact, New York City northeast toward Boston is covered by a Blizzard Warning!
The culprit is a cyclone developing and intensifying over the Gulf Stream Current. During the day tomorrow this cyclone will rapidly intensify, bringing strong winds and heavy snow to areas along the immediate east cost. The image below is a radar mosaic from this evening depicting the organizing cyclone over the southeastern United States. Travelers should expect major delays tomorrow as flights originating out of the northeast will most likely be delayed and canceled. These delays and cancellations will wreak havoc all across the air traffic grid.
Day 358: Christmas Day Temperatures
Merry Christmas (Eve)! The image above depicts the official Christmas morning low temperature forecasts from all local offices of the National Weather Service for across the United States. The image below depicts the high temperature expected Christmas afternoon. For those hoping for a white Christmas, I hope you get your wish! (I didn’t; here’s to hoping for a white New Year’s!)
Day 357: Winter Weather Advisories
As the cyclone that has pounded the west coast begins to move east into the central United States, winter weather is certainly a possibility. As such, local National Weather Service offices have hoisted Winter Weather Advisories for a large portion of the United States. Current indications are that central Iowa will be the big winner (or loser, depending on your point of view) in terms of maximum snowfall, with isolated areas receiving upwards of 8 inches of snow.
Day 356: Snowy Christmas?
Quick post: The above image is depicting where the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center believes there is at least a 10% chance of four inches or more of snow falling on Christmas Day. I wish I were there.
Day 355: Atmospheric River
As I mentioned last night, a very moist airmass is moving through the western United States. Tonight’s image is a precipitable water image of the eastern Pacific Ocean. Notice the higher returns from the central Pacific Ocean extending eastward into southern California. This sliver of higher precipitable water values extending northward is known as an “atmospheric river“. This atmospheric river is bringing copious amounts of moisture northward into southern California and is aiding the impressive precipitation totals out west!
Day 354: Southern California Soaker
A very moist cyclone is currently pounding the west coast of the United States. This cyclone is bringing much needed rains to southern California; however, too much of a good thing can be a bad thing. Flash flood warnings are in effect for portions of southern California because of the significant rainfall. The moisture doesn’t stop in southern California. This moist plume extends northeast from California into central and southern Nevada into central and northern Utah into western Colorado, where winter storms warnings are in effect for the higher terrain.
Some places in the Sierra Nevadas have received over 9 feet of snow! This should help with the long term drought situation. When this snow melts in the spring/summer months it should help to keep area lake levels from dropping too low.
Day 353: Yet Another Northern Plains Winter Storm
Yet another fast moving short-wave trough moving across the northern United States will bring snow to residents of the northern plains. Winter storm warnings are once again posted for a large portion of the north central United States! Since the week before Thanksgiving, winter storms have been occurring on the order of about one every five days across Minnesota. I’m insanely jealous.
About Patrick
Patrick Marsh is a Ph.D. student at the University of Oklahoma's School of Meteorology. He earned a Bachelors of Science in Mathematics and Physics (cum laude) from the University of Arkansas in 2005 and a Masters of Science in Meteorology in 2007. In addition to working on his doctorate, Patrick serves as the National Severe Storms Laboratory Liaison to the Hazardous Weather Testbed where his research interests lie in working with operational forecasters, data mining, data visualization, and all things high-impact weather. For more about Patrick's work, check out his complete CV!
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