2010's last weather hurrah came in the form of rain, snow, sleet, and severe weather across the nation. A pacific low pressure system and an Arctic air mass delivered a one-two punch to much of the nation over the past few days. The west coast got rain, that quickly turned to snow in higher elevations. The precipitation then spread east and south, causing Winter Storm Watches and Warnings to be issued, as well as Blizzard Warnings across much of the Midwest. Snow began to fall in many locations on Wednesday, and as much as a foot fell in the Rocky Mountains. The Front Range was under a Winter Storm Warning, and Winter Storm Advisories. Cheyenne and much of south eastern Wyoming was under a Blizzard warning as well. The mountains saw the most snow from this storm, getting up to a foot in some locations. The front range saw anywhere from 3-8 inches, which was on the lower end of what was forecast. The reason this storm didn't produce as much snow as it had the potential to, was because temperatures dropped too rapidly and too low. Put simply, it got too cold to form snowflakes. As this storm gradually moves off to the northeast, winds will increase as the pressure gradient tightens. Winds will mainly be gusty towards the north, especially into Wyoming, and will continue through the weekend. This will cause hazardous driving conditions in many locations, including along I-80.
This is our first blog post, and just a sample of what this blog will be like. When major weather events are on the horizon we will be putting out our forecast and updating them as the event gets closer. As events affect our area and move out, we will provide up-to-date information on what is happening and an overview, like this one, of the weather event.
Questions and comments are encouraged and welcomed, as well as any input and advice for this blog. Feel free to comment, and/or email at brookeandbeckyweather@gmail.com
-Becky
2 comments:
So since it got so cold is that why the snow is dry and not as wet as it has been in the past?? Is this a preview of the winter we are going to have??
Yes, the colder it is, the more dry a snow will be. Even if there is plenty of moisture in the atmosphere, if it is extremely cold, it will appear more dry. When it is warmer, it can snow a lot more because the air is very saturated.
This storm isn't necessarily a preview of the winter we will have for a few reasons. This storm was very late in coming, and was much colder, due to the arctic air mass associated with it. The majority of our snow looks to come in the spring and will actually be a very wet and warm snow.
Post a Comment