Forecasts for the Upper Midwest and Midwestern United States in the Light of Two Supersonic Events from 1983 to October 2002, with an Addendum to the CNN Weather Brief
Editor’s Note: A version of this article originally appeared in the weekly weather newsletter, the CNN Weather Brief, which is released every Monday. You can sign up to receive them at least once a week.
Due to the overlap of the events from 1983 and 1989 it will be hard to challenge daily record lows/cold highs. At the very least portions of the East may end up seeing the coldest temperatures for any December since 2017.”
“A more active fall weather pattern is expected to evolve by the end of this week and continuing into the weekend as a couple of cold fronts move across the central and eastern states,” the Weather Prediction Center said.
It will be difficult to travel later this afternoon and tonight because rain will change to snow. “New Yorkers should remain alert and monitor the forecast throughout the day today, especially in the North Country and areas along Lakes Erie and Ontario.”
Up to two inches of rain can be brought on by the front, and isolated locations could see even more.
“Ensembles [forecast models] show median rainfall totals by Wednesday night around a half inch, with a potential for some spots to see around one inch, our first substantial rainfall in at least a couple of weeks,” the weather service office in Grand Rapids noted, adding, “It may also get cold enough for some snow to mix in Thursday night to Friday morning, especially in the higher terrain north of Grand Rapids toward Cadillac.”
An atmospheric river event will bring rain to the west this weekend and will cause a lot of weather problems across the country.
We could see snow as far south as Jackson, Mississippi, due to the heavy snow falling throughout the Midwest and extending as far as the Lower Mississippi Valley.
Most coastal communities will get 1 to 3 inches of rain over the weekend, with a few areas of northern and central California getting up to 5 inches of rain. Coastal erosion and flooded roadways will be the main concerns.
High winds will be a concern for California with gusts of up to 40 mph in the valleys and 50 mph for the coastal areas, and even higher gusts forecast for exposed coastal headlands, mountaintops, and ridges.
The Northeastern Banks Snowfall and Storm Warnings: Stateline Forecasts for Northern California, Nevada, and West Virginia, and the Prospect for Nevada and New York
Parts of eastern New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine can also see between 18 and 24 inches of snow accumulate in local areas, according to the weather service. Some parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York have seen several inches of snow, with others getting up to six inches.
The NWS said low visibility would create more dangerous travel conditions on snow covered roads. “Additionally, the strong winds could lead to potential power outages from the Midwest to the Northeast.”
“While tornadoes in December are relatively uncommon when compared to the springtime, they are often more likely across portions of the Southeast and Lower Mississippi Valley, where there is often a secondary peak in the fall and winter,” Matthew Elliott, a meteorologist at the Storm Prediction Center, told CNN.
A tornado watch has been issued for parts of Texas and Oklahoma. Wind gusts up to 75 mph are expected, with a couple of tornadoes possible.
“The details regarding the areas most at risk from tornadoes will become clearer as the event approaches and smaller-scale trends become more evident,” Elliott said.
In the 48 hour period, 48 inches of snow fell in Twin Bridges, 46 in Donner and 45 in Donner Peak.
There was a winter storm warning in effect for the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range, which could see an additional foot of snow before dawn.
The storm already made for icy and dangerous conditions on key roadways, with authorities on Saturday closing down a long stretch of Interstate 80, from Colfax in Northern California to Stateline, Nevada, due to “blowing snow & near-zero visibility,” Caltrans said on Twitter.
MarkDeutschendorf, forecaster at the National Weather Service office in Reno, said the snow cover is about two-thirds of normal.
“It looks a lot like Christmas out here,” Deutschendorf said. “It didn’t come with a lot of wind, and it stuck to everything. It is similar to a picture postcard.
While he is impressed by the snow totals so far, he is cautious about how the precipitation will affect the state.
Large Snowfall in Rapid City, South Dakota and Minnesota: The Snowfall lasted 24 Hours and Assist Schools Closed for 7.5 Foots
The ski resort posted pictures of the thick snow on their website Sunday and said they were Buried.
This is definitely a storm to remember. We have received 7.5 feet of snow since December 1st. In just 24 hours from Saturday morning to Sunday morning, we received more than 35 inches of snow which was the 6th largest snowfall on record.
The National Weather Service office in Rapid City, South Dakota, said travel through the area will be nearly impossible Tuesday and Wednesday, and possibly into Thursday.
In Minnesota, the National Weather Service issues winter weather warnings such as a winter storm warning and an ice storm warning. The department said in a statement that the weather could affect travel statewide all week.
In Alaska’s largest city, schools were closed for four days and the University and Alaska Pacific University were closed on Monday due to an excessive amount of snow.
These areas have seen a huge amount of relief from the dry conditions. Tennessee, for example, went from 96% of the state under drought to being at 46% this week.
A tornado that traveled through Farmerville, Louisiana, causing damage to an apartment complex and a trailer park in the Oklahoma town of Wayne
The weather service in Oklahoma warned of a confirmed tornado shortly after 5 a.m. on Tuesday, causing damage in the Oklahoma town of Wayne. Video footage from Oklahoma TV station KOCO showed substantial damage to a home in Wayne, which is about 45 miles (72 kilometers) south of Oklahoma City.
The National Weather Service says there was a tornado that traveled through Farmerville, Louisiana, with 140 mph winds. The tornado tore apart an apartment complex and a trailer park, and there were at least 20 injuries, Nolan said.
In Texas, at least two tornadoes were spotted along the front edge of the storm as it headed toward the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area Tuesday morning, though the extent of any damage was not immediately known.
“There’s essentially no one traveling right now,” said Justin McCallum, a manager at the Flying J truck stop at Ogallala, Nebraska. He will not be able to return to his home on Tuesday because the roads are closed. I’m able to see the first pole outside the doors, but not the rest. I’ll probably get a motel room tonight.
This is a “we are not kidding” kind of storm according to the South Dakota Department of Public Safety. People were urged to stock up on essentials and stay home.
The National Weather service’s headquarters in Maryland is where Chenard works, and he said this week will be busy.
New York State Sheriff’s Order and Emergency Services Sensitive Laws after a Snowstorm Elected on the Southwest Side of the Midwest
In northern Utah, a tour bus crashed Monday morning as snow and frigid temperatures blanketed the region. The Highway Patrol said in a statement that the bus overturned after the driver lost control and switched lanes. The Highway Patrol said that some passengers were seriously injured.
The monster storm that wreaked havoc in the US this week brought nor’ easterlies as it moved across the Northeastern part of the country and headed to New England.
In response to the massive storm system, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul warned residents of the hazardous road conditions the storm is threatening to bring as millions across in the Northeast are under winter weather alerts Friday.
“We urge everyone in the impacted regions to avoid unnecessary travel tonight and tomorrow,” Hochul said in a Thursday statement. “Work from home if possible, stay off the roads, and make sure you and your loved ones remain vigilant.”
In neighboring Pennsylvania, state transportation officials implored drivers to avoid unnecessary travel due to the low visibility caused by wind and heavy snow.
There have been multiple weather systems in the last week that have brought differing weather experiences to different parts of the US.
Tens of thousands of homes and businesses are without power in Minnesota, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Virginia, and Pennsylvania because of a storm that left a large swath of the South and Midwest in the dark.
There was ice reported in the mountains of West Virginia and Maryland on Thursday, and about a tenth of an inch had built up in parts of Virginia.
Thousands of people were left without proper heating and power in the Upper Midwest after strong winds knocked down power lines.
Power outage.us report of a tornado-induced snow storm in Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and New York, and the case for Minnesota
Meanwhile in Louisiana, Yoshiko A. Smith, 30, and her 8-year-old son, Nikolus Little, were killed Tuesday when a tornado struck Caddo Parish and destroyed their home, local officials said.
The heavy, wet snow fell rapidly on Friday, tearing down trees and power lines which led to outages across Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and New York. The higher the elevation, the more likely it was to see heavier snow.
More than 14,000 homes and businesses in Minnesota remained without power as of early Saturday, largely in the east-central portion of the state, according to Poweroutage.us, following this week’s earlier blizzard conditions across the northern Plains and Upper Midwest.
The police in Vermont said they responded to a lot of crashes and advised drivers to slow down. There were closed roads due to the storm impact.
Over a 36-hour period, 24.5 inches of snow fell in the Vermont town of Wilmington as well as more than 19 inches in Landgrove and Ludlow, the weather service said.
“We are watching two different weather events right now – one producing rain and snow this morning for most of the state, and the other has the potential to bring several feet of snow in the Tug Hill Plateau and areas along Lake Erie and Lake Ontario,” said Jackie Bray, the commissioner of New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services.
There is snow that can accumulate in areas south of Buffalo, New York. “These snow bands are likely to be very narrow and lead to drastically changing conditions over a short distance,” the weather service added.
“Snow showers are gradually coming to an end across the region with only light scattered snow showers expected through Saturday morning,” the weather service said.
“Highs will only reach into the single digits throughout the northern Plains, while lows fall into subzero territory and minus teens closer to the Canadian border,” the Weather Prediction Center said. “Gusty winds will make it feel even colder throughout northern Montana, where wind chill advisories are in effect due to the potential for wind chills to dip as low as 30 to 45 degrees below zero.”
Wind chill advisories are in place for the states of South Dakota and North Dakota. Wind chill, which indicates what the wind feels like, will be as low as 40 degrees below zero.
It’s that time of year again when everyone hates Florida – the only real warm spot across the country – but only for the next few days, since Florida will also cool down by the end of the week.
The deep south is going to suffer from this extreme cold as well. Atlanta could have one of their top 3 warmest Christmases with the high expected to only reach 33 degrees.
By Friday, the season’s lowest temperatures are expected, which is the first week of winter. Even northern Florida cities like Jacksonville and Tallahassee could see a chill as low as 20 F on Christmas Eve.
The incoming arctic front will then cross over the northern Rockies, Great Basin and Northern Plains regions, sending temperatures plummeting as low as minus 30 degrees and winds gusting as fast as 60 mph.
In parts of central Minnesota, several inches of fluffy snow are expected Wednesday, followed by high winds, creating the potential for blizzard conditions. A gale is defined as having winds greater than 35 mph along with falling or blowing snow which reduce visibility to less than a quarter- mile for three hours.
Power outages will also be a concern for the Windy City as winds could gust as high as 50 mph on Friday. This will only exacerbate the storm’s impacts as wind chills will drop to at least 20 degrees below zero, possibly even colder.
The high on Christmas Day in Chicago is 12. It would be the warmest christmas in Chicago since 1996. A little farther south, Indianapolis has a forecast high of 13 degrees, which could be their coldest Christmas since 1985 – nearly 40 years!
There is snow and ice in the entire northern hemispherearctic regions. A source freezer is sitting up in the icy regions, according to a branch chief at the prediction center. “It’s sort of the Polar Express and the cold air can hold on to those characteristics because there’s a lot of snow cover on the ground, even across the north-central United States.”
The Carolinas and Midwest will be a little colder during the holiday season, with more snow forecasts for the week of December 15. The impact of a massive storm on southern cities
As the storm moves east this week, it stands to make holiday travel difficult, if not dangerous, in many places, with forecasters urging people to be prepared to make changes.
Nashville and Memphis will also drop below freezing on Friday. Even though it feels like 3 degrees below zero, Nashville will only get to 16 on Friday with 25 mph winds. They will only hit 26 on Christmas Day. The Christmas Day forecast shows a high of 28 in Memphis, which is the lowest it has been since 1985.
The storm will cause a bombcyclone before entering the Northeast and New England on Saturday. A bomb typhoon is when the storm drops 24 millibars in pressure in a 24 hour period.
“I-95 gets a slug of pretty deep rain and that can be a problem in those areas that are now seeing snow,” Carbin said. You can see that some of the water is melting.
This major storm is upping the chances of a white Christmas for millions across the country. Some areas were already a given, considering there was snow already on the ground and the cold temperatures keeping it there.
“The probability is normally about 10% that the DC area will have at least one inch of snow on Christmas Day,” Carbin explained. I would be willing to increase that chance to 30% if the pattern comes together the way I think it will, hopefully in the next few days.
Snowfall has already begun in Seattle, which is under a winter storm warning Tuesday. The storm will move east into portions of Idaho Tuesday morning and then spread out across northern and central Montana later in the afternoon.
Chicago is expected to be one of the hardest hit cities after a winter storm watch is in effect for Thursday through Friday. With blizzard conditions likely, holiday travel could grind to a halt for many seeking to celebrate with family and loved ones.
Meanwhile, even southern cities unaccustomed to wintry conditions will get a brittle taste of it this holiday season, with Austin, Houston, Atlanta, and even Orlando at risk of seeing temperatures below freezing beginning midweek.
The weather service warned that water pipes could burst. A wind chill watch is in effect for Amarillo, Texas.
“Outdoor pipes will be at risk due to well below freezing temps and windy conditions late this week,” the weather service in Fort Worth said. Make sure the pipes are covered and that the faucets do not get wet.
The latest bulletin from the National Weather Service (NWS) names the cause as a “strong arctic high pressure system,” which swept down from Canada on Tuesday and appears poised to march towards the Southeast on Wednesday and Thursday, leaving a wake of life-threatening weather systems across 17 states.
Flight Aware reports that air travel was almost completely unaffected by the upcoming polar front, with more than 578 delays and 285 canceling flights as of Tuesday morning.
The best prevention by staying indoors is to stay inside, not to worry about what happens when you are outside, and how to remove the layers from the clothes
People who are outside should dress in layers, cover their skin, and change into dry clothing as soon as possible. But, experts say, the best prevention by far is simply to stay indoors.