Final Snow Map

Roller Coaster of Weather to Continue

Three weather stories in the next three days: Warm, Snow, Cold. First the warm air surges north for everyone generally east of Iowa. Records will be shattered! Also severe weather will be a serious threat south of Milwaukee. Then cold air crashes in and changes rain to snow, heavy snow in fact. Very hard to pin down the timing of the cold air and where the rain will be when that happens, but the snow map should give you a good idea. And finally, cold air dives south from Canada and brings us back to where we were last week. Dangerous wind chills will be prevalent.

WILD WEATHER WEEK AHEAD

A crazy weather week is in front of us. Snow...warmth...snow....cold. First, Snow will erupt in the Dakotas and Northern Minnesota tonight and pile up quickly, with up to 7" or 8" in some spots. Then tomorrow a strong warm front will push north and will shatter record highs in many places! Severe weather is also possible, in IL, WI, IN, IA, MO. Then, an arctic cold front will crash in and change rain over to heavy snow. The timing and location of saturation will really impact snow totals. (look for a map tomorrow). Then Thursday, will bring dangerous wind chills! Here, we, go!

Ice Storm, to Impact Structure

A relatively weak winter storm, will bring major impacts to the Midwest Sunday and Sunday night. The worst part of the system will be the major icing. The worst accumulating ice looks to take place in Iowa, with up to a third of an inch. This will bring tree branches down an take out power for thousands. The hope is that the areas that see freezing rain will switch over to all rain and lessen the blow. On the far northern extent snow will fall, but nothing too serious. Be sure to check local advisories on this system. Forecasts will change, as a tenth of a degree will affect icing!

Updated Detailed Snow Map for Friday

Relief from the Cold in the Form of Snow

It has been the largest arctic cold outbreak in two years. Some snow is headed for the Midwest late in the week. A northern piece of energy will emerge from the Rockies and phase with a southern storm system. Depending on how quickly the phase together will have a major impact on the amount of snow. Right now the consensus in computer models would put down a general 1-3" with areas up to 4", and lake enhanced areas over 6". Another system will move in for Sunday, this one looks a little stronger and will be watched carefully. 

Light Snow then Arctic Cold

Haven't posted in awhile, it has been pretty quite. Tonight and tomorrow will bring some light snow for many areas, see map. Another system will bring the chance for some snow showers, especially in northern areas. Next, attention turns to early next week. The coldest air on the year will dive south, leading to highs below zero, cold enough to close schools. The outbreak looks to stick around until Wednesday, when a warm front will move through and cause winds to shift in a southerly direction. This will lead to a likely storm on Thursday, will rain and accumulating snow. Stay tuned.

Weekend Update

One storm will bring rain and fog to areas in the midwest, it will also bring a considerable snow to the Dakotas will some areas seeing up to 10" to maybe a foot. Then on Saturday night an artic front will pass through the area and slow down. At this time a storm system will ride up and drop some snow in the cold sector. After Sunday it looks like the coldest air of the season will be on the front door. It looks to be even cold late week and into the next week. Stay tuned.

Mainly a Rain Maker for Thursday

Thursday will bring a massive snow melt to all of the midwest. A storm system will move north from Mexico, bringing ample moisture along with it. Many areas will see a half inch or more. Once the rain is done fog will develop in many areas still with some snowpack. With warm air, a saturated atmosphere, and light winds, the fog will likely be dense in areas. Meanwhile, NW parts of North Dakota will see a few inches of snow by the weekend, with the potential of more this weekend. Areas in Minnesota should also watch for snow for the weekend, stay tuned for that.

Active Pattern to Develop Late in the Week

 It is looking more and more likely that late this week will be a tale of two storms, weatherwise. Before the storm move in a January thaw will occur with temperatures soaring into the 30s and 40s, with highs 10-20 degrees above normal for the whole midwest. Then, the first storm will move in ahead of an arctic front. It appears the storm will be quick enough to avoid the cold air and drop mainly rain in the Midwest, with heavy rain to the south. This will even more some weaken the snow pack in areas to the north.

Then only a couple days later attention will turn to the next possible system. One problem is models do not always do a good job when there are two storms within a few days, so uncertainty is low. However, a area a of heavy snow is possible from MN to WI to IA. The timing would be Saturday into Sunday. We will keep an eye on this system as it bears watching. A lot to work out of the next few days, stay tuned!

A Weak System to Move through Tonight

A weak clipper-like system will move through parts of the Midwest tonight. It will have nearly no moisture to work with, except from the lakes. However it may spawn a few snow showers that could coat roadways in Minnesota and Wisconsin, but nothing much over a half inch. There will be several hours where wind will be favorable for some lake effect snow in parts of Michigan (see map). Nothing major that these areas are not use too, but as always use caution on the roads, even if its only a few inches.

2012's Last Snowfall

Another weak system will impact parts of the Midwest on New Years Eve. A trough of low pressure will emerge from the Rockies and begin to weaken almost simultaneously. However, there will be enough moisture to squeak out a plowable snowfall for some.  If banding sets up perfectly, the way it is shown in the models, the area of 3"+ may see up to 5" of the white stuff. There are winter weather advisories out for a wide area, given the timing and mass travel that will be occurring during the snow. Use caution and as always, give yourself some extra time when venturing out.

Snow Maker Winding Down

The storm system that brought snow to northern parts of the Midwest is coming to an end. It is just about snowing itself out. We had a couple areas of lake effect and lake enhancement. The arrowhead of Minnesota saw up to 6". There were a few band off southern Lake Michigan which brought a few inches to may areas there. And finally, we are seeing some feeder bands near Green Bay which is added to totals this evening. From Green Bay to Oshkosh to Sheboygan in Wisconsin, totals will generally be in the 6-8" range.

Light Snow Update

Models are coming in a little more aggressive with snow ratios and water content. We had to bump up totals generally by an inch from Milwaukee to Sioux Falls. Because it will be such a widespread light snow, the snow forecast on the left has overlapping totals. This was the best way to provide the most accurate forecast. Here are a few forecasts for some of the larger cities:
Sioux City: 3-5"
Madison/Milwaukee/Rochester: 2-4"
Minneapolis/Green Bay: 1-2"
Omaha/Des Moines: icy inch

Weak System Moving Through

Some of you will see a light fluffy snow accumulate in your backyard today or tomorrow. A very weak system will be moving through Thursday and Friday  It will not have much moisture to work with and will not have favorable conditions for intensification. However, some places may squeak out a 5" amount. There are winter weather advisories out for north west Iowa and counties nearby. As the low pressure center moves through it will actually weaken so amounts to the east will be lesser. However, the area from northern Iowa to Milwaukee will have to be watched. It may need to be included in the 2-5" portion. Stay tuned!

Winter Storm Forecast

Quick update with a snow forecast today. Hope everyone is having a good Christmas Eve. Models are narrowing down the heavy band so we felt we could make our first snow map for the storm. Uncertainty is down to about 25 miles north/south. So the map on the left looks pretty concrete. Winter storm watches, warning and blizzard watch are in effect. Stay tuned fore updates.

Winter Storm After Christmas

A strong winter storm will move through parts of the Midwest on Tuesday night and Wednesday. The storm will come out of the Rockies and deepen as it will have full access to gulf moisture as it moves northeast. It looks like there will be a narrow band of heavy snow with this storm. It will be tough to pinpoint the exact location of this plowable snow, but it does appears 4-8"+ will fall. A secondary low pressure system will likely develop on the east coast and widen the area of snow. Never the less, expect winter storm watches to begin being posted by the national weather service some time tomorrow.

Light Snow then a Storm?

A very weak system will touch off a little light snow from  North Dakota to lower Michigan, not much for accumulation (dusting to an inch) but it may provide a snow shower on Christmas Eve. Then attention turns to the next system surging out of the Rockies on Tuesday. It will dip south and head towards the Ohio Rover Valley on Wednesday. The potential exists for several inches of snow from Arkansas to Ontario. Some areas may see 6". We will have more as the storm gets closer. Another storm is also showing for next weekend, taking a similar track of the latest blizzard. Stay tuned!

The Blizzard of 2012 Summary

Well, the blizzard is done but the clean up is still occurring  This winter storm did pan out as expected and some of the total are very impressive. Reaching a central pressure of 982mb, perfect scenerio of a system in the Midwest producing heavy snow. The same storm produced severe weather and tornado as far south as Florida. The cloud field reached from the gulf a Mexico to southern Canada. Madison, WI had the highest total with 20", with the help of a couple thunderstorms wrapping into the cold air right on top of them. Thundersnow was pretty common with this system. We will continue to update you throughout the winter

BLIZZARD UPDATE

Snow totals were increased in this update, The blizzard of 2012 shows no signs on weakening. The snow is already falling in the Plains and will move in by the evening for many areas, then continue through Thursday evening. Many areas will see about a foot of snow, with up to 18" if areas from Iowa to Green Bay. Keep Safe!

PS: Keeping an eye on a possible storm next week...stay tuned!