#2686 Postby Lane » Sat Jan 08, 2011 2:40 am
This is from a local weather blog:
One Potential Change... The last few runs of the NAM have indicated very strong lift in the atmosphere. This does a few things - first, it generates very heavy precipitation. Secondly, it cools the atmosphere down quite a bit. This extra cooling could potentially mean more snow than ice for our area. It's too early to really nail this idea down yet, but just know that if these trends continue, we will likely adjust the forecast to include less ice and more snow.
This extreme lift in the atmosphere can also lead to thunder and lightning, even during wintry precip. Thundersnow or thundersleet is possible with this setup.
Another "What IF"... If we see a line of thunderstorms down over the northern Gulf of Mexico, then this could lead to less moisture being transported into our area. This is called a "dry slot," and it's been the downfall of many winter storm forecasts. If this were to occur here, precipitation amounts would be much lighter than predicted, and there would likely not be any major problems. It's unlikely, but it has happened before in instances like these.
Time to get some sleep - stay tuned to the blog over the weekend, though....we will keep you up to date!
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Lane
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