TX Winter Wx Threat # 8--- TX Ice Storm

[wxman57]

Drizzle and light rain beginning near Hobby now. I keep thinking I see some larger "things" (sleet?) falling out of the corner of my eye but I'm not going outside to verify.

[Extremeweatherguy]

I am now at about 32 to 33-degrees here. Sleet/rain (may be frz. rain now I guess) is also picking up.

[wxman57]

SNOW in Dallas???

I'm not seeing any...

As I said, much of that lower-intensity level 2 radar data are echoes of precipitation aloft. It's not reaching the ground.

[JenBayles]

Wet bulb processes noted in area obs at Tomball (now below freezing) and CXO. Note dewpoints rises

I know this question has been posted numerous times, and maybe I just missed the answer. What, exactly, does "wet bulb process" mean? Is it basically cooling of air due to precip?

[jeff]

I'm hovering between 32.7 to 32.9 here just south of Lake Conroe Dam. We had another little round of sleet that didn't last that long at all. It is now drizzling very lightly and my back deck is wet....no freezing rain yet.

Question for the mets...how close is this snow going to get to Conroe?

Snow should remain N and W of Conroe area...maybe a change to sleet...maybe a mix with sleet...maybe a mix with snow. Main threat is freezing rain...IF precip. can saturate to the surface...Latest radar trends show decreasing echoes followed by increasing echoes near KSAT. Also noted increasing echoes finally S of stationary band over old Mexico. Trends however is for precip. intensity to decrease as it approaches SE TX except NW counties where conditions are already bad.


Forecasting headaches on P-type and 32 line continues another 24 hours, glad I do not have to deal with this often as I would be bald and toothless before 30.

[southerngale]

So close...yet, so far. How depressing. I think this was our once in many years chance too.

Snubbed in '04...snubbed again in early '07 - story of my life.

[Yankeegirl]

The drizzle has started here on the west side now... I am still hovering at 34.5... Still think by 10 pm its going to be a mess around here....

[PTrackerLA]

So close...yet, so far. How depressing. I think this was our once in many years chance too.

Snubbed in '04...snubbed again in early '07 - story of my life.

I know how you feel, we got a dusting of sleet/snow in '04 while down near the coast saw over an inch. It's been raining all day with local temps hovering in the mid 30's. Close, but it's not gonna happen.

[TexasStooge]

The National Weather Service has isssued a WINTER STORM WARNING for the southern 1/3rd of North Texas until 6:00PM CST Wednesday. This includes the counties of Anderson, Bell, Bosque, Coryell, Falls, Freestone, Hamilton, Hill, Lampasas, Leon, Limestone, McLennan, Milam, and Robertson.

SLEET...OCCASIONALLY MIXING WITH SNOW...WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS
SOUTHERN PORTIONS OF NORTH TEXAS LATE TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY.
SLEET AND SNOW ACCUMULATIONS UP TO ONE HALF INCH WILL BE COMMON...
WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS POSSIBLE. THE SLEET AND SNOW WILL
GRADUALLY TAPER OFF DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS ON WEDNESDAY.

TRAVEL WILL BECOME INCREASINGLY TREACHEROUS AS NEAR SURFACE
TEMPERATURES REMAIN BELOW FREEZING. EXERCISE EXTREME CAUTION WHILE
TRAVELING AND ALLOW FOR ADDITIONAL TIME TO REACH YOUR DESTINATION.

A WINTER STORM WARNING MEANS SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF SNOW...
SLEET...AND ICE ARE EXPECTED OR OCCURRING.

A Winter Weather Advisory has also been issued for areas north of the Warning area until 6:00PM CST Wednesday. This includes Comanche, Eastland, Ellis, Erath, Hood, Johnson, and Somervell Counties.

LIGHT SLEET...OCCASIONALLY MIXING WITH SNOW...WILL BE POSSIBLE
LATE TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY ACROSS THOSE PORTIONS OF NORTH
TEXAS IMMEDIATELY SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 20. SLEET AND SNOW
ACCUMULATIONS OF ONE QUARTER TO ONE HALF INCH WILL BE POSSIBLE.
PERIODS OF MODERATE SLEET AND SNOW MAY ALSO OCCUR DURING THE LATE
MORNING AND AFTERNOON HOURS ON WEDNESDAY...LOCALLY REDUCING
VISIBILITIES.

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY MEANS THAT PERIODS OF WINTER
PRECIPITATION MAY CAUSE TRAVEL DIFFICULTIES. BE PREPARED FOR
SLIPPERY ROADS AND PLAN ON SOME TRAVEL DELAYS.

BE ALERT TO FUTURE FORECASTS...FOR THE POTENTIAL OF THE ADVISORY
TO BE UPGRADED TO A WARNING.

_____________________________________________________________

NWS Forecasts:

WACO
Wednesday: 30°F | 28°F
Thursday: 38°F | 36°F
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DALLAS/FORT WORTH
Wednesday: 30°F | 28°F
Thursday: 38°F | 32°F
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AUSTIN
Wednesday: 33°F | 29°F
Thursday: 37°F | 33°F
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
HOUSTON
Wednesday: 39°F | 35°F
Thursday: 44°F | 39°F
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WICHITA FALLS
Wednesday: 34°F | 26°F
Thursday: 45°F | 24°F

[ROCK]

The drizzle has started here on the west side now... I am still hovering at 34.5... Still think by 10 pm its going to be a mess around here....

interesting to see as this distrubance moves in the temp are dropping and dew points on the rise. You guys will be getting to the majical freeze temp sooner than you think.


http://www.wunderground.com/stationmaps ... &wmo=99999

[Johnny]

We have ice in Conroe (actually inbetween Conroe and Montgomery)! Icicles are forming on the side of my golf cart, car port and gutters. Have now come down to 31 degrees in my neck of the woods. The fun begins!

[Extremeweatherguy]

I am getting some ice here as well. No icicles yet, but there are a few patches of ice on some of the wooden hand rails and metallic lights around the area. Temps. are hovering between 31.8 and 33 degrees here (depends on where you are in the area).

[TexasStooge]

Getting a few snow showers here in DFW as we speak.

[gboudx]

Getting a few snow showers here in DFW as we speak.

You are personally seeing snow? We don't have any over here yet.

[Extremeweatherguy]

Houston, Hooks Memorial Airport
Last Update on Jan 16, 3:53 pm CST

Unknown Precip

32°F
(0°C)

Conroe, Montgomery County Airport
Last Update on Jan 16, 3:53 pm CST

Light Freezing Rain

31°F
(-1°C)

[Yankeegirl]

The temps are dropping here... now down to 34.0....

[TexasStooge]

Getting a few snow showers here in DFW as we speak.

You are personally seeing snow? We don't have any over here yet.

And now it stopped. (Did it have to?)

[Extremeweatherguy]

I am at 31.5F now and the precip. is starting up again. BTW, I am pretty sure I just saw a snowflake 2-3 mins. ago. However, it was just a random occurance it seems b/c I have not seen any since.

[Portastorm]

Holy Moly, KXAN is saying up to 1/2 foot of snow out of this for Austin in the next 24 hours on some of their models.

Any of you mets here want to chime in on that?

I am highly skeptical of anyone suggesting 6 inches of snow for Austin. We would need a fairly vigorous upper-level disturbance to set off those kinds of amounts. I don't see it happening. Light freezing rain, sleet, and sporadic snow flurries should continue around the Austin metro area ... but I don't know about the half foot of snow scenario!

[jasons2k]

The water here on objects is just now starting to turn into a glaze.