 Image Courtesy: NCAR DISCUSSION: One of the most coveted golf events is set to begin in approximately a week and a half and officials are concerned regarding initial forecasts for the 2017 Masters at Augusta National. Of course in the world of weather, conditions can vary wildly in addition to operational forecasting observations being increasingly difficult after the 72-96 hour mark, which will make this a make or break for some golfers next week. Augusta National plays as an impressive 7,435 yard course which if models are correct could prove to be difficult for some short players. While Augusta appears to have a grand drainage system, with precipitation the course could play longer. GFS long range indicating a plume of moisture to setup in and around the four corners, over the next few days this plume will gain some enhancement due to the Gulf, remaining stagnant in the early part of next week before propagating eastward to the forecast area of Augusta. Much of this precipitation will be due to the several low pressure systems developing to the west and maintaining agreement with 500mb plots in low pressure steerage for next week and a deep trough in the middle of the country. Certainly an interesting forecast to stay tuned to as the invitees are all hoping for their next green jacket. For information on this and other events forecasted, visit the Global Weather and Climate Center for updates! ~Meteorologist Jessica Olsen
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 DISCUSSION: Just three days after the Vernal Equinox, the astronomical start to Spring, Colorado has been swinging between seasons weather-wise. This past Thursday, sunny conditions and strong southwesterly winds that pushed warm air into the region allowed temperatures to soar into the upper 70s, tying the record high temperature of 77° Fahrenheit at the Denver International Airport. The low humidity coupled with strong winds prompted the NWS at Denver/Boulder to issue a Red Flag Warning for the eastern half of the state. A red flag warning indicates that conditions are highly favorable for wildfires due to low humidity and strong winds that would allow fires to spread rapidly. However, an incoming winter storm prompted the NWS at Denver/Boulder to issue another warning; this time for an incoming blizzard across the Palmer Divide in Colorado. Blizzard warnings are issued when the combination of snow and strong winds are projected to create low visibility conditions. The storm initially began with rain, but as temperatures dropped substantially (in some areas, up to 45°F from the daytime high), precipitation quickly turned into snow, consequently dumping up to almost 8 inches of snow in certain areas. While the Colorado spring season is known for large temperature fluctuations throughout the day, both a Red Flag Warning and a Blizzard Warming on the same day is hardly a common occurrence!
To learn more about other high-impact weather events occurring across North America, be sure to click here! ©2017 Meteorologist Katie McCracken  DISCUSSION: The south and central U.S. has experienced a relatively mild winter. But that pattern broke last week when the central and eastern parts of the country experienced a cool down, culminating in the Nor’easter that impacted the northeast part of the country. Next week, conditions are expected to go back to the way they have been most of the last couple months. The graphic above shows the expected pattern of the jet stream (representative of the storm track). A trough is expected over the west, while a ridge builds back over the central U.S. This pattern will bring cooler and stormier weather back to the west coast, but these storms aren’t expected to be as intense as some of the January/February storms were. This jet stream pattern will bring spring-like conditions back to the central U.S., including warmer temperatures and the chance of thunderstorms.
To learn more about other high-impact weather events occurring across North America, be sure to click here! ©2017 Meteorologist Dr. Ken Leppert II 
DISCUSSION: As of early on the morning of March 14th, a major winter storm got cranking towards its point of peak intensity. This period of time was characterized by intense precipitation rates (i.e., both in the colder and warmer sections of this storm's associated precipitation shield) moving across semi-coastal as well as more interior sections of New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, eastern Pennsylvania, and beyond. At certain points, there were confirmed hourly snowfall rates of between 2 and 4 inches per hour. Thus, this was a very high-impact winter weather event which impacted millions of people across the Mid-Atlantic and the Northeast over the past 24 to 36 hours. To hear more details about the major issues pertaining to this snowstorm, feel free to watch the brief video discussion attached above!
To learn more about other high-impact weather events occurring across North America, be sure to click here! ©2017 Meteorologist Jordan Rabinowitz  DISCUSSION: As the remaining time until the first snowflakes begin to fall across the New York City metropolitan area continues to shrink, some forecast details are gradually coming better into picture. As of just after 4:00 PM EDT, the National Weather Service located in Upton, New York expanded the extent of the Blizzard Warnings across their coverage area. This specifically means that areas across Long Island and now across northeast New Jersey as well as across southwest Connecticut there will be a legitimate threat for blizzard conditions during the course of the upcoming snowstorm. As noted in the graphic attached above, there is a high-confidence threat for damaging wind gusts along the immediate coastlines on the south shore of Long Island. In addition, there will also be a threat for beach erosion (especially along the south-facing west-to-east oriented coastlines).
It is imperative to note that the heavy snowfall threat will still remain. Therefore, if you or someone you know is in the path of this upcoming snowstorm, be sure to urge them not to travel under any circumstances. This is due to the fact that the combination of strong winds and heavy snowfall will still create a high-confidence threat for whiteout conditions for a prolonged period of time (especially across the areas placed under a blizzard warning). Hence, this storm will make for incredibly dangerous travel conditions and should not be tested under any circumstances. However, areas positioned even just outside of the blizzard warning region could still experience near-blizzard to all-out blizzard conditions during the course of the early to late morning hours tomorrow. Stay tuned for more updates on this storm both right here at the Global Weather and Climate Center website as well as on our Twitter account which can be found through the following link! To learn more about other high-impact weather events occurring across North America, be sure to click here! ©2017 Meteorologist Jordan Rabinowitz An Overnight Perspective of the March 13-14 Nor'easter! (credit: Meteorologist Jordan Rabinowitz)3/13/2017 
DISCUSSION: As the latest winter storm began to crank into full-gear during the late night to overnight hours, there were multiple neat features developing in association with the developing coastal low pressure system. Attached above are a series of neat insights provided by Meteorologist Jordan Rabinowitz. On behalf of the Global Weather and Climate Center team, we would like to express our gratitude and appreciation to Intellicast.com, UCAR, and various people/organizations on Twitter. for their open-access to various radar and satellite imagery products throughout this and many other high-impact winter weather events.
To learn more about other high-impact weather events occurring across North America, be sure to click here! ©2017 Meteorologist Jordan Rabinowitz Blizzard Watches Remain in Effect Across Nearly Entire OKX Coverage Area! (credit: NWS Upton, NY)3/12/2017  DISCUSSION: As the upcoming Nor'easter begins to gradually develop in the vicinity of the Gulf of Mexico as well as across portions of the North-Central United States, many areas across and to the east of the New York City Metropolitan area are already under a Blizzard Watches or Winter Storm Warnings. It is worth noting that as the current forecast situation comes into better view through the course of the morning to afternoon hours tomorrow, many of these areas currently placed under Blizzard Watches will likely be upgraded to Blizzard Warnings. This is a consequence of the formal definition (and associated criteria) for a Blizzard Warning.
A Blizzard Warning means that the following conditions are occurring or expected within the next 12 to 18 hours. 1) Snow and/or blowing snow reducing visibility to 1/4 mile or less for 3 hours or longer AND 2) Sustained winds of 35 mph or greater or frequent gusts to 35 mph or greater. There is no temperature requirement that must be met to achieve blizzard conditions. Thus, the combination of projected strong winds along with falling and/or blowing snow which is expected across many of the areas currently placed under a Blizzard Watch indicates that these areas will be shifted into Blizzard Warnings. This is because of the fact that by tomorrow early/mid-afternoon, that will be within 12 to 18 hours of the expected period of blizzard conditions. To learn more about other high-impact weather events occurring across North America, be sure to click here! ©2017 Meteorologist Jordan Rabinowitz Major Winter Storm To Hit Eastern PA and New Jersey! (credit: NWS Philadelphia/Mount Holly, NJ)3/12/2017 
DISCUSSION: Per the link attached above, here is an updated briefing package for the upcoming storm Monday night and Tuesday. Snow, Strong winds ( they will be lower away from the coast values mentioned in the briefing) and coastal flooding are expected to be main hazards. High impact to morning commute Tuesday for areas away from the coast that don't changeover. Uncertainty is still present on exactly where the rain/snow line will set-up and how it will move during the course of this upcoming winter storm. To learn more about other pertinent details pertaining to this upcoming winter storm, feel free to click the following link courtesy of forecasters at the National Weather Service office located in Philadelphia/Mount Holly, New Jersey: http://www.weather.gov/media/phi/current_briefing.pdf.
To learn more about other high-impact weather events occurring across North America, be sure to click here! ©2017 Meteorologist Jordan Rabinowitz Major Snowfall Coming to Parts of Eastern New England! (credit: NWS Boston, Massachusetts)3/12/2017 
DISCUSSION: In light of the upcoming coastal low pressure system projected to develop and strengthen over the course of the next 24 to 48 hours, there are a number of different impacts expected across portions of eastern New England. As shown in the graphics above, there are also areas of uncertainty which remain at this time in terms of the snowfall forecast. This is primarily due to the uncertainty tied to the exact forecast position of the aforementioned low pressure system. As the forecast picture comes into a more clear view over next 24 hours, these forecast issues should hopefully get a bit less uncertain with time. Moreover, depending upon where you are located with respect to the coastline of eastern Massachusetts, southern Rhode Island, and eastern New Hampshire, conditions will vary significantly. The primary differences will vary by the extent of the possible mixing of precipitation that may occur as well as the maximum extent of the peak wind gusts during the height of the upcoming Nor'easter.
Attached here is an excerpt from the actual Facebook post courtesy of forecasters from the National Weather Service located in Taunton, Massachusetts: "Here is the latest forecast information for the upcoming major winter storm. We are expecting a widespread 14-18 inches of snow, falling at 2-4"/hour at times Tuesday morning and early afternoon. Isolated thunder-snow is also possible. Winds will gust to 30-50 mph inland and up to 60+ mph at the coast. Minor to moderate coastal flooding is possible. Please see attached for more information." To learn more about other high-impact weather events occurring across North America, be sure to click here! ©2017 Meteorologist Jordan Rabinowitz This feature is about GOES (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite) Water Vapor (WV) imagery. This type of satellite imagery (just one of many) is based on a specific band of data within the infrared radiation (IR) spectrum. It is collected from a geostationary satellite positioned roughly 22,000 miles above the Equator near the longitude of Florida and a longitude just west of the U.S. West Coast. With the satellites racing around their larger orbit path at an angular speed that… To read the full story and view the animation, click here - http://www.weatherworks.com/lifelong-learning-blog/?p=1260 © 2017 H. Michael Mogil To learn more about other high-impact weather events affecting North America, be sure to click here!  |
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