TornadoVideos.net:

Video of the blizzard in Montreal, Quebec this weekend!

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 16:41:00 GMT

Check out this comprehensive video production of this weekend's blizzard in Montreal, Quebec, as shot by local resident, "Caro". 12-24 inches of total storm accumulation occurred in this area, with drifts approaching 5 feet!

Recap of this weekend's HISTORIC snowstorm

Sun, 09 Mar 2008 17:11:00 GMT

This weekend's snowstorm from the Ozark Mountains through the Ohio River Valley resulted in record-breaking snow accumulations for many areas. 20.4 inches of snow fell in Columbus, OH, which shattered the previous record of 15.3" set in February of 1910! Over a foot of snow was commonplace across parts of the central MS River Valley into the Northeast, with IN, KY, OH, southernOntario and Quebec, Canada being the hardest hit. 3-5 foot drifts and blizzard conditions shut down roads and knocked out power to tens of thousands of people! Up to 30 inches of snow is on the ground in northern OH, where lake effect and lake enhanced snow added to the storm totals. Here is a list of the snowfall totals from the hardest hit areas in northern OH:

CNN story:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/weather/03/08/march.snowstorm.ap/index.html

STORM TOTAL REPORTS:

Southwest OH:
http://kamala.cod.edu/oh/latest.nous41.KILN.html

Northern OH:
http://kamala.cod.edu/oh/latest.nous41.KCLE.html

Southeast IN:
http://kamala.cod.edu/in/latest.nous41.KILN.html

Northern KY:
http://kamala.cod.edu/ky/latest.nous43.KLMK.html

MAJOR winter storm heading for Oklahoma into the Ozarks!

Wed, 05 Mar 2008 20:26:00 GMT

A potentially record-breaking snow storm is forecast to hammer parts of central and southern Oklahoma into the Ozark Mountain region tomorrow through Friday, with up to a foot of snow likely, especially over southern OK into northern AR/southern MO. The 12z WRF from this morning is predicting .75-1 inch of water equivalent precip from southern OK into northern AR, but higher amounts will likely fall within persistent mesoscale bands. The 12 hr precip forecast valid 00z tomorrow is shown below:

This is definitely a classic, TEXTBOOK winter storm pattern for southern/central OK into the ozarks, with a nice, nearly cut-off upper trough pivoting across the Southern Plains, with the track of the 500 mb vorticity maximum just south of the Red River. A tight baroclinic zone will also be in place across OK, with bigtime warm advection ahead of this system before the deformation zone snow arrives. The WRF forecast surface and 500 mb patterns valid tomorrow evening are shown below:

Of course, winter storm warnings are now in effect across central OK for this system tomorrow, including the OKC Metro area, with winter storm watches further northeast. These watches will likely be upgraded to warnings by tonight. We'll be covering this system extensively from Norman, OK, so stay tuned for continuous video/news updates throughout the event!

Winter Storm hammering parts of the Northeast, including NYC!

Fri, 22 Feb 2008 15:42:00 GMT

5-9 inches of snow has already fallen across parts of eastern PA, northern NJ, and across the NYC Metro Area, with the highest totals reported from the Staten Island area. However, the precipitation has already begun changing over to sleet and freezing rain as an area of warm air just above the surface advects northward. The regional radar image from 16z show below as well as surface obs show the freezing line still off-shore the NYC Metro area, suggesting that ice accumulations will be a problem as the snow changes over to freezing rain.

A mesoscale discussion has been issued by the Storm Prediction Center for the likelihood of hourly ice accumulation rates approaching 0.10" per hour from eastern PA across the NYC Metro Area this afternoon. With up to 9 inches of snow already on the ground, the travel situation in this area could be ugly for the evening rush hour.

Ice Storm moving into Central OK!

Sat, 16 Feb 2008 01:35:00 GMT

A small but heavy area of freezing precipitation has moved from Southwest into Central Oklahoma this evening, with over 1/4 inch ice accumulations possible where the heaviest thunderstorms reside. Temperatures are in the upper 20s to lower 30s across the region, with warm advection and relatively warm temperatures moving northward just above the surface. The result is a textbook freezing rain event including the OKC Metro area. A radar loop from around 8:30 pm CST is shown below:

Winter storm warnings have been issued over West Texas and western Oklahoma for this initial wave of precipitation tonight, and for heavy snowfall in association with the upper storm system tomorrow. Moderate ice accumulations are expected over southwest into central OK this evening, with 4+ inches of snow likely by tomorrow night across the TX Panhandle and Northwest OK.

Major Nor'Easter pounding New England and the Canadian Maritimes

Wed, 13 Feb 2008 14:55:00 GMT

A coastal low pressure system will deepen today just off the coast of New England, producing substantial amounts of rain, ice, and snow across the Northeast U.S. and the Canadian Maritimes. Northern New England will see the brunt of the snowfall, especially across the higher elevations, with over a foot of accumulation possible. Many areas in the valleys and lower elevations in central/northern New England will receive significant ice accumulations, with over 1/2 inch of accumulation possible. As the low pressure area deepens this afternoon/evening and moves towards Cape Cod, winds will increase across the region, leading to power outages in the hardest hit areas from ice. A regional radar loop from this morning is shown below:

The RUC forecast for 2300 UTC this evening shows the low pressure center just west of Cape Cod, with an MSLP of 996 mb. While this doesn't seem like a very deep system based on surface pressure, it is a fairly strong system when viewed relative to the surrounding anticyclones. Stay tuned for updates on the snowfall and ice totals from this textbook coastal storm.

Major winter storm pounding the Great Lakes/Northeast

Fri, 01 Feb 2008 14:26:00 GMT

A major winter storm is still pounding parts of the Great Lakes Region and the Northeast on Saturday morning, with very heavy snow across IL, IN, Lower MI, and into Southern Ontario, and intense freezing rain across Pennsylvania, and New York State. 6-12+ inches have fallen or are expected to fall in the aforementioned heavy snow areas, with over 1/2 inch of ice accumulations in the warm sector where warm air is pumping northward over cold air at the surface. The national radar loop below from Saturday morning shows the storm in its entirety:

When first glancing at the RUC-forecast MSLP map below, it appears that the storm system responsible for this massive precipitation shield is rather weak, with a minimum pressure of 1007 mb. However, this cyclone is relatively intense when compared to the 1043 mb anticyclone to the northeast across the Canadian Maritimes! - read complete story.....

Severe Storms and Snow Today!

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 06:02:00 GMT

With a strong cold front passing across the Eastern U.S. on Tuesday, another storm system will soon be making news. This low is ejecting eastward from the Rockies, and phasing up with a developing surface low near the Texas Coast. This could mean severe weather for the Gulf Coast with the possibility of tornadoes. The other side of the low will likely bring snow from Oklahoma to Ohio.
Below is the overall set up with severe weather discussion. Reed will talk more about the snow later this morning:

Note the low in the Texas Panhandle, and the warm front in the Gulf. The warm front is moving northward! - read complete story.....

INSANE WEATHER TODAY!!

Tue, 29 Jan 2008 15:11:00 GMT

A powerful cold front is currently surging across the central U.S. as of Tuesday morning, with up to 40 degree temperature drops across the front in the Southern and Central Plains. An intense low pressure system was moving slowly eastward just south of Hudson Bay, with a secondary low pressure area intensifying rapidly near Eastern IA/Northern IL. This area of low pressure will intensify to the upper 970s as it moves towards the Great Lakes Region overnight. A loop of the 12z WRF forecast panels for MSLP is shown below:

The front is particularly strong across Oklahoma, with temperatures near 70 in Southeast OK, plummeting to the low-mid 20s in the OK Panhandle!! Here in Norman, we've had wind gusts over 50 mph all morning and were without power for an hour so during - read complete story.....

Near blizzard condtions across the Canadian Prairies!

Mon, 28 Jan 2008 16:18:00 GMT

Near blizzard conditions pounded parts of Alberta, Canada yesterday, with winds gusting over 40 km/hr at times creating near white-out visibility in heavy snow. Around 20 cm of snow fell across southeast Alberta, with significantly higher drifts. For a great synopsis of the even, along with incredible pictures, check out the Boomer Photo blog below:

http://blog.boomerphoto.com/

The meteograms below show the sustained wind, wind gusts, temperature, and wind chill from Edmonton, AB during yesterday morning's winter storm (thanks to P Boomer for providing these!):

- read complete story.....

Ice Storm pounding parts of Central Mississippi

Fri, 25 Jan 2008 17:46:00 GMT

A potentially damaging ice storm is underway across extreme southeast AR, northeast LA, and central MS, as a shield of moderate freezing rain and sleet is moving through the area. Of greater concern is an area of heavier precipitation further west into northeast TX. As this area of heavier precipitation moves over the shallow, sub-freezing airmass at the surface across the ice storm warning area, significant ice accumulations are possible. The winter storm warning/advisory summary is displayed below:

The regional radar loop for the ice storm zone is shown below, with green coloring indicating rain, and pink indicating mixed precipitation (freezing rain or sleet). - read complete story.....

TEXTBOOK lake effect event downwind of Lakes Erie and Ontario!

Thu, 24 Jan 2008 04:00:00 GMT

Classic westerly-flow lake effect bands have persisted east of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario today and this evening, with 1-3 inch per hour snowfall rates likely at the heart of the snow bands. Storm total accumulations of 1-3 feet will be likely across Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, and southern Erie Counties in western NY, and Oswego County east of Lake Ontario. Shown below is the Lake Erie Band on Buffalo, NY radar through Wednesday evening:

The counties favored in W-WNW-ly lake effect flow for Lakes Erie and Ontario are shaded in dark blue/green below, where lake effect snow warnings are in effect. The bands are expected - read complete story.....

Snowstorm in the Deep South!

Sat, 19 Jan 2008 06:44:00 GMT

An historic snowstorm will slam parts of the Deep South from Central Alabama through northern Georgia and Carolinas this weekend as an area of low pressure moves slowly ENE along the Gulf Coast. 4-8 inches of snow are likely in the Heavy Snow Warning areas shown in the graphic below in dark blue, with isolated higher amounts possible over the higher terrain. Travel will be severely impacted in these areas, especially with the lack of any substantial snow removal equipment.

Shown below is a graphicast from NWS Birmingham, indicating the heaviest - read complete story.....

Two winter storms slamming parts of the Eastern U.S. today!

Thu, 17 Jan 2008 16:11:00 GMT

Two winter storms are currently moving through eastern North America -- One in the western Great Lakes and the other moving up the East Coast spreading heavy snow across the Mid-Atlantic including Washington DC. 4-8 inches of snow will be common across much of Wisconsin with the first storm (a weak Colorado Low), and also across northwestern VA and central MD, with higher amounts in the Appalachians. Shown below is the Eastern U.S. radar from 1700 UTC showing both storms:

The winter watch/warning summary is displayed below, with dark blue indicating winter storm warnings, light blue indicating snow advisories, and pink winter weather advisories. WE NEED MORE EXCITING WEATHER!

Another Nor'Easter heading for New England!

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 02:23:00 GMT

A slow-moving surface low will rapidly intensify just off the coast of New England on Monday, with very heavy snow falling in the deformation zone from Connecticut northeastward through Coastal Maine and the Canadian Maritimes. The WRF forecast MSLP for 00z tomorrow evening is shown below, along with the watches and warnings across the Eastern U.S.

The winter weather product statement from the NWS office in Gray, ME regarding this winter storm is displayed below. While official NWS forecast is 4-12 inches across eastern New England, I wouldn't be surprised if there are many reports of greater than a foot of snow because of the slow-moving nature of the system. This part of New England has been absolutely pounded this year by snow, with over 3 feet reported over most locations during December alone. If any of the blog participants from this area capture any good photos/video of the snow, please email them to me so I can post them on the blog!

California Blizzard update from Dean!

Sat, 05 Jan 2008 21:13:00 GMT

Above is a video update of the blizzard in Mt. Shasta, CA from earlier today. Dean has reported over 2 feet of snow in the city of Mt. Shasta, with over a foot of new snow since last night from the convective precipitation that has been moving through with the very cold air aloft. Under the most intense convective cells, over 2-3 inch per hour snowfall rates have occurred at Dean's location, with even higher rates further south along the Sierra, where several cloud-to-ground lightning strokes have occurred!

While the snow yesterday and before was due primarily to warm advection at low-levels ahead of the cold front and positive vorticity (spin) advection at upper levels ahead of the main vort max currently moving onshore in British Columbia, the snow today is due to almost entirely to cold advection at upper levels -- which is resulting in the development of intense convective cells. There are two primary mechanisms that contribute to the development of convective instability: warm advection at low-levels and cold advection at upper levels...For deep convection, the latter is vital! The RUC analysis below from around 2100 UTC shows that temperatures at 500 mb over northern California are colder than -30 deg C! This cold air aloft is generating major convective instability over CA, especially over the relatively warm Pacific Ocean -- and these convective elements drop extremely heavy snow as they move over the mountainous terrain. This process is very similar to the lake effect process over the Great Lakes, etc, but on a much larger spatial scale of course.

Below is a mesoscale discussion from the SPC from earlier this afternoon.

Another update from Dean in Mt. Shasta City, CA!

Fri, 04 Jan 2008 23:38:00 GMT

Here is the second video Dean uploaded from last night and early this morning in Mt. Shasta City, CA when a very heavy snow band was moving in. The rain/snow line was a little higher than forecast today, resulting in rain/snow mix as the predominate precipitation type, so accumulations in Mt. Shasta were limited to 6-8 inches. However, 1-3 feet are still possible at Dean's location as the vorticity maximum moves over head and snow levels lower substantially. Thundersnow is a definite possibility as the cold air aloft moves overhead.

Further south in the central Sierra Nevada Mountains, very heavy snow has been falling all day today, with wind gusts of over 100 mph reported at several locations. As much as 10 feet of snow is even possible at the higher elevations before the storm is over! The snow drifts resulting from these conditions would be incredible. Stay tuned for more updates!

California Blizzard Update!

Fri, 04 Jan 2008 15:25:00 GMT

Above is the latest video update from Dean in Mt. Shasta City, CA from last night just after the first wave of precipitation. He's currently in the process of taping another video update, as the precipitation with the main show is now moving in with two inches of slushy snow in the last hour. Right now, northern CA is receiving intense warm advection precip ahead of the cold front, which has resulted in a temporary increase in the snow levels over the mountains. Thus, the precip at Mt. Shasta has more recently changed over to a rain/snow mix. This will change as the cold front moves through, and conditions will be INSANE at Dean's location. Shown below is the radar loop from around 8-9:00 am PST as the heavy precip shield was moving in to Mt. Shasta.

Below is a link for the live webcam on top of Mt. Shasta, along with the current temperature and meteogram. Based on the meteogram, temperatures have been remaining nearly steady if not falling slightly through the overnight hours into this morning, but a sharp decrease in temperature is expected as the cold front nears. Stay tuned for more video updates from Dean in Mt. Shasta!

http://www.snowcrest.net/camera/

MAJOR blizzard will pummel the California Sierra Nevadas and Coastal Ranges

Thu, 03 Jan 2008 16:29:00 GMT

An historic blizzard will pummel parts of the Sierra Nevada and Coastal Mountain Ranges of central and northern California and Oregon over the next few days, with 3-6 FEET of snow expected and 100 mph wind gusts! The massive trough responsible for this storm can be seen in the water vapor loop below from Thursday afternoon, with an initial jet streak already producing heavy snow over the mountains of northern California and southern Oregon.

A geographical perspective of the watches and warnings associated with this system can be seen below, with the blizzard warnings shaded in black. Dean Schoeneck of TornadoVideos.net will be documenting this storm from a hotel in Mount Shasta, which lies at around 4000 feet above sea level in the mountains of Northern California. Dean is expecting to be located at ground zero for this blizzard, and will likely be trapped at his hotel for days! He'll continuously be adding video updates to the blog from his location, so stay tuned!

The blizzard warning statement for Dean's location from the NWS office in Medford, Oregon is shown below. He should be arriving at his hotel tonight, and is currently driving from Coos Bay, OR to Mt. Shasta. This same storm system will be moving slowly eastward across the Rockies over the next few days, and could produce a tornado outbreak Monday through Tuesday of next week as mentioned in the previous blog post. This will be a record-setting storm, so things will definitely be exciting on the blog!

New Years Winter Storm Insanity!

Tue, 01 Jan 2008 20:11:00 GMT

Nearly the entire northeastern U.S. is getting pounded by winter storm conditions this New Years Day, with very heavy lake effect and lake enhanced snow falling to the lee of the Great Lakes, and intense synoptic scale snow over New England with a strengthening coastal low. Heavy snow showers are also falling across the higher terrain of the Appalachians from North Carolina north to Maryland with the help of orographic lift and lobes of vorticity rotating around the parent cyclone. The regional radar composite from earlier this afternoon shows the multiple facets of this system:

As seen below, winter storm warnings and snow advisories are in effect for greater than 50% of the counties in the Northeast U.S., with 4-12+ inches expected in the warning areas, and 2-6 inches of accumulation expected in the advisory areas. The favored snowbelt locations for NW and NNW-ly flow will be hardest hit this evening through early tomorrow in northern WI, western MI, northwest IN, northeast OH, northwest PA, and western NY, different from last week's W-SW-ly flow lake effect event. Very interesting day for the winter weather enthusiast to say the least!

The compact, yet intense low pressure system dropped record-setting snowfall over southern and eastern Michigan last night, with 12-16 inches falling across an area from Jackson to just north of Detroit. 4 inch per hour snowfall rates with thundersnow were reported last night near the I-69/I-96 intersection, with 2 inch per hour rates over a 6 hour period! We missed out on this snow here in the west part of the state, with only 2-4 inches of total accumulation.

MICHIGAN:
Dryden - 16.0"
Capac - 16.0"
Clarkston - 15.5"
Milford - 12.0"
White Lake - 13.2"
Jackson - 11.5"
Tekonsha - 10.0"

The long-range models are hinting at a spring-like storm system moving into the Southern Plains 6-7 days from now. January tornadoes???