Hello and happy Monday everyone, I hope you enjoyed your weekend. Welcome to the last full week of October 2009. This weekend, of course, many of the young ghouls and gobblins have their spooky little eyes fixated on Saturday, for it tis Halloween… BOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!
The other good little nugget of information you won’t want to forget is the time change at 2am Sunday (November 1st) – don’t forget – set your clocks back (Fall back) 1 hour before going to bed Saturday night or when the kids finally fall asleep after their sugar high.
Midwest Tornado Outbreak on this day in 1996
On this date in 1996, 26 tornadoes formed in the north central U.S. with most occuring (14) in Minnesota. 9 developed in South Dakota and 3 developed in Nebraska. The National Weather Service in the Twin Cities has a good write-up about the Minnesota tornadoes with pictures and radar images:
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/mpx/?n=26oct1996
Flooding Concerns in the South
A slow moving cool front will keep the lower Mississippi Valley unsettled through mid-week. Showers and thunderstorms, heavy at times, will be responsible for nearly 1″ to 3″ (localized 5″) of rain. Already saturated ground and rivers/streams running near flood levels will keep the flood threat high, thus the flood watches and warnings above. Rain will move northeast through the week, but another storm will bring showers and thunderstorms to the same regions by the later half of the week.
Big Storm Develops West
Winter Storm Warnings and Winter Weather Advisories have been posted for the Inter-Mountain West. Snow accumulations of up to a foot may be possible by mid week. Storng winds will be found up of down the coast and for most inland areas as far south as Arizona. Wind Advisories and Fire Weather Watches have been posted for locations in the Great Basin – winds could gust up to 50mph or more at times through Wednesday. This is what the storm will look like in the upper levels of the atmosphere by Thursday:
All moisture on the south and east side of the storm will be rain and thunderstorms, but on the west and northwest side of the storm, we may have some heavy/accumulating snow. We’ll keep you posted, in the meantime, enjoy your Monday!
Many regions of the United States went from summer to winter leaving many people wondering what lies ahead for the month of December and January, usually the coldest months in the US. This drastic change in temperatures made it difficult for trees to show their foliage beauty across the Midwest and the Northeast because many trees lost their leaves during the first week of October when many areas saw their first snowfall. So it wasn’t a great year at all for those who enjoy the fall foliage across the nation. Attached is a map showing the current foliage in the of Minnesota.
Do you remember how bad the drought situation was in Texas this past summer? With more than 15% of the state being under exceptional drought? Well, it is amazing how a couple of months have made a difference in the lone star state. Some people say, that it normally takes a flood to end the drought in Texas and that is exactly what has happened in the past month. The Dallas/Ft. Worth area since Sept. 1 has seen 13.61 inches of rain and they are expecting close to 2 more inches this week so flooding is an issue especially into the Eastern portion of the Longhorn state. There is a front approaching the region and as this front moves towards the south, it will mix with juicy moisture from the Gulf of Mexico and that will trigger some heavy downpours, cloud to ground lightning and a severe weather alert all the way into Louisiana.
Snow will continue to fall in Colorado, Montana and the Dakotas with many areas seeing close to 6 inches, so get your snow plows ready!
Enjoy your Sunday and don’t forget to check back tomorrow for more weather stories.
‘Tis the season for hunting. Outdoorsmen and women across the country are gearing up and heading out to fields or forests or mountains to hunt down the game of their choice. Weather plays an important role in how easy or difficult it will be to find your animal. For example, during years with less rain or snow the ground is crunchy and dry so the noise of the hunters footsteps make it more difficult to stalk various animals. For pheasant hunting, the snow helps hunters identify the tracks of the pheasants in the fields. Tomorrow will be the 2009 opener for big game rifle season in Montana. The weather will continue to be wet with scattered showers in the lower elevations and snow in the higher elevations. Even though the wetter conditions are considered by some to be more benificial for hunting, park officals are predicting a slow start to the season. It is critically important for these hunters to be dressed appropriately when spending long periods of time in cold and wet weather. Pheasant hunting started last weekend in South Dakota. Pheasant Hunting in South Dakota isn’t only a major recreational sport for the state, it brings a substational amount of money to the private sector and to the government. Each year money spent by hunters adds about $100 million into the economy. In fact, this weekend my husband and the men in his family are contributing to that fund as they hunt for pheasant near Aberdeen. Due to the large amount of rain this year, the fields are muddier and wetter, and unlike large game hunting, these conditions for pheasant hunter are less desirable. Areas of scattered showers will continue throughout the rest of the weekend across the Dakotas.
Heavy rain continues to inundate the Midwest as a strong fall storm sweeps across the nation. Daily maximum rainfall amounts have been broken across the center of the country and rivers and streams along the Mississippi river have swollen past flood stage. Strong storms like this one are not uncommon this time of year. During early spring and fall, large temperature differences usually exist from north to south across the country. Locations in the Northern Plains and Midwest have been in the 30′s and 40′s whereas areas ahead of the storm in the Ohio River Valley have been in the 60′s and 70′s. Mid-latitude cyclones, as they are called, get their strength from these large temperature gradients along with ample atmospheric moisture…both of which are often present this time of year.
This storm is quickly moving into the Northeast tonight. Heavy rain will fall in some areas of the Northeast…I know, just in time for the weekend. Not the best weather for leaf peeping. Also, with the leaves starting to fall off the trees, some drainage areas could get clogged, potentially causing localized street flooding. If you encounter a flooded roadway…do yourself a favor…follow the old saying, “Turn Around, Don’t Drown.” Don’t take your chances like some of us did down south yesterday.
Flooding in New Orleans, LA
Kristin Clark
WeatherNation Meteorologist
East Texas has been getting hammered by heavy rain and strong storms this morning. A few roads around San Antonio were closed for a time due to flooding and rainfall amounts could exceed 3″ in the Lower Mississippi Valley over the next 24 hours. Abundant rainfall in September and October has ended the drought in northern Texas. Great news!
The recent deluge over the Lower Mississippi Valley is a result of a strong storm in the center of the country encountering the tropical leftovers from Tropical Storm Rick. As mentioned in an earlier post, Tropical Storm Rick was a powerful Cat. 5 hurricane on Sunday and the strongest hurricane in the eastern Pacific in a decade. Currently, there are two cyclones in the Pacific. Hurricane Neki is passing 580 west-southwest of Honolulu, HI. Neki will miss Hawaii but bring powerful surf to the islands.
In the western Pacific, slow-moving Typhoon Lupit is threatening to be the third typhoon this month to strike the northern Philippines. The official forecast is for Lupit to stall and eventually turn north toward Taiwan.
The 2009 Atlantic Hurricane season has, so far, been rather quiet. With a little over one month to go in the season, the coastal areas of the U.S have managed to escape any damage from tropical cyclones. A cluster of thunderstorms has developed in the southwest Caribbean as well as over the Bahamas, however, tropical development is rather low in these areas.
The Atlantic Hurricane Season officially ends November 30. Still plenty of time so we’ll keep you dialed in!
A friendly reminder: Daylight Saving Time ends soon, turn clocks BACK one hour Sunday, November 1 at 2 a.m.!
Kristin Clark
WeatherNation Meteorologist
