North American Weather (U.S.A & Canada)

[Coopsy]

I will be keeping a keen eye out for both regions. We'll catch up tomorrow no doubt with the first hand news

[Roger J Smith]

Looking at the latest guidance would say rain changing to heavy snow for Calgary, hope it won't be disruptive CC but can see the potential for 30-40 cms of snow because a fairly strong wave is going to run north along the front after midnight. The rain-snow line will keep drifting further east and by tomorrow mid-day could be as far east as almost Brooks to Drumheller (that's about 100 kms east of Calgary). This looks like the sort of set-up where some higher suburbs of Calgary get 50 cms and the east side of the city about 15-20 cms. As you say, too mild for snow today, should start out as rain. Then should change over about 0300-0600h.

Glos, would expect sleet more than freezing rain, but heavy glaze likely further west around Terra Nova, heavy wet snow for Gander and central Newfoundland. Your temperature seems likely to keep drifting up between 0 and 3 C.

[Coopsy]

Thanks for the info Roger - is that the same for Canmore as Calgary you think possible over 30cm's?

it could get interesting - I will have a good reporting advantage driving from Canmore to the airport and back. Just hope there is no problems with the flights/roads etc. I'll keep you all posted as we go

[cheeky_monkey]

Hope it clears as im driving back to Edmonton on Thursday.

[glosteroldboy]

Looking at the latest guidance would say rain changing to heavy snow for Calgary, hope it won't be disruptive CC but can see the potential for 30-40 cms of snow because a fairly strong wave is going to run north along the front after midnight. The rain-snow line will keep drifting further east and by tomorrow mid-day could be as far east as almost Brooks to Drumheller (that's about 100 kms east of Calgary). This looks like the sort of set-up where some higher suburbs of Calgary get 50 cms and the east side of the city about 15-20 cms. As you say, too mild for snow today, should start out as rain. Then should change over about 0300-0600h.

Glos, would expect sleet more than freezing rain, but heavy glaze likely further west around Terra Nova, heavy wet snow for Gander and central Newfoundland. Your temperature seems likely to keep drifting up between 0 and 3 C.

Cheers Roger, EC in their latest update seem to be sticking to freezing rain turning to rain in South Avalon and freezing drizzle for us in NE Avalon by morning but the temperature predictions like you say seem a bit high for that. I keep an eye on this local weather station http://www.weatherlink.com/user/vocm/index.php?view=summary&headers=1

[cheeky_monkey]

Looking at the forecasts it says for Calgary 2-4cm of snow..where are people getting 20-50cms from?????

[Coopsy]

Looking at the forecasts it says for Calgary 2-4cm of snow..where are people getting 20-50cms from?????

I think they are waiting til nearer the time to upgrade once they know for sure as its so marginal

[cheeky_monkey]

I think they are waiting til nearer the time to upgrade once they know for sure as its so marginal

Really as they are only quoting 5mm of rain?

[Roger J Smith]

I think the Alberta snow would begin Wednesday afternoon into evening now, and last through the night into Thursday morning. Would currently say 20-30 cms west to 5-15 cms east through Calgary region, 10-20 cms north of Calgary to at least Red Deer and possibly Edmonton, and 5-15 cms Canmore although heavier in nearby hills. Very tricky situation though, could go heavier or fizzle altogether. Rain-snow line will edge east through the event and end up around Brooks to Coronation to Vegreville (all places that UK readers will be scrambling for an atlas, but we know where they are, right? Dinosaur Provincial Park picture below just for the heck of it.

[glosteroldboy]

We had a bit of freezing rain up to about midnight but nothing like a couple of weeks back when there was an inch thick glaze on all the trees etc. Temperature got above zero sometime after midnight and steadily rising to around 5 degrees and some rain and fog about, a typical grey, foggy, wet Newfoundland day!

Saw some amazing scenes last night though, the sea ice is right into the shore now around here, took few pics: (was very foggy,waiting for some sunshine to return to see it all in a better light)

.......

Edited April 4, 2012 by glosteroldboy

[Coopsy]

Very calm here, no wind and partial cloud cover. Quite a nice day. I am going with no more than 10cm for my part. I think it will be heavier north and east from here. Seen it a quite a few times before where it comes from the SW and is light here and super heavy 30 mins down the road.

Off to Calgary Airport at 3pm so will prob be driving back in the start of it all

[cheeky_monkey]

dry and cloudy here in Calgary...temps +7c..dont see any prospects of a big snowfall here

[Coopsy]

been snowing since 10am here but not settled, too warm. breaks in the cloud and virtually stopped. Think this could be another overdone 'storm' by EC and TWN...timeframes being pushed back and amounts dropping

[glosteroldboy]

been snowing since 10am here but not settled, too warm. breaks in the cloud and virtually stopped. Think this could be another overdone 'storm' by EC and TWN...downgrading all the time

It doesn't look very threatening on the radar yet. I see EC have gone for 10-15cm in their latest warning but have also added "melting could result in reduced accumulations".

It's been raining here all day here but just very fine drizzle now, not even showing up on the radar.

[Coopsy]

We got a grand total of 3cm's from this 'storm'. I am anticipating that totals to my east towards Calgary were more though, as is often the case.

[knocker]

GOES satellite movie tracked tornadic Texas trouble

A powerful weather system moved through eastern Texas and dropped at least 15 tornadoes in the Dallas suburbs. NASA created an animation of data from NOAA's GOES-13 satellite that shows the frontal system moving through the region yesterday.

NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, GOES-13, captures visible and infrared images of weather over the eastern U.S. every 15 minutes, and captured the movement of the weather system that generated the Texas twisters. The 23 second movie runs from April 2 at 1615 UTC through April 4 at 1615 UTC (11:15 a.m. CDT), and shows the progression of the storm system that generated about 15 tornadoes on April 3. Around 2215 UTC (5:15 p.m. CDT) on April 3, the tail end of the front appeared in the GOES animation as a pie-shaped wedge that continued to thin out. It is that wedge where the tornadoes were generated and touched down in the southeastern Dallas suburbs. One thing people viewing the video can take from the satellite view is that if they're seeing GOES imagery live on television, they can relate wedge shaped-frontal clouds with severe weather and be prepared.

NOAA operates the GOES series of satellites, and NASA's GOES Project, located at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. compiles the images into animations. The GOES visible and infrared data is compiled and then overlayed on a true-color land surface map of the U.S. that was created using data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer instrument that flies on NASA's Aqua and Terra satellites.

At least 15 tornadoes were reported in Texas yesterday afternoon, south and southeast of the Dallas metro area. According to the National Weather Service, reports of tornadoes were from: 4 miles south of Cumby; 3 to 5 miles south of Royse City; 5 miles south of Sulphur Springs and in the town, Campbell, 10 miles west of Quinlan, 4 miles southeast of Pickton, 4 miles north of Lone Oak, Lancaster, Forney, Cleburne, Everman, Oak Leaf, and Mesquite. The National Weather Service's Fort Worth office noted that most of the tornadoes were between EF2 and EF1 on the Fujita scale. According to WFAA-TV meteorologist Steve McCauley, preliminary analysis showed that EF-2 tornadoes (with max. winds of 130 mph) struck Arlington and Lancaster, and an EF-3 (150 mph winds) hit Forney. A National Weather Service website was created to provide reports of hail, wind and tornado reports at: https://nwschat.weat...1204040440/0100.

Live video shot on April 3 on the south side of Dallas aired on the Weather Channel that showed semi-tractor trailer truck s being lifted about 50 feet in the air from the tornado. Local Dallas-area television station WFAA-TV provided a severe weather blog that covers many incidents related to the storms. It can be found here: http://www.wfaa.com/...-145963545.html

Anyone who experiences severe storms on the ground would likely want to see how they appear to develop in satellite view, as it may provide extra warning time. GOES satellites continue to provide continuous coverage over the entire U.S., as the clean up continues today in Texas.

###

You can view a related video here:

http://www.nasa.gov/...ia_id=139023361.

http://www.eurekaler...c-gsm040412.php

Edited April 5, 2012 by weather ship

[glosteroldboy]

We got a grand total of 3cm's from this 'storm'. I am anticipating that totals to my east towards Calgary were more though, as is often the case.

Looks quite active to N/NW of Edmonton these past few hours.

Finally warming up a bit here over the next week, nothing like the heat experienced last month in some parts but 4-10 degrees certainly feels warmer in any sunshine.

[Coopsy]

Just spoke to a colleague in Edmonton and she said they have had about 9 inches from this storm so it def picked up intensity from when it hit here

[glosteroldboy]

Just spoke to a colleague in Edmonton and she said they have had about 9 inches from this storm so it def picked up intensity from when it hit here

Nice bit of snow, doesn't last long at this time of year and looks a bit warmer over the next week. Winters last attempt? I think we go ours last week, in terms of big snowstorms though never know here.

4 degrees out now and just seen a few flakes falling, dewpoint is below freezing.

[Coopsy]

Nice bit of snow, doesn't last long at this time of year and looks a bit warmer over the next week. Winters last attempt? I think we go ours last week, in terms of big snowstorms though never know here.

4 degrees out now and just seen a few flakes falling, dewpoint is below freezing.

Not here I dont think - over the last 4 years our heaviest falls of the whole season have come either in the last 2 weeks of april or the first week of may so I am thinking one more storm before spring proper arrives here :-)

[cheeky_monkey]

I didnt get much more than you here in Calgary 3-5cm tops...as for Edmonton i am heading back this afternoon but i think 9 inches is highly suspect..it was raining there at midnight and although they had snow overnight it was raining there at 8 am this morning..maybe she meant 9cm?

Edited April 5, 2012 by cheeky_monkey

[glosteroldboy]

I didnt get much more than you here in Calgary 3-5cm tops...as for Edmonton i am heading back this afternoon but i think 9 inches is highly suspect..it was raining there at midnight and although they had snow overnight it was raining there at 8 am this morning..maybe she meant 9cm?

I thought it was only us fellas that confused 9 inches with 9cm.

[Coopsy]

lol true about the 9 inches confusion.

I just looked on webcams north and east of city and roads are clear but it does look like a fair bit on the ground. Not 9 inches though like you say

[knocker]

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT

344 AM MDT FRI APR 6 2012

MTZ050-051-061800-

/O.CON.KTFX.BZ.W.0003.000000T0000Z-120407T1200Z/

JUDITH BASIN-FERGUS-

INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING LOCATIONS...STANFORD...LEWISTOWN...

LEWISTOWN DIVIDE

344 AM MDT FRI APR 6 2012

...BLIZZARD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 AM MDT SATURDAY...

A BLIZZARD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 AM MDT SATURDAY.

* TIMING AND MAIN IMPACT: SNOW WILL BECOME HEAVY AT TIMES THIS

MORNING AND CONTINUE THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON BEFORE DIMINISHING

TONIGHT. STRENGTHENING WINDS WILL CREATE SIGNIFICANT BLOWING AND

DRIFTING OF SNOW AND WHITEOUT CONDITIONS.

* SNOW ACCUMULATIONS: STORM TOTAL ACCUMULATION 8 TO 12 INCHES BY

THIS EVENING. 12 TO 20 INCHES IN THE MOUNTAINS.

* WINDS AND VISIBILITY: NORTH WINDS INCREASING TO 20 TO 30 MPH

WITH GUSTS TO 40 MPH. VISIBILITIES TO NEAR ZERO AT TIMES.

* OTHER IMPACTS: TRAVEL WILL BECOME DIFFICULT AS ROADS BECOME SNOW

COVERED AND SLIPPERY WITH SIGNIFICANT DRIFTING OF SNOW THIS AFTERNOON.

HEAVY WET SNOW COULD CAUSE DAMAGE TO TREES AND POSSIBLE POWER

OUTAGES. YOUNG UNPROTECTED LIVESTOCK COULD BECOME STRESSED.

* LOCATIONS AFFECTED INCLUDE: STANFORD...LEWISTOWN...LEWISTOWN

DIVIDE.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A BLIZZARD WARNING MEANS SEVERE WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE

EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. FALLING AND BLOWING SNOW WITH STRONG WINDS

AND POOR VISIBILITIES ARE LIKELY. THIS WILL LEAD TO WHITEOUT

CONDITIONS...MAKING TRAVEL EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. DO NOT TRAVEL. IF

YOU MUST TRAVEL...HAVE A WINTER SURVIVAL KIT WITH YOU. IF YOU GET

STRANDED...STAY WITH YOUR VEHICLE.

&&

[cheeky_monkey]

lol true about the 9 inches confusion.

I just looked on webcams north and east of city and roads are clear but it does look like a fair bit on the ground. Not 9 inches though like you say

i think your friend was right..got back to Edmonton friday at around 5 and had just missed the storm..watching the news it seems some area just west of the city had close to 50cm of snow in 8 hours!...funny thing is by the time i drove back to Calgary yesterday it had all gone..even though it wasnt particularly warm..in fact it never really got much above 2c all weekend...but loads of sunshine and long days did the damage.

Edited April 9, 2012 by cheeky_monkey