Sunday, Jan. 14, 2018 11 P.M.
Evening models have all increased their forecasts for snow Monday. Still a possible dusting overnight; then afternoon snow Monday should average around 1″ with some isolated spots perhaps as high as 2″.
Friday, Jan, 12, 2018
Icy weather takes a break
All of a sudden the freezing rain has quit and will not return for 2-3 hours. As a result, the icy mess I talked about a couple of hours ago ISN’T GOING TO HAPPEN.
With this break, we’re back to a mostly snow situation. Sleet and (mostly snow) will return by 4 P.M., just in time to foul up rush hour traffic. Snow will continue through rush hour and gradually end before midnight. Total snow accumulation: 1″-3″.
This sudden halt in the icy weather has given us a tremendous break!
Friday, Jan.12, 2018 11 A.M.
Sleet/freezing rain will cause more problems than snow.
This afternoon is going to be a real mess. Yesterday, I discussed the quicker timing on the current weather pattern. So far, that has worked okay…with one exception – cold air. Temperatures were expected to remain in the 30’s until late afternoon. But, the really cold air (20’s) has swept across the area much sooner than that. It’s already here. So, the consequence of that is much more trouble.
With temperatures aloft still well above freezing, rain will be the primary precipitation until late afternoon. As that rain falls into the cold near-surface air we’ll see a 4 to 6 hour period of freezing rain gradually changing to sleet. If freezing rain dominates, it could cause big problems with tree limbs, power lines, etc. If sleet dominates the main problems will be with the roads. Sleet should be the dominate precipitation, but a longer than expected period of freezing rain isn’t out of the question.
The snow part of the equation hasn’t changed. The precipitation should change to snow by 3-5 P.M. Snow will wind down this evening and end by midnight. It’ll be hard to measure with all the ice already on the ground, but the Louisville area should see an accumulation of 1″ to 3″. Higher snow totals are likely north and west of town.
Tuesday, Jan.9,2018 3 P.M.
GFS points to snow Friday night!
Here’s the latest prediction from the GFS 2.5 km model:
Looks exciting, doesn’t it? But don’t get too excited yet. This prediction is definitely an outlier, at least so far. The GFS ensemble shows(a group of GFS models run under slightly different starting conditions) shows a wide range of possible solutions for this future storm. The Euro and Canadian models also are much lower with their forecasts. But, it’ll fun to see how it develops this week.
Sun., Jan 7, 2018
The short term models have, as expected, all gone to a forecast for the Louisville area which consists of almost all rain tonight and tomorrow morning AND a few periods of sleet/snow mixed in. But, essentially we’re just looking a a rain situation locally as temperatures remain above freezing all night.
Doesn’t look like the NWS has given up on its icy prediction yet.
Sunday, January 7, 2018
Which precipitation type will dominate tonight?
Forecasts have been calling for snow and/or sleet and/or freezing rain and/or rain for tonight and Monday morning for several days now. But, as we get closer to the event, the actual sequence of events seems to be coming into clearer focus. The computer models are still quite varied – I’ve just looked at five different models and the results still are different. One says mostly snow, another says mostly freezing rain/sleet, two say about a fifty-fifty split between icy types and rain, while another one predicts mostly plain old liquid rain.
So that aspect of the models doesn’t provide much help. So maybe it’s time to put a little common sense human forecasting to work. One thing the models do agree on is surface temperatures. In general, they all hold surface temperatures above freezing overnight and tomorrow. Thus, any icy precipitation that mixes in should melt on roadways. Concrete sidewalks and roadways could get a bit icy late this evening. Once precipitation begins this evening, temperatures will drop few degrees for an hour or two. During that time we’ll see our best chance for icy precipitation mixing in with rain. After midnight, by far the dominant feature will be rain as temperatures rise into the mid to upper 30’s by morning.
So, summary, when all is over, this system should cause only a few, if any, problems for the Louisville area any all roads should be fine (although wet) for rush hour. However, north and northeast of Louisville more ice will mix in, especially those areas which still have some snow on the ground. Numerous road problems are likely in these areas.
Friday, Oct. 6, 2017 11 A.M.
Recent changes cast doubt on current forecast.
This morning’s GFS model run has pushed Nate’s path farther east than the current forecast implies. If this works out, and it likely will, our local hopes for some very beneficial rain this weekend are dimming. Current official forecast calls for widespread 1″-2″ rainfall over our area late tomorrow into Sunday. Forecast changes this morning would indicate our rainfall will probably be less than half that of the current forecast.
As it looks now, we should get at least some rain this weekend, but not enough to take much of a bite out of our growing drought conditions. A quarter to half an inch would be nice, but I’m getting the feeling I may be too optimistic.
Bummer.
Wed. Sept. 6, 2017
Imagery of Hurricane Irma’s eye from NASA’s new satellite from web site Watt’s Up With That?
The most fantastic eyewall video of a hurricane I’ve ever seen – #Irma
5:45 P.M. Friday, April 21, 2017
Model solutions have done a flip-flop in the past 24 hours. Yesterday, the NAM gave by far the best weather outlook for Saturday’s events. Today the GFS is our friend. Which one is right? Good question! I’ve asked myself the same question many, many times over the years. Usually, there’s at least some “truth” in both models. The NAM, as expected, had a better take on today’s weather. Tomorrow, it appears to me that the GFS has a better handle on the situation. Here’s how I see it evolving:
First of the heavier rain systems moves into the Louisville area between 7 and 8 P.M. Rain could get heavy at times late tonight and tomorrow morning. Rain ends during the midday hours (Noon – 2 P.M.). Cloudy and cold rest of afternoon into the evening (50-ish temperatures likely). So, air show should be dry but a low-hanging cloud cover may hinder some of the action. For the fireworks, it’ll be breezy and cold (near 50). And, here’s where the NAM adds to the forecast – there’ll be about a 50-50 chance for light rain and/or drizzle during the show.
4:30 P.M. Thursday, April 20, 2017
Current situation:
Weak upper air system moving through the Great Lakes may create strong thunderstorms over NE Indiana and Michigan for the next few hours. We, however, are too far south to join in on the stronger dynamics with this system. Enough energy is left for us to (probably) see two episodes of showers and thunderstorms over the next 6-8 hours. A loosely organized line of showers/thunderstorms will move across the Louisville metro area between now and 6 P.M.
A second, better organized, system should bring a more widespread area of rain/thunder between 8 P.M. and 11 P.M. tonight.
Note: Models can’t agree about tomorrow: NAM brings a large area of rain over us tomorrow afternoon. GFS keeps us dry tomorrow with rain arriving tomorrow night. Either way, it will be cooler. (NAM looks better to me)
Air Show/Thunder:
Both models are developing the next weather system faster than they had earlier in the week. If this trend continues, it signals a better outlook for Saturday. Steady, heavier rains look to end by midday. Cloudy skies remain during the air show, but at least it should be dry. As cooler air arrives during the afternoon/evening we’ll see temperatures drop to the low to mid 50’s. Add breezy winds and a winter coat will feel good for the fireworks. In addition, Saturday evening could also be hit with a cold drizzle. Still, better than earlier forecasts.