A significant winter storm is developing today over Texas and this moisture-laden system will push northeastward over the next 24 hours bringing significant snowfall all the way from Texas to the Midwest. In the Mid-Atlantic region, snow is likely to break out on Wednesday morning in areas to the north of the PA/MD border and there can be some minor accumulations before a changeover to rain later today as milder air surges northward along the coast.
Looking ahead, widespread colder-than-normal air is going to push into the northern and western US early next week and it’ll likely spread into the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast US by late next week. Whether or not this change to colder-than-normal conditions is sustained in the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast US after next week will largely depend on the stubborn high pressure ridge aloft over the southwestern Atlantic/Southeast US. Elsewhere, there has been some amazing cold on the other side of the North Pole with the lowest temperature ever recorded in China on Monday and this follows some tremendous cold last week in Russia (Siberia). This frigid air is now spreading to the Korean Peninsula and on the way to Japan where there can also be some all-time low temperatures.
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The next low pressure system begins to impact the region later today with thickening clouds and tonight will feature rain and increasingly strong winds. Low pressure pulls out of the southern states today and moves northeast on Wednesday to the Great Lakes region with a secondary system likely to develop near the Mid-Atlantic coastline.
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As one storm continues to impact the Mid-Atlantic region with lingering rain and snow, the seeds for the next system are rolling through the southwestern states in the form of a vigorous upper-level low. This feature will drift into Texas on Tuesday and help generate surface low pressure and abundant moisture will feed into the system from the Gulf of Mexico. On Wednesday, this surface low pressure system will push northeastward with its large moisture field advancing to the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. Another key player in the upcoming mid-week event will be strong high pressure that forms over southeastern Canada. This system will anchor an air mass that will be cold enough for widespread accumulating snow across the Midwest, interior Mid-Atlantic and Northeast US. There is likely to even be some accumulating snow at the onset in portions of the I-95 corridor of the Mid-Atlantic on Wednesday before the precipitation ultimately changes to plain rain.
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Dry weather is in store for the region today with high pressure moving in; however, it won’t stay dry for too long. The next low pressure system begins to impact the region on Tuesday with an increasing chance of showers; especially, by the time we get to the nighttime hours. Low pressure pulls out of the southern states and moves northeast at mid-week to the Great Lakes region with a secondary system likely to develop near the Mid-Atlantic coastline.
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Cooler air has moved into the Tennessee Valley following the passage of a cool frontal system and today’s highs will be close to the 50 degree mark across much of northern Alabama. It stays cool and dry going into the weekend, but the threat of showers will increase on Sunday and Sunday night with the next system headed our way.
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Stratospheric temperatures have risen noticeably during the past couple of weeks in parts of the polar region in the Northern Hemisphere and indications are there will be changes of location of the polar vortex 10-15 days out. In addition, stratospheric warming looks like it could become centered right near or over the North Pole by the time we get into the early part of February. A stratospheric warming event such as this being forecasted could very well result in the displacement of cold air masses from the high latitudes into the middle latitudes sometime later in February.
In the short term, two storm systems are on the way for the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast US in the early and middle parts of next week. As has been the case in January, sufficient cold air for the generation of accumulating snow in the immediate I-95 corridor will be a struggle with both of these upcoming storms. Having said that, it looks like a close call in terms of at least some snow and/or ice in the I-95 corridor during either of these storms and any small change in the overall pattern can make an important difference. Odds do favor accumulating snow in the interior, higher elevation locations of the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast US during each of these storms next week.
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Mild weather will continue today across the Tennessee Valley with highs generally in the upper 60’s later this afternoon. There will be windy conditions as well with gusts possible up to 40 mph or so. The passage of a frontal system later tonight will bring about a bit of a chill down for tomorrow and the upcoming weekend.
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While the western US may experience an extended quieter weather pattern beginning later this week, it’ll remain quite active across the central and eastern US. The break in the action in the western US will be due to the development of an upper-level ridge of high pressure that will ultimately extend from the eastern Pacific Ocean northward into Alaska. In response to this ridge, an upper-level trough of low pressure will form over the central US and Canada by later next week. The combination of the eastern Pacific-to-Alaska ridge and the trough over the central US/Canada will result in upper-level winds that can easily transport cold air masses from northern Canada into the US. In fact, signs point to widespread colder-than-normal conditions across most the nation by late next week. Nationwide colder-than-normal weather in late January is quite impressive considering this is when climatological averages are close to their lowest levels of the year.
Meanwhile, the southwestern Atlantic Ocean will feature a ridge of high pressure in coming days that will intensify at times and the corridor region between the upper-level low (cold) over the central states and the Atlantic Ocean ridge (warm) will become a “battle zone” region with multiple storms riding through it from southwest-to-northeast. Accumulating snow has been virtually non-existent so far this winter season in the immediate DC-to-Philly-to-NYC corridor, but this active pattern will at least be able to raise hope for snow lovers in that part of the country with a couple of storm systems next week.
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Mild weather will continue today across the Tennessee Valley with highs generally in the upper 60’s later this afternoon. There will be unsettled conditions as well with showers likely today and tonight and perhaps a thunderstorm or two mixed in as well. The passage of a frontal system later tomorrow will bring about a bit of a cool down for the latter part of the week.
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Another storm will impact California later Wednesday, but this system looks like it will be the last in a series of storms to roll off the Pacific Ocean and into the Golden State. An upper-level ridge of high pressure will build over the eastern Pacific Ocean in coming days and ultimately expand northward into Alaska. This ridge will act as a “protective barrier” to oceanic storms resulting in welcome relief to the waterlogged state.
While the western US may experience a quieter overall weather pattern beginning later this week, it’ll remain quite active across the central and eastern US. In a reaction to the developing ridge over the eastern Pacific Ocean, an upper-level trough of low pressure will form over the central US and Canada. In addition, a ridge of high pressure will intensify over the southwestern Atlantic Ocean in coming days. The corridor region between the upper-level low over the central states and the ridge over the SW Atlantic will become a “battle zone” region likely with multiple storms riding through it from southwest-to-northeast. Snow has been virtually non-existent so far this season in the immediate I-95 corridor region from DC-to-Philly-to-NYC; however, I do believe that the chances will likely increase markedly next week and beyond given the large-scale pattern change that is expected across North America.
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