Severe Weather in the Plains

October 20, 2011

Update on the Major Storm

Well the current major storm is ongoing right now.  It is producing a large area of rain, a swath of winds, and a punch of brutally cold air behind it.  The first thing that we are going to look at is a combination of the current sea level pressure and some infrared satellite imagery:
This map easily shows us the strength of this storm along with the large rain band to the north and west of our storm.  This is a classic storm right now.  If it were winter, we'd likely see widespread 12+" readings associated with this low, along with blizzard conditions.  Fortunately, we are not currently in winter.  However, if a storm like this can occur in October, it can occur in the winter too.  Continuing on, let's look at the QPF made by the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center:
We can see that our swath of heaviest rain (or maybe even snow) will move up into Canada today, with precipitation totals nearing 1.5 inches expected.  At this point, the bigger story may be the cold air behind this storm.  Check out the latest map from the National Weather Service:
See all of that blue inside of my red circle?  Those are warnings regarding cold air!  They extend all the way into Alabama!  Here is tonight's expected low:
And tomorrow night's expected low:
That's all I have for you right now, stay tuned!

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