Good Sunday and happy Super Bowl. A developing winter storm is sweeping across the Ohio Valley and is bringing a lot of nasty weather with it. We’re on the rainy side of things today, but a rapid temp drop tonight may combine with light snow to produce slick roads early Monday.
January is in the books and temps averaged 1 to 2 degrees below normal for most of the state. Snowfall for many came in under the normal value, but Lexington did finish 2″ above normal. With December showing up milder and January colder, February will be the deciding month for the winter as a whole. As far as snow goes… a little over a week ago, Boston folks were totally bumming because they had very little snow all winter. They picked up 2 feet this past week and will get another foot or so the next few days. Things can change in a hurry.
This first day of the month offers changeable weather conditions with our storm system rolling right on top of us. Rain and gusty winds will carry us through much of the day as temps increase. That increase will go the other way VERY quickly tonight as the low passes through here. Check out this drop…
That takes place as soon as the low slides to our east…
Let’s review… we have a lot of wet roads as temps drop from the 40s into the upper teens and low 20s in just a few hours. Throw in a band of light snow during that drop and you can get roads to ice up pretty darn fast.
Snow showers and flurries would take us through midday Monday.
From there, we watch the middle and end of the week to see if a system working in from the northwest can pick up a storm developing in the gulf…
I will have updates later today. I leave you with your tracking tools…
Have a great day and take care.
Regardless of what it is or where it comes from, it will be rain. Maybe a flurry at the end.
I was living in Knoxville (or Maryville) which is sort of a suburb, the winter of 1995/96. One of the storms that gave KY that big snow storm also hit Knoxville…….But here’s what I remember. That storm in Knoxville started as HEAVY RAIN and it rained a good 2 inches and the temp was mid 30s, then it changed to snow and the temp plummeted. (from KY, all that rain before the changeover must have been all snow in KY) I think it snowed 4 inches really fast but the temp dropped so fast and it stayed cold and overcast a few days after that and the roads were all packed with snow and it was not plow(able). It was crazy looking driving on main roads where the traffic had packed the snow. I think it stayed well below freezing and overcast for a few days and the roads remained that way
My point is someone was saying that storms used to start as snow and end as snow….That hasn’t always been the experience I remember, but then again, I’ve only lived in KY since late 1996.
we haven’t had much since 96
I have lived my entire 51 years in Western WV and East KY. There was a lot of storms that stayed snow and the ones that began as rain turned before the moisture left so we got more than flurries. Another thing I have noticed is when it does snow it is almost always at night sometimes causing delays/cancellations. Not so long ago I remember snow in the morning/afternoon causing early dismissals. Not so much anymore.
I lived in southeast KY during the storm you mentioned. It was memorable–during an epic winter that had many memorable snows where I lived at the time. It seemed as soon as one snow melted, more would fall. The only two winters that matched it were 1993/94 & 1984/85 in my memory.
I now live in East Tennessee–not far from where you lived back then–(about 10 miles east of Sevierville), and last year we had 3 snows that started and ended as snow. The final snow gave us 7 inches.
Old Man Winter must be holding a grudge toward KY.
The problem is since 98 we have been in 33/32 with most of our moisture for anything but clippers and big ice.
Hopefully like a few other systems that threatened freezing roads, we can get some wind to help dry the roads out before freezing.
Unless ice I am done until 12 hours out for models from this point on. Not seeing anything beyond a small snow (if that). We Could be Honey Boo Boo levels as far as lowering the bar this winter. Meh.
…my part of madison county ended the month at it’s annual norm…0.01″… 🙂 …but the models always provide the promise of “next week”…
Which of course, unfortunately will never materialize for your area or for mine.
Radar is showing it’s raining here in Lexington, but the roads and sidewalks are dry.
Oh, that’s that dry rain we all know about.
Another month or so for snow chances. I’ll take it!
Always, thanks Chris for the work you do on here.
Happy Sunday y’all!
Gotta live north of the Ohio River anymore to get in on good winter anymore. I smell an early spring.
The climate goes up and down in cycles and we could be in a generation level part for snow. No big one for most since 1998, but that is a blip in the big scheme. My kids grew up here without a big event and that is sad and wild. My oldest was two, but of course does not remember 98.
If need a big snow fix, best advice perhaps is save up each year for a trip where there is snow.
Excellent point BubbaG… with regards to weather patterns being cyclical. I think it is also critical to remember (as you eluded to) that the major weather cycles/climate patterns are measured in centuries, not decades, and that our weather from year to year is in-fact, just a “blip”. All of this points to the fact that most of us may never live to see another historic snowfall in the Commonwealth, or even our own children!
It is an awful lot of fun trying to figure it all out though!
Thanks Chris for trying to get us some snow. Only a few days in February to get much snow. While I want one big one, if not, my school is over early…and long summer for me!!!! Appreciate you, and while Somerset is way too brown, you are still the. Best.
Bailey, take out the radar on the page. Have you no heart? The intense blue over central Indiana should be ours, ours I tell you! Group hug.
Feederband… check out my late post from the last update… It’s proof that snow is under appreciated by our neighbors (my Mother-in-Law in particular) to the North!
Like!
“As far as snow goes… a little over a week ago, Boston folks were totally bumming because they had very little snow all winter. They picked up 2 feet this past week”
Don’t forget Worchester, MA with their 34.5″ from that single storm.
Ugh, let’s hope this rain doesn’t last long here. Our ground is already saturated and too much rain too quickly could be a problem. The water at Jacobson Park looked pretty low, maybe Lex needs some rain?
Um ——Yea! We hardly had any weather in December or January (other than the five inch snow in Jan) But actual heavy rain has been almost non-existent the past 2 months. So the 32/33 rule would come in handy right now since it’s really dry (at least here in Lex)
Been pretty dry all over right now. Abnormally dry/moderate drought continues to spread over the state. Very strange winter, indeed.
http://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/Home/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx?KY
5 inches? Hard to believe – but I saw remnants yesterday in Lexington. Richmond had perhaps two inches, at a stretch. 25 miles south…
The old rain and backside flurries system that we have become so used to. Not even had many of those this winter. Four more weeks.
Wow..Early morning run of the GFS clown maps give a good chunk of South Carolina a foot of snow and a portion of Georgia way over a foot..Given the North West shift we have seen all winter i would say it’s right where we want it..
I don’t expect it to move much if any at all
Yea- most of us here are so jaded now.
the low didn’t even form until it was on the FL east coast if I looked at it right. A Met friend of mine said most that form that far south tend to stay south
We are truly in the land of in between.
Those epic snow that we had 94-95 happen in march so don’t give up yet l stated this once someday were gonna get more than what we ask for.
Rain…..Ill take it any day of the week over frozen precipitation.
Same old song, just a drop of water in a endless sea
Wow, this storm wasn’t even close at this point, NWS Indy has even dropped Indianapolis from the WWA, their forecast of 6-9″ 2 days ago is now an optimistic 1-3, this storm REALLY went north.
Only 43 here in my part of Knott County.
I’m not giving up hope. Here in Louisville, we’ve had snow as late as Derby Day.
Unfortunately, so far today it’s just all cold rain.
Probably will stay that way all night and tomorrow. Chris is not talking which usually means no good news.
The artic plunges never last more than 48 hours until the next southwest wind blows them away.
i cant remember who said it would be a lake cutter…but u were exactly right ….