In 24 hrs the models went from an historic superstorm over the Appalachians to a run-of-the-mill nor’easter. The models are now all in agreement that the phasing of the jet streams will occur well east of the region, which means this storm will mainly go out to sea. Kentucky may get some light snow Sunday night into Monday morning with the arctic front but minimal accumulations. There may be some light snow showers when the trough swings through midweek. It is amazing to me how much of the meteorological community (including myself) jumped onto the Appalachian superstorm idea Wednesday/Thursday just to see the rug pulled out from underneath. This reminds me of what it feels like to use models to forecast snowstorms for KY.

Less than a week after a major ice storm devastated a large swath of the central United States with ice, snow and flooding rains, another even more powerful storm appears to be on the way. In fact, computer models suggest this new storm could rival some of the more famous “superstorms” of recent decades. The Groundhog Day Superstorm has the potential to produce 20+ inches of snow over the Appalachians, severe weather across the Gulf Coast, and flooding rains along the East Coast; however, the most notable impact may be the wind of 50+ mph that could batter parts of the Great Lakes region and southeast Canada. But what can Kentucky expect from this storm? Continue reading →

This is shaping up to be a major ice storm for south-central Kentucky Monday night into Tuesday. There could be widespread power outages and downed power lines from ice-covered tree limbs. I would also expect widespread school cancellations (including WKU) since this has the potential to be devastating. Continue reading →