Wild Weather Wednesday

Today’s Forecast

Good morning and happy Wednesday! I hope everyone has managed to stay warm throughout this cold front that has pushed in winter temps! If you hate the cold, you’re in luck because things start to warm up as we move into this weekend. Beautiful, sunny skies are expected to continue through the rest of the week with highs creeping back up to the mid 60s. For today, expect highs in the upper 40s with lows still dipping down near below freezing. Tomorrow expect highs in the mid 50s with lows in the low 30s. Friday and Saturday reach mid 60s to lower 70s with lows in the 40s.

Recent Wild Weather

On Monday, a snow squall ripped across South Dakota. This system caused serious hazardous conditions as the visibility was dropped to nearly nothing. What is a snow squall and what makes it different from a normal snowstorm? Squalls are mainly different from a snowstorm in that they are very short lived and because they can cause what is known as a flash freeze. This is when temperatures fall at such a rapid rate that roadways are glazed over really quickly. This situation makes for a very treacherous roadway, and makes controlling a vehicle nearly impossible. As this winter storm continues to track across the central Plains, it is bringing with it heavy snow, gusty winds, and blowing snow to southern South Dakota.

Wild Weather this Day in History

This week for your bit of Wild Weather Wednesday this day in history…I am actually able to share my own account of wild weather. On November 1, 2014, just outside of my hometown of Knoxville, Tennessee, the unexpected happened. The Great Smoky Mountains would get an unseasonable dumping of snow just hours after kids had finished up their trick-or-treating. Mt. LeConte would see an impressive 22 inches overnight bringing perhaps one of the prettiest days I’ve ever seen in the mountains. When we heard that snow had fallen overnight, my mom decided that we had to go see this rare sight. We made our way into Cades Cove on what was peak weekend for fall foliage viewing (which is already busy without the added snowfall event), and I will never forget the scene. All of the fall colored trees with their brilliant reds, oranges, and yellows were set on a backdrop of snow capped mountains. The higher into the mountains you climbed the more you would see those fall color trees draped in white. I am so glad that I was able to witness this incredibly rare moment of truly wild weather. Sitting in standstill traffic was more than worth it, and I would do it all over again. This particular storm continued east eventually dumping 6″ of snow in Gilbert, South Carolina.

Personal photos taken in the Great Smoky Mountains 11/1/14

I hope everyone has an amazing rest of the week and can continue to stay warm as a cooler season begins to move in!

Sources: https://news.yahoo.com/watch-snow-squall-drops-visibility-111039970.html https://www.weather.gov/unr/WinterStorm-170124

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Happy Monday! 10/30

Happy Monday! Or maybe not if you hate the cold. We are off to a cold start to this week and the cold air will be gone by the end of the week. Halloween will be feeling like winter outside, if only the warm air stuck around for a few more days! This is upcoming weekend we fall back a hour so we get a hour more of sleep! Let us take a look at the forecast for this cooler and sunny week ahead.

Freeze Warning: In affect from 10pm tonight through 9am Tuesday, due to the temperatures dropping to the lower 20s. That means a hard freeze tonight so bring in or cover those plants and maybe leave the sinks dripping so the pipes do not freeze. Trust me, that is not fun when they freeze.

Overall for this week, we can expect sunny skies everyday, so very dry week. Expect highs around 50 degrees and lows around 28 degrees through Thursday. After Thursday, temperatures warm up. Friday and through the weekend, highs around 65 degrees and lows around 45 degrees. We can expect partly cloudy skies for the weekend. The weather is really stagnate right now, so I wonder when the snow will start?

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Wild Weather Wednesday

Today’s Forecast

Good morning and happy Wednesday! I hope everyone has had an amazing week so far! Today should be another beautiful and warm day with highs in the upper 70s. Gustier winds are possible, but shouldn’t be anything too extreme. As we go into tonight, it will be mostly cloudy with lows in the upper 50s. Tomorrow should be another dry day with temps reaching the upper 70s. Increasing cloudiness is expected as a cold front will be approaching the area early next week. Chances for showers move in Friday and through this weekend with temps gradually decreasing.

Recent Wild Weather

Last Tuesday in Great Falls, Montana, a low pressure system sweeping across the northern plains brought 60+ mph wind gusts into the area. High wind issue alerts were sent out to the local area, and Great Falls reported a peak gust of 62 mph from their local airport weather station. These high winds carried with them large quantities of tumbleweed into residential areas of Great Falls. The tumbleweed was covering sidewalks and yards. There were tumbleweed piles so high that they topped some of the homes, even covering up roofs. There were homes not even visible, almost making it as though they had disappeared. What is tumbleweed? Tumbleweeds begin as little green shrubs referred to as Russian thistle. There are several species that turn into “tumbleweeds”, but Russian thistle is an icon of the American West. When the Russian thistles die they detach from their roots, and become tumbleweeds. High winds can carry these tumbleweeds for miles, and along the way they drop thousands of seeds aiding in the reproduction process.

Wild Weather this Day in History

October 25, 2003 (my birth year)…a fire broke out in Cuyamaca Mountains in California. The fire spread very quickly due to extreme Santa Ana Winds. The fire, later named The Cedar Fire, would eventually spread over 273,256 acres and destory over 2,800 structures. The Cedar Fire remains the largest recorded wildfire in California history. It caused 2 billion dollars in damage and costed the, 27 million dollars to put out! In the process 15 lives were lost in The Cedar Fire.

I hope everyone has an amazing rest of the week and can soak up some of the last warm days we’ll be having this season!

Sources: https://www.fox9.com/news/watch-montana-homes-buried-under-tumbleweed.amp https://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2076476_2076484_2076507,00.html https://www.weather.gov/abr/This_Day_in_Weather_History_Oct_25

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Happy Monday! 10/23

Another warm October Monday here, and a warm week this is shaping up to be. The Hilltoppers football play on Tuesday night at home, and there is a concert before the game. Jordan Davis will be the pregame concert in the lot across from the stadium. Let us take a look at the warm week ahead.

The week ahead will a nice fall week of fall weather with highs every day around 80 degrees and lows around 60 degrees, mostly everyday we can expect partly cloudy skies. It is a pretty boring week when it comes to weather but this does appear to be the last week of 70 degree weather we can expect for a while. For next week, we can expect a colder week with possibly a wet Halloween.

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Wild Weather Wednesday

Today’s Forecast

Good morning and happy Wednesday! Hopefully most of you have enjoyed these cooler fall-like weather days. If you haven’t, you’re in luck. As a warm front moves through later tonight and into tomorrow, temperatures will rise to the upper 60s and lower 70s. Unfortunately, this will bring more rain into our area as well. Before the warm front moves through our area, expect most of today to be sunny with some clouds here and there. As we go into tonight, chances for showers rise, but ultimately remain low. Temps will get up to the lower 70s and fall to the lower 50s. Going into tomorrow and tomorrow night, showers are likely and temps will get up to upper 60s/lower70s and fall down to the lower/mid 50s.

Recent Wild Weather

This week’s wild weather brought us a ring of fire! Well, some of us! This year’s annual solar eclipse was on Saturday, October 14th and began over the Pacific Ocean. It would eventually reach land over Oregon and stretch all the way to Texas in the United States. From there it continued on its path south to Central America and Brazil. Unless you were in the direct path of this year’s annual solar eclipse, you would only get the viewpoint of a partial solar eclipse. The entirety of the event lasted over 3 hours, but the annularity (the maximum point of the eclipse) only lasted for 5 minutes. Where we are located here in Bowling Green I was not able to see the eclipse due to the heavy cloud coverage, nor did I have my solar eclipse glasses with me to protect my eyes even if I had a good view of it. It is imperative to wear protection on your eyes, as prolonged exposure to the sun can cause retinal burns or even blindness. Luckily, my eyewear was back at home with my mom in Knoxville, Tennessee and she was sending me updated pictures as the event occurred. Fun fact: in my hometown of Knoxville, TN, during the annual solar eclipse of 2017 (that we were in the direct path of) the school system that I attended school in closed for the day so we could all enjoy this rare occurrence. That is a really cool experience that I will never forget.

Photo taken of the eclipse above Albuquerque, New Mexico
Photo taken of the eclipse above Knoxville, Tennessee

Wild Weather this Day in History

On October 18, 2007 an EF3 tornado made landfall in Nappanee, Indiana in the late evening hours. It would reach maximum intensity winds estimated at 165mph. The tornado was on the ground for about 2 miles, extending to a maximum width of a half mile as it passed over the city. It caused widespread severe damage to homes and businesses alike along its path. Over 100 structures suffered significant damage or were completely destroyed in Nappanee. The tornado would continue moving northeast of Nappanee, and eventually weaken to EF1/EF0 before lifting. Amazingly enough, only minor injuries were reported from this extremely damaging weather event.

I hope everyone has an amazing rest of the week and can keep dry from all the rain!

Sources: https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2023/10/photos-a-ring-of-fire-eclipse-over-the-americas/675652/ https://www.exploratorium.edu/eclipse/2023-annular-eclipse-guide https://www.weather.gov/iwx/20071018_tornado

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Happy Monday! 10/16

Happy Monday everyone! I hoped you enjoyed your weekend and maybe got to experience the partial eclipse on Saturday. This week is another week of little rain and mostly sunny skies. We are 15 days away from Halloween and it looks like there might be a cold front going through with some rain around that time, so that is something to keep a eye on, let us take a look at the forecast ahead.

Monday Night: Low of 42 degrees with partly cloudy skies.

Tuesday: Partly cloudy skies with a high of 65 degrees. Western Kentucky football plays a away game that evening, not sure why on a Tuesday evening though.

Tuesday Night: Low of 43 degrees with mostly clear skies.

Wednesday: Sunny, with a high of 74 degrees.

Wednesday Night: A cloudy night with a low of 55 degrees.

Thursday: Cloudy with scattered rain showers in the afternoon, high of around 67 degrees.

Thursday Night: Rain showers off and on through the night with cloudy skies otherwise, low of around 52 degreess.

Friday: Partly cloudy with a high of around 65 degrees.

The weekend is looking like to be a nice weekend of sunshine and highs around 65 degrees. Maybe a good weekend for a fall hike, I am thinking of taking a day to walk around Mammoth Cave National Park.

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Wild Weather Wednesday

Today’s Forecast

Good morning and happy Wednesday! I hope everyone has had an amazing week so far! Expect another beautiful day today and tomorrow with highs in the upper 70s and lows in the upper 50s to lower 60s. As a low level trough will start to push its way east by the end of the week, some slight chances for showers arise for Friday and Saturday, but does not look to be much of an issue. As this low moves through, temperatures will drop with highs being in the lower 60s and upper 50s and lows being in the 40s.

Recent Wild Weather

Last Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard said they rescued 12 people who had abandoned a large cargo ship around the U.S. Virgin Islands. There is an active investigation into whether the incident has caused any contamination to the water. The ship was carrying 13,000 gallons of fuel and 250 gallons of lube oil. Passengers aboard the 195-foot ship, named Bonnie G., radioed for help after the engine room began taking on water. They exited the ship using lifeboats and rafts. The incident occurred near St. Thomas, as tropical storm Philippe eventually weakened to a post-tropical cyclone just south of Bermuda. Post-tropical cyclone Philippe had sustained winds of 50mph. Philippe had begun to interact with exiting cold fronts across portions of the Western Atlantic. Those interactions meant that the system was slowly transitioning away from being a tropical cyclone to a severe storm.

Wild Weather this Day in History

Since I just spent a very cold weekend in Chicago with our Meteorology team providing on-site weather support for the Chicago marathon, I thought it was only fitting to honor that with this week’s wild weather in history. In 1906, games 1 and 2 of the Chicago World Series were played while snow flurries filled the atmosphere. The highest temperature they would reach during the first 3 games of the series was a blustery 43 degrees F. Snow would not be seen again in any World Series until 1997. Ultimately, in the 1907 World Series, the Chicago Cubs would come out victorious against the Detroit Tigers winning four games to Detroits zero and one tie in the series.

I hope you have an amazing rest of the week and don’t forget to look out for the partial solar eclipse that you might be able to see this Saturday!

Sources: https://www.stripes.com/branches/coast_guard/2023-10-05/coast-guard-cargo-ship-virgin-islands-11601096.html https://www.weather.gov/abr/This_Day_in_Weather_History_Oct_11#:~:text=1846%3A%20A%20major%20hurricane%2C%20possibly,Lighthouse%20and%20Fort%20Zachary%20Taylor.

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Happy Monday! 10/9

Happy Monday and Columbus Day everyone! I hope you have been enjoying the fall weather, as it appears it is here to stay. Fall and Halloween activities are in full swing! Like Lost River Cave 12th Annual Scarecrow Trail, The Fall Festival at The Foundry, or events at Jackson’s Orchard(their apple slushie is delicious). Also, on October 14th we will be able to witness a 50% solar eclipse, just make sure to wear the proper eye protection. Now let us take a look at the forecast for the week, and if i could describe it in two words: fall weather.

This Week: Expect temperatures to continue to rise over the next few days, before reaching a high of 78 degrees on Thursday and Friday. Lows will be around 48 degrees and the nights will be clear. Tuesday will be sunny before clouds move in Wednesday.

This Upcoming Weekend: A cold front will be moving in this Friday into Friday night, bringing the first rain of the week. On the backside, we can expect some much cooler temperatures with highs around 62 degrees Saturday and Sunday with mostly cloudy skies. With these temperatures I need to find my sweatshirt.

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Wild Weather Wednesday

Today’s Forecast

Good morning and happy Wednesday! I hope everyone has had a great week so far and, for those of you who were on Fall Break, had a great break! Today should be a beautiful day. With a high of 87 and sunny skies, we’ll be seeing some seasonably warmer temps, but that won’t be lasting for too much longer. As a cold front begins to make its way towards our area, chances for rain showers are possible tomorrow and Friday, but should clear out for a sunny day on Saturday. Coming with that cold front will be cooler temps for this weekend with highs in the lower 60s.

Recent Wild Weather

This week New York Governor Kathy Hochul had to declare a state of emergency for New York City, Long Island, and the Hudson Valley. The area became inundated with flood waters. Streets were flooded, cars were being washed away, and even the subway stations filled with water. Brooklyn seemed to be the hardest hit area (with 7 inches of rain being dumped there) and there are many shocking videos of flooded streets, basements, and even airports. There were power outages, school delays, and cancelations. As the rain finally eases up, the cleaning process will begin.

Wild Weather this Day in History

October 4th, 1777, George Washington would lead the American Continental Army into Germantown, Pennsylvania as on-going battles continued into the American Revolutionary War. In the early morning hours, George Washington and his army of men would encounter the British Army being led by Sir William Howe. On the night of October 3rd, Washington divided his army of 8,000 men and 3,000 militiamen into different groups in order to attack the British from multiple directions at dawn. Howe with his village of 9,000 men, although unprepared for this maneuver from Washington, still managed to defeat the Continental Army. This was due to the mass confusion and commotion cause by a very dense early morning fog that moved into the area. The continued darkness, along with the dense fog, caused many generals to become separated from their groups. Men were firing on their own groups and they were running low on ammunition due to the constant exchange of fire. The Continental Army retreated after their repeated assault attempts failed with heavy casualties. In the end, the Americans suffered 152 losses, 521 wounded, and over 400 captured. The British casualties numbered 537 plus 14 captures.

Have an amazing rest of the week and watch out for rain chances as we head to the weekend!

Sources: https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/29/weather/new-york-city-northeast-rain-flood-forecast-climate-friday/index.html https://www.battlefields.org/learn/revolutionary-war/battles/germantown https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Germantown

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Wild Weather Wednesday

Today’s Forecast

Good morning and happy Wednesday! I hope you’ve been enjoying these picture perfect days because we have some storms that will be moving into the area and lingering into Thursday night. The National Weather Service has us under a hazardous weather outlook for the main threats being heavy rain and gusty winds, especially on Thursday. For this morning, expect a 40% chance for showers. The high for today is in the mid-to-upper 80s with a low in the mid 60s. As we go into tonight, chances for rain and storms ramp up. Rainfall amounts fall between a tenth and quarter of an inch. Going into tomorrow, chances for showers and thunderstorms continue throughout the day, which could be an issue for the WKU vs. MTSU football game in the evening. The high for tomorrow is in the lower 80s with a low in the lower 60s. Rainfall amounts through Thursday night will be around a quarter and half an inch. Luckily, by Friday morning this system should be moved out and it will be mostly sunny with a high near 85.

Recent Wild Weather

Due to extremely low flows on the Mississippi River being caused by recent drought conditions, large amounts of saltwater has pushed its way upstream from the Gulf of Mexico. In just a short amount of time, it is already doing its damage by sullying the water supplies in south Plaquemines Parish. There is a growing concern about the ways in which the salt water could harm the water supplies all across the state of Louisiana. The saltwater intrusion has already advanced approximately 70 miles up the river from the Gulf of Mexico, and is projected to reach Belle Chasse in southern New Orleans by mid-October. In July, the Army Corps constructed an underwater sill, meant to block the saltwater flow. However, it was recently overtopped, prompting engineers to work on increasing its height by 25 feet. The solution is not expected to hold back the saltwater for an extended period of time and they are working together to find better solutions to solve these issues.

Wild Weather this Day in History

On September 27, 1983, in the evening hours, lightning struck a field of grass, and set it ablaze in the northwest region of Reliance, South Dakota. At its peak , the fire stretched 4 miles wide by 10 miles long. It burned up over 25,000 acres of land. At this time of year when we oftentimes see drier climates and hotter temperatures, the perfect landscape is created for a weather event like this one to occur. Lightning has a very high voltage, and if it strikes a very dry surface (like this field of grass) it will heat it up very quickly.

I hope you have an amazing rest of the week and stay safe as these storms roll through parts of the area!

Sources: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/new-orleans-drinking-water-threatened-saltwater-intrusion-looms-mississippi-river-drought/ https://www.weather.gov/abr/This_Day_in_Weather_History_Sep_27

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