Another Snow Storm?

While certainly not as significant as last weekends storm, another snow storm appears to be on the horizon. Before I get to that, we have a small disturbance moving over the area right now. It has been gathering a little bit of strength over the last couple of hours, and the radar echoes have been increasing over and just to the west of the city. An area of snow should overspread the city in the next one to two hours. I would expect anywhere from a dusting to an inch and a half from this little event. A few pockets of moderate snow have developed, and there may be a few localized areas that receive up to two inches. Snow forecast map:


Now, onto this next storm. It is looking much stronger than the current system. It will have more moisture to work with, and the temps will be colder than for the current system. It will also be colder than for the last storm, so we shouldn't have to worry about sleet cutting into the totals. This storm has the potential to produce several inches of snow for somebody. The exact track is not certain yet, so I will not be posting any snow accumulations yet. I will start looking at that tomorrow.

Storm Rcap

Here is a belated recap of the snow storm from last weekend, per the NWS.

A large winter storm affected much of the central United States, on most appropriately the first day of winter! The first affects of this winter storm reached the lower Missouri River valley early in the day on the 22nd, when rain, sleet, and freezing rain lifted northward over the area. However, this mixed bag of precipitation quickly transitioned to snow in areas along the I-35 corridor in Kansas and Missouri. Heavy snow was often observed with many rumbles of thunder heard throughout the event. By the evening hours of the 22nd, locations from Wichita northeastward through Topeka, Leavenworth, St. Joseph, Gallatin, Trenton, and Unionville received upwards of 6-9 inches of snowfall! Further to the south and east, a tight snowfall gradient formed, with locations across the Kansas City metropolitan area receiving anywhere from 2-4 inches. Further to the east southeast, freezing rain, sleet, and rain lasted slightly longer through the day, with areas from Clinton to Marshall, and Boonville only receiving 1-3 inches of sleet and snow accumulations.

Here is a rough estimate of the storm totals:

WINTER STORM WARNING

The National Weather Service has placed the Kansas City Metro under a winter storm warning. A significant snow storm is expected this afternoon. An area of sleet is currently affecting the southern side of the metro, but it should switch over to snow by 2pm. After that, heavy snow is expected, with possible thundersnow. Snow rates could approach 2 inches an hour.

Wild Weather Wrap Up, Look Ahead

In the time since my last blog, we have had four fairly significant storms. The first, which occurred at the end of November, broke the long stretch of dry, boring weather, and brought us a quarter to half inch of rain. The storm had been forecast to bring some freezing rain, but warm air surged north and brought the temperatures to to 66 by midnight. A few days later, on December 5th, cold arctic air blew in and a "surprise" snow storm brought us our first one inch of snow, with most areas receiving one to three inches of snow.

The next, was an extremely drawn out storm, two storms really, spanning five days. First, it brought a quick dose of freezing rain and drizzle on the morning of December 8th, quickly icing up the roads and causing several major accidents. The storm then produced occasional periods of freezing drizzle and sleet until the main event arrived on December 10th. Freezing rain moved into the area in the evening and ice rapidly began to build up on trees and power lines. Just as the KC metro was about to have a major ice storm, slightly warmer air filtered into the region. Temperatures rose to right around 32°, and very little icing occurred afterward. However, parts of northern Missouri and Kansas were not as lucky, where significant icing occurred and some areas remain without power. Map:


Our latest storm produced all snow across eastern Kansas and Western Missouri. The snow started falling around midnight of December 14th, and continued into the evening hours of the 15th. Dry air that got drawn into the storm helped to cut snow totals by several inches in an area from Laurence, Kansas, to Chillicothe, Missouri, Most parts of the city received between one and fours inches of snow. Areas off to the northwest and the southeast received a bit more, with up to six inches reported in some areas. Here is a map of the storm totals.


Now, finally, a look at the forecast for this upcoming week. We will finally be getting a short break from the wild weather. Skys should be mostly sunny for Monday and Tuesday, with much warmer temperatures than we have had for a couple of weeks. In fact, temperatures could reach as high as 50 by Tuesday. Then a weak system will move through Wednesday into Thursday, with a slight chance for showers or drizzle. Then, after a quick setback on Thursday, temperatures warm back to near 50° on Friday, ahead of our next system on Saturday. It is too far away right now to speculate what kind of impacts the storm will have on our region, so stay tuned as the storm approaches over the next several days.