*Update @ 7:39pm... Light rain is falling, fog is thick, and the temperature is 40.1F (4.5C). My total rain/melted sleet here in the upper part of town is now 1.2" (3cm) -- more than half of that happened between 4:30 and 6:30pm.
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Tuesday's stats:
Low temp: 37.2F (2.9C) -- 3:45am
High temp: 47.3F (8.5C) -- just after midnight
Rain/melted sleet: 1.20" (3cm) -- as of 7:30pm
There's been some thick fog in the area this evening, following about an hour of moderate to heavy rain and sleet, which left about a half inch of slushy ice on the streets in the main market of McLeod. Since temperatures remain a few degrees above freezing, what's left of the sleet has already been sliding off rooftops and melting. Up until that blast of heavier precipitation late this afternoon/early evening, today's rain and sleet showers had been rather brief and sporadic, but fairly regular throughout the day.
The culprit for this active weather to close out 2013 is an area of low pressure in the upper-atmosphere which is right on top of the Swat Valley in northern Pakistan this evening. It has drawn a very impressive amount of moisture northward ahead of it, which has teamed together with the upper-level energy and very cold air aloft to produce very strong and gusty winds along with areas of showers and thundershowers all along the Himalayan ranges of northern India since very early this morning. The center of the storm system itself has been weakening steadily since late last night as it lifts north-northeastward toward the northwestern border of Kashmir, but by then the wheels were already in motion and the moisture had already been introduced into the equation.
It's always unnerving to wait and see where the snow line will end up here along the front slopes of the Dhauladhars, but so far, it has remained above the immediate McLeod area --apart from our bouts of sleet and ice pellets. We're still not out of the woods tonight, as periods of showers should continue on and off -- but I tend to think there will be enough subtle warming in the mid- and upper-levels to keep us safe from significant snow accumulation. That may not be the case just a few hundred meters above.
Improvement is expected tomorrow... but we can't rule out some scattered rain showers in the midst of partially clearing skies. Further ahead... major warming is still expected on Thursday and Friday, taking temps above normal for the first few days of January.
HAPPY NEW YEAR (in spite of the meteorological nastiness)!
CURRENT FORECAST details can be found on the tab at the top of the page.
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Tuesday's stats:
Low temp: 37.2F (2.9C) -- 3:45am
High temp: 47.3F (8.5C) -- just after midnight
Rain/melted sleet: 1.20" (3cm) -- as of 7:30pm
There's been some thick fog in the area this evening, following about an hour of moderate to heavy rain and sleet, which left about a half inch of slushy ice on the streets in the main market of McLeod. Since temperatures remain a few degrees above freezing, what's left of the sleet has already been sliding off rooftops and melting. Up until that blast of heavier precipitation late this afternoon/early evening, today's rain and sleet showers had been rather brief and sporadic, but fairly regular throughout the day.
The culprit for this active weather to close out 2013 is an area of low pressure in the upper-atmosphere which is right on top of the Swat Valley in northern Pakistan this evening. It has drawn a very impressive amount of moisture northward ahead of it, which has teamed together with the upper-level energy and very cold air aloft to produce very strong and gusty winds along with areas of showers and thundershowers all along the Himalayan ranges of northern India since very early this morning. The center of the storm system itself has been weakening steadily since late last night as it lifts north-northeastward toward the northwestern border of Kashmir, but by then the wheels were already in motion and the moisture had already been introduced into the equation.
It's always unnerving to wait and see where the snow line will end up here along the front slopes of the Dhauladhars, but so far, it has remained above the immediate McLeod area --apart from our bouts of sleet and ice pellets. We're still not out of the woods tonight, as periods of showers should continue on and off -- but I tend to think there will be enough subtle warming in the mid- and upper-levels to keep us safe from significant snow accumulation. That may not be the case just a few hundred meters above.
Improvement is expected tomorrow... but we can't rule out some scattered rain showers in the midst of partially clearing skies. Further ahead... major warming is still expected on Thursday and Friday, taking temps above normal for the first few days of January.
HAPPY NEW YEAR (in spite of the meteorological nastiness)!
CURRENT FORECAST details can be found on the tab at the top of the page.
