When I woke up this morning I noticed there was a new white coating of snow over everything.  But in the still of the air I stopped and appreciated the beauty of the snow on some of the trees and bushes.  Then reality hit me and I had to get ready for work
This storm has been one we’ve been watching for several days.  The storm track and heaviest snow band shifted farther south early Tuesday so we had to update the forecast.  We knew the snow will be heavy and wet or basically have a high water content.  Here’s a look at some of the snowfall totals across the area.

Some locations picked up around 9-10 inches of snowfall!  Bellefountaine picked up 10 inches but that was the highest total I have seen so far.

I mentioned earlier about how it was so pretty to see the snow on the trees and bushes.  We had so many wonderful photos that you sent in via our report!t feature.  We appreciate these photos and reports because we can’t get to every corner of the Miami Valley but with your help we can show what conditions are like.

Here are a few of the MANY photos we received.

Union from @solid8fate                                                               Blake Logan Miamisburg – tree down!

Mike Ullery Eldean Covered Bridge                               Jeannie   Kitchen Miami Township

Kathy Shafer Kettering

Enjoy the latest winter wallop!

Tara
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I thought I had forgotten what it looked like and almost didn’t believe my eyes when I finally saw the sun today!  It only made an appearance though a few breaks in the clouds but the song “Here comes the sun…do do do do…Here comes the sun” instantly popped in my head.  When I got to work I was sure to check out local cameras and found some sun in Piqua.

I love those rays I had an interesting question posted to my facebook page.  A friend wrote “Is there a name for this weather pattern that has bringing us clouds and a few snowflakes for the last several days?”  Great question!  Can I just call it annoying?    There is no specific weather pattern or storm name for the flakes we’ve been seeing in the sky.  I can however give you an idea of what has been happening the last couple of days.  To do that we need to take a trip to the upper levels of the atmosphere – where the jet stream or storm track lives.

A large trough or dip in the jet stream is responsible for our chilly temperatures, cloudy skies and the flakes we’ve been seeing in the sky.  The northerly flow has been bringing little spokes of energy through the Miami Valley which has been bringing those on and off flurries through the area.

The good news is this pattern is beginning to break.  We’ll see the flurries come to an end later tonight and clouds begin to break.  One of the reasons this pattern is going to break is because of a storm system that will kick current tough away from us.

Now this storm system is going to produce an interesting forecast for the Great Lakes.  Some moderate snow is going to fall near the Chicago area while a warmer layer of air will move over the Miami Valley which means we’re going to see a wintry mix. But first we are going to see some sunshine for Monday as a weak area of high pressure swings through Ohio.

Clouds will quickly increase for the afternoon.  Most of Monday will be dry but after 10pm the leading edge of the precipitation will begin to head for the area.

Throughout Monday night and into most of Tuesday warmer air will push northward which means we’ll see a rain/snow/sleet/freezing rain mix across the Dayton area.  Some rain will mix in our southern counties while areas well north of Dayton may stay all snow.

Colder air finally moves into the region by late Tuesday which means the entire area while change over to snow.

Here’s my thinking and how it will impact the area.

This may change as the storm gets a little closer. There are a few things that still need to be watched – like the storm track and how much warm air will move northward.  It looks like there may be some snowfall that may stick to the ground late Tuesday night and early Wednesday.    Meteorologist Jamie Jarosik will have the latest Monday morning and will guide you through Tuesday morning’s commute.

Tara
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March 2, 2012 was a day many of us around the Miami Valley and southern Ohio will never forget.   The atmosphere was charged and ready and those in the weather forecast business knew this was going to be a massive tornado outbreak.

The Storm Prediction Center (SPC) issued a rare high risk that included Cincinnati and included parts of the Miami Valley.  Usually this area doesn’t see very moderate risks of severe weather let alone a high risk.  Here’s what the map looked like one year ago.

Storm started to break out and the a tornado watch was soon issued.  However this was no ordinary tornado watch – this was a PDS or “particularly dangerous situation” The hope is with this wording everyone would heed any tornado warnings that would be issued.

Now most of the Miami Valley including the Dayton area was spared of major severe weather.  There were a few hail reports in Shelby, Darke and Wayne Counties but the strongest storms occurred to our south.  Here’s a map of the storm reports.  The green dots are hail reports, blue is wind damage and red are tornado reports.

The National Weather Service in Wilmington was very busy that day and I want to thank them for their efforts during this severe weather event.  They did a fantastic job watching the radar, issuing warnings and relaying information onto the broadcast meteorologists.  This was the largest severe weather event since the NWS Wilmington office was founded in 1994.  There were 12 tornadoes that touched down in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky.  Click here to see a list of those tornadoes and how strong they were.

Not only did Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky see tornadoes but twisters touched down in several states.  Here is a map from the Storm Prediction Center of all the reports that day.  Notice there are several red dots…those are all tornado reports.

This is the same system that brought a violent tornado to Henryville, IN.

Here’s a link to a news story right after the storms hit.
Click here to see photos of the damage.

The National Weather Service in Wilmington put together a video looking back at that day.  If you want to see a link please click here.

We don’t have any severe storms heading this way this week.  We’re still going to be in a winter weather pattern through the first part of the week.

Tara
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I promised last night we would see sunshine this weekend and here it is!  I know temperatures were still in the 30′s however it just felt better with the sunshine.  Here’s what it looked like in Piqua.

As I mentioned temperatures stayed in the 30′s today but it was even chillier north and west of Dayton.

Take a look at this next photo which is the satellite image.  Notice the cooler temperatures had much more cloud cover today.

Tonight we’ll see mostly clear skies as high pressure builds across the Miami Valley.  Temperatures will drop into the 20′s once again.  Sunday will start out chilly but sunny and that sunshine will continue for the rest of the day.

Now another storm system will be heading this way for early next week.  Right now it looks like most of the day Monday will be dry.  We’ll start off sunny but clouds will increase throughout the afternoon.

Temperatures will rise into the middle 40′s and clouds will become thicker throughout the day.  Precipitation starts to develop well to the west of Dayton which will continue to move eastward throughout the evening.

The rain will begin in the western half of the area first sometime after 10pm and will spread throughout the entire area by Tuesday morning.  By Tuesday afternoon colder air filters into the area and the rain changes over to some snow.   Be sure to stay tuned to Stormteam 2 we’ll have the latest forecast and update you if conditions change.

Tara
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I’ve been watching the storm that brought us the icy start Friday for several days now.  In fact in one of the weather blogs I wrote last Saturday I mentioned how it would hit the area and could bring us a rain/snow mix.   Some of the northern areas of the Miami Valley picked up a little snow while other parts had some ice accumulation.

Here’s what it looked like in Piqua earlier Friday.  You can see some sleet and the freezing rain there.  By the afternoon most of it melted.

We had some GREAT photos sent to our report!t feature at wdtn.com

Aja Haywood

Jackie Luster Beavercreek – had some problems when she rolled down her window this morning!

So how does freezing rain form?  Precipitation always starts off as snow and depending on the temperature of the air determines whether the snow stays as snow or melts and falls as rain.  Unless you have freezing rain.  So what happened Thursday night and Friday morning was a warm layer of air melted the snow as it fell – however there was a colder layer near the surface.  This allowed the rain drops to cool below freezing but still remain in the liquid state.  (this is called supercooled water droplets) So when the raindrops hit any surface like a road or car it instantly froze.  Here’s a graphic to explain the warmer and colder air.

Now we’re going to see improving weather conditions for the rest of the weekend.  Look for mainly cloudy skies tonight but they’ll start to break up a little overnight toward tomorrow morning.

By the afternoon we’ll see a good deal of sunshine but still will stay in the upper 30′s.  High pressure moves into the area for Sunday and that means sunshine and warmer temperatures.

By Monday we have another storm on its way here.  Right now it looks like we’ll see clouds increase throughout the day and then some rain will work through the area late Monday which could change over to snow on Tuesday.

It appears we’re not done with winter just yet – after all we still have one more week of February left.

Tara
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We’ve seen lots of things falling throughout the sky this weekend, snowflakes, snow pellets and meteors.  If you haven’t seen the incredible video of the meteor falling in Russia click here to see several videos.  Now this is an astronomy event however I felt like because I am a meteorologist I have been asked several questions about this event.  The word meteorology is Greek in origin meteōron which means something aloft or high in the sky.  Which is where our weather happens ie. clouds, rain, snow etc.

There are also lots of terms being said with this meteor falling from the sky.  There’s meteoroid, meteor and meteorite.  Meteoroid is the large piece of rock that was in space.  Meteor is what created the streak of light when it was falling through the atmosphere.  Meteorites are the pieces that didn’t burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere and hit the ground.

Now we have a few falling objects from the sky this evening – that is snow flurries.  Those flurries will be coming to an end later tonight.  Skies become partly cloudy and we dip into the lower teens tonight.

By early Sunday morning we’ll begin to see some sunshine however temperatures will be cold and the wind chilly values or feels like temperatures will be around zero.  So make sure you’re bundled up!

The chilly air mass sticks around for Sunday with highs only in the middle to upper 20′s.  However we will see a good deal of sunshine.

The weather pattern begins to change for Monday.  If you have President’s Day off you’ll notice a big difference in temperatures.  A strong storm system to our west pushes warm air northward on the heels of breezy southerly winds.  We’ll see temperatures climb into the upper 40′s near 50 degrees for Monday.

Clouds begin to increase throughout the day as the cold front gets closer to us.  While most of the day will be dry there’s a chance for rain later in the evening and into the overnight hours.

After the front moves through our temperatures return to more typical readings for this time of year.

I’ve been watching a large storm system that is still out in the Pacific Ocean.  This one will move into the Great Lakes and may provide some significant snow by late Thursday and Friday of next week.  While it’s still several days away it’s been getting a lot of chatter on social media so I wanted to bring it up.  The way things look right now for the Miami Valley is that we’ll be on the warmer side of things and may see a rain/snow mix.  However there are several different solutions as  to where this low pressure will actually track.  So stay tuned…

Tara
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Many colleagues of mine knew that the blizzard in the Northeast would be big but seeing the photos of four and five foot snow drifts is amazing.  Here are some of the impressive snowfall totals – and yes 30 inches is correct! A few viewers here in the Miami Valley have family and friends out east and have sent some pictures via our reportit feature.

Mike Giannott – This is on Long Island, NY, in Suffolk County where vehicles were abandoned last night because it was so bad. From 24 to over 30 inches have been reported on Long Island.

Tamantha Massey  Pictures my boss sent from his residence in Hartford CT this morning.

Susan Cervone -  This is the snowfall by this morning in Kings Park, NY.  Please note, the bump in the top left corner under the tree branches is a car.

I have also found a neat time lapse video that you can see by clicking here.  If you want to see some more photos from the blizzard you can click here to take a look at our photo gallery.

While the Northeast is digging out – another storm is developing out west and will produce blizzard conditions for the northern and central plains.

Right now the system is just taking shape and producing some snow in Colorado. It will track northward and bring snow and strong winds to the plains.  For us we’ll be on the warmer side of this storm which means we’ll see mainly rain.

Most of Sunday will be dry with just some clouds increasing – however rain develops out west and moves eastward for the evening.

By Monday we may see a few early morning showers otherwise clouds decrease for the afternoon.

Enjoy the weekend!

Tara

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I feel like sometimes I am a broken record – light snow showers, cloudy, light snow showers, cloudy.  Well that’s what we’re going to see for the next two days as two weak clipper systems head toward the Miami Valley.

Right now we have a few light flurries across the area but those will come to an end tonight.  Skies will remain mostly cloudy.  However a weak bubble of high pressure is nearby so there’s a few spots where the clouds will think out a bit.  Here’s a look at the 6pm satellite image and where our next system is coming from.

We’ll start off with clouds on Monday morning and a chance of snow especially north of Dayton.  The light snow pushes throughout the entire area for the afternoon.

As far as accumulations go – it looks like most of us will see about an inch.  Areas north of Dayton may pick up 1.5 to 2 inches.

There’s another storm system on this one’s heels.  Another quick clipper will head this way for Tuesday bringing us another chance for a few flurries.

The best chance for snow will be later in the afternoon.  Again accumulations will be on the lighter side.

After these two system push through we’ll see some sunshine!  Yay!  I’m excited and I hope you are too.  With that sunshine temperatures rise as well for next weekend.

Make it a great week!
Tara
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We saw some snow this morning, we’ll see some more tomorrow and Monday as well.  What did that Groundhog say about an early spring?  We’ll not here and not just yet.  We still have more winter to get through first.

Here’s a look at the snowfall from around the Miami Valley today.

We may see a few more flurries tonight but I’m not expecting any large accumulations.  Less than an inch is likely as the snow now in Northern Indiana rotates through our area.

We do have a couple more chances for snow through Tuesday morning.

The snow on Sunday will be scattered in nature and fairly light. Here’s how it looks on our futuretrac forecast.

Another stronger clipper system comes our way by Monday.  This one could bring us a better chance for some accumulating snow.  It looks like it will still be to our west by early Monday morning but will bring us some snow for the lunch hour.

For those of you who like the winter weather and enjoy winter sports it looks like this year is much better than last year! Stay safe!

Tara

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We’re going to be in an unsettled weather pattern across the Miami Valley for the next few days.  I’ve got it all in the 7day – rain, snow, warm, cold – I think I should be able to make everyone happy

First off tonight we have to deal with some light freezing rain.  We do have aFreezing Rain Advisoryfor Mercer, Auglaize, Logan and Shelby counties until 1am.  These areas will see temperatures right around freezing and may pick up less than a tenth of an inch of ice accumulation.

So why do we have freezing rain in the forecast?  Freezing rain usually forms ahead of a warm front (we have one heading toward the Miami Valley) .  Imagine a vertical layer of the atmosphere – high in the atmosphere it’s cold and the precipitation falls as snow – however as it falls it melts as temperatures are above freezing.  Now right before the rain drops hit the ground they encounter another layer of cold air below freezing.  This doesn’t turn the drops back into snow – instead it turns them into supercooled droplets.  When I was teaching a climate and weather class a few years ago in order to help the students remember the term I said “The drops are so cool – they’re supercool.”  Meaning the droplets are below freezing but maintain their liquid form.  So whenever these “supercooled” water droplets hit a solid surface like a roadway, car, tree branch etc. they instantly freeze.  Hence the name freezing rain.

Now parts of the Miami Valley are only going to see a few hours of this freezing rain and it will be on the light side.  Here’s a look at our Futuretrac forecast -

You can see by around 10-11pm most of the freezing rain will change into rain because temperatures will continue to rise overnight.  In fact once we get through tonight temperatures are going to be the main weather story for the first half of the work week.

Highs will soar well above average for the next few days.   Take a look at the departure from normal on Tuesday!

All of this warm air is ahead of a strong cold front that will eventually move through on Wednesday.  Until then we’ll see warmer temperatures, breezy winds, lots of clouds and scattered showers.

Look for a good chance of rain on Wednesday early – then the cold air moves into the area and the rain changes over to snow. Yep back to winter we go

Tara
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We have an interesting weather pattern taking shape over the next seven days.  There’s light freezing rain, rain, warmer temperatures, colder temperatures and snow.  Hopefully this means I can make sure everyone is happy this week

First this weekend:

Low pressure is going to move northward tomorrow and by the evening a rain and freezing rain mix will move into Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Ohio.  Right now there are no winter weather warnings or advisories for the Miami Valley  – however there are just to our west.

As the precipitation gets here we’ll see a short duration of a light freezing rain.  Temperatures will begin to rise quickly overnight and the precipitation will change over to all rain by late Sunday night.

Here’s a look at Futuretrac and what we can expect for this event.

As you can see we’ll start off Sunday morning with mainly cloudy skies.  The clouds thicken but we’re still dry by lunchtime.  Around 5pm is when some of the light freezing rain moves into the area.  We’ll see that for a few hours before it changes over to all rain later Sunday evening

Once this system moves north of the area we’re going to be in a mild pattern until late Wednesday.

Highs will be well above the normal for this time of year.  We’ll likely see readings in the upper 50′s on Tuesday.

But remember what goes up must come down.  So yes this warm up will be brief.  Temperatures will tumble for the end of next week and we’ll return to normal winter weather.

Tara
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The cold front has moved through and temperatures have dropped today but they’ll fall even farther for Monday and Tuesday.  Take a look at temperatures throughout the day.  Our high was actually recorded shortly after midnight so even though the almanac page says 45 it wasn’t even close to that this afternoon.

The cold air will really be the story throughout the next couple of days.  Already we’re feeling the change with temperatures more than 20 degrees cooler than yesterday.

We’ll see a few flurries as a another weak disturbance drops through on Monday morning.  I’m not expecting any accumulation but we’ll definitely see a good deal of clouds throughout the day on Monday as well.

Of course the big weather story the next few days will be the cold air.  This is something that many of us will have to take precautions as well.  The air temperature will be so cold that any type of wind will create wind chill values below zero.

Here’s a look at Monday afternoon temperatures.  Many of us around the Miami Valley will stay in the upper teens and will struggle to get to 20.

Monday night and early Tuesday morning will be a cold one.  Temperatures will fall into the single digits and wind chill values will be below zero as the kids head to the bus stop Tuesday morning.

The mercury doesn’t move very much for the afternoon on Tuesday.  Highs stay in the lower teens.

Stay warm and be sure to bundle up when you’re outside!  Those wind chills will make it feel much colder!  Temperatures do moderate a little for the end of the week.

Tara
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Hopefully you got out and enjoyed the mild and sunny day!  Highs today were well above average.  No records but the gusty winds made it feel a little cooler.  Here’s the official stats from today:

Of course what goes up must come down – hence the “roller coaster” title in this blog.  A large arctic air mass is heading straight for the Miami Valley.   There’s evidence of this cold air already off to our north and west.  Here’s a look at the temperatures and 24 hour temperature change as of 5pm Saturday.

As you can see the arctic air is right now in North Dakota and will eventually slide this way.  Temperatures will fall on Sunday as the cold front moves through and winds switch direction.  But the big surge of colder air comes in Monday and Tuesday.

The cold air sticks around through Wednesday.  Daytime highs will be in the teens with morning lows in the single digits.  When kids head back to school on Tuesday morning they’re going to need to be dressed in full winter gear!

When the cold front first moves through on Sunday we’re not going to see any snow.  The main thing the front will bring are a few clouds and a very dramatic wind shift.

Clouds increase late Sunday night and will stick around for most of Monday.  There’s also a slight chance for a few flurries on Monday morning.  It doesn’t look like we’ll see a significant amount of snow.

Have a wonderful weekend and welcome back winter!

Tara
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It was so great to see the sunshine today!  Keep the sunglasses handy for Saturday because the sun will be out yet again.  However winds will be pretty gusty at times at 15 to as much as 25 miles per hour out of the southwest.  Those gusty winds will help temperatures to soar into the middle forties which is about ten degrees above normal for this time of year.

Temperatures take a tumble as a cold air mass works across the northern half of the United States.  It finally reaches the Miami Valley beginning on Sunday but it really takes over Monday and Tuesday.

Highs on Sunday will be in the upper 20′s but the cold air mass really takes over on Monday and Tuesday with highs only in the teens and lows in the single digits.

Again it will be breezy Saturday with winds out of the southwest but winds turn to northwest on Sunday which means temperatures fall.

Have a wonderful weekend!!

Tara
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So I went on vacation to visit my family last weekend and when I left there were several inches of snow on the ground.  Now that I am back the snow is gone and we’re breaking record highs.  Of course remember what goes up must come down.  Don’t worry winter like temperatures will be here soon.

Friday we broke a record high but today we were several degrees off.  However we’re still well above normal.

Yeah these numbers you usually don’t see in January.  There’s going to be some big changes.  The first one will be heavy rain then falling temperatures.  First the rain:

There is a Flood Watch in effect for the central and northern half of the Miami Valley until Sunday afternoon.  We already have several swollen rivers due to the recent snow melt and now we’re going to see some heavy rain.  This will make for some high water.

The heaviest rain looks like it will stay to our west near Indiana – however we will still see a significant amount.  Look for the rain to begin later tonight.  It will start off light but then pick up right around daybreak.

There may be a small lull by the noon hour Sunday but another round of heavier rain moves northward for the afternoon.

Rainfall amounts will vary but generally we’ll see about 1-1.5″ of rainfall out of this system.

Once the rain moves out late Sunday we return to “normal.”  Which means temperatures fall right back into the 30′s.

Tara
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We’ve made it through another year and it looks like we’re going to start 2013 on a chilly note.   My main concern the next couple of nights will be temperatures falling into the teens.  If kids are heading back to school and standing at the bus stop they’ll need to be bundled up in full winter weather gear.  With temperatures in the lower teens wind chill factors will be in the single digits.

The clouds that have been with us all day will soon break up later tonight.  The cold air mass and the clear skies will be perfect for temperatures to drop fast.

High pressure is going to take over our weather pattern for the next 24 hours.  This means clear skies but also chilly temperatures.

Even with a lot of sunshine on Wednesday highs will stay in the middle 20′s which is about ten degrees below normal.  We’re in store for another clear and cold night on Wednesday with lows once again in the teens.

A weak cold front will move through the area on Thursday.  This will increase our clouds and bring us a very slight chance for a few flurries.

It doesn’t look like we’ll see a lot of snow but this year compared to last year not only do we see more snow on the ground so does much of the country.

Dayton has already picked up a foot of snow this winter which is about six inches above normal.  Last year we only had nine inches of snow for the season so we’re already well above last years marks.

As for the country many people are seeing white this January compared with last year.  Take a look at the snow depth around the country this year.  You can see it stretches farther south than it did in 2012.

January 2013                                                                                        January 2012

Looks like many people are enjoying skiing and winter activities!  Have a wonderful 2013!!

Tara
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It was so great to see the sunshine across the Miami Valley today.  Even though temperatures were only in the middle 20′s and we had a bit of a breeze it felt a little better with the sun shining.  Did you notice it was a bit bright outside?

It might have been because we haven’t seen a mostly sunny day in a long time but it also has to do with our fresh snow cover.  Snow has a high albedo.  Albedo is the amount of solar energy reflected back to space.   For example if you were to stand on a black top surface in the summer you wouldn’t be able to stand on it very long because it’s hot!  That’s because it has a low albedo and doesn’t reflect the sun’s energy but rather absorbs it.  Snow on the other hand has the opposite effect.  It has a high albedo and reflects a lot of the sun’s energy back into space and makes itverybright for us.  Hopefully you were able to find your sunglasses.

The mostly sunny sky also gave us a great view of the current snow cover across the Midwest.  I was able to copy this image from the visible satellite image from earlier today.  The area I highlighted in red is not cloud cover but rather the snow pack.

With the bright sunny day many people got out and enjoyed the new snow.  Several of you sent in photos via our reportit site and we appreciate it!  Here are a few pictures – looks like a lot of snowmen were made!

Ernie Muller Beavercreek                                                    Jackie-Boyd-Troy

Mike Weaver Bath Township                                          Rocky Davis

I do need to make a correction to yesterday’s blog.  The National Weather Service said yesterday that we had a daily record snowfall – this is NOT correct.  Dayton did NOT set a daily snowfall record but we’re still above the snowfall we had last year.

If you want some more snow I have some good news for you.  A cold front moves through on Monday afternoon bringing us the chance for more snow.  It looks like the clouds thicken throughout the day on Monday with the snow beginning around 2 or 3 in the afternoon.

The snow continues through early Tuesday morning.  Roads are going to be a bit slick with 1-2 inches likely.  Winds will also be a bit breezy so on some of those rural roads you may see some blowing and drifting snow.  Be careful!

Enjoy the last two days of 2012!
Tara
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Apparently we are making up for last years lack of snow.  Today we had a record snowfall of 2.2 inches which puts us at 10.6 inches for December.  After our big storm Wednesday and our snowfall this morning we’ve already seen more snow than we did last year.

This morning accumulations varied with a few spots in Mercer county picking up five additional inches while most locations saw about 2 to 3 inches.  Here’s a look at Live Doppler 2HD’s snowfall accumulation.  Official National Weather Service amounts can be found by clicking here.

The light snow fell mostly during the early morning hours when many people weren’t on the roads making it a bit easier and faster to clean up.  Many of you sent us some great pictures via our reportit feature at wdtn.com and here are a few of the pretty scenes.

Robert Ogan, West Carrollton

R Lawson, Centerville

Thank you for the pictures and please keep sending them in!  We’ll use them on the air and in our weather blogs.  Don’t forget to put your name and location when sending in photos.

We’ll see a few flurries tonight but little to no accumulation is expected.  Clouds will stick around however it’s going to be cold tonight with lows in the teens.

On Sunday it will be dry but chilly.  We’ll finally see some sunshine too as an area of high pressure nudges northward.

Clouds begin to increase ahead of our next storm system.  This one will bring us another chance for some light snow.  By early Monday morning we’ll see some cloud cover with the snow staying off to our west.

By the afternoon Monday the snow will be flying and it looks like we’ll see another 1 to 2 inches across the area.

The snowfall amounts may need to be tweaked as we get closer to the event.  So please be sure to check back here and on wdtn.com.

Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy the snow!
Tara
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Winter officially began at 6:12 am eastern and old made winter made an appearance with snow, strong winds and bitter wind chills.  We still have a Winter Weather Advisory in effect until 10 p.m. for all of the Miami Valley.

The snow, strong winds and cold are all a result of the strong winter storm that brought blizzard conditions to Iowa and Wisconsin.  The strong area of low pressure is producing gusty winds at times approaching 50 m.p.h.  Here are some of the wind gusts we’ve already seen.

The winds are doing two things to make matters worse.  First off they are blowing and drifting the snow that is falling across the area.  This is lowering visibility and making for a difficult drive.   Second the strong winds are making the bitterly cold temperatures feel worse on your exposed skim.  Be sure to dress for wind chill values in the teens.  The winds winds will stay sustained between 20 and 30 m.p.h. with gusts near 45 and 50 until late tonight and early tomorrow morning.

The snow showers continue through the evening but will begin to taper off by the end of the night.   Total snowfall accumulations will be about 1-2 inches with a few spots picking up three inches north of I-70.

An area of high pressure begins to build across the area on Saturday which means we’ll see some sunshine for much of the weekend.

Have a wonderful weekend and enjoy the winter weather
Tara
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We have been talking about this storm system for several days now and here it is.  Parts of Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin are under Blizzard Warnings right now and will see about a foot of snow.  There’s even been reports ofthundersnow! While we are not going to see heavy snowfall amounts we are going to see dramatic changes in our weather conditions later tonight and tomorrow.

Here’s a look at the bigger picture – look at all the warnings and advisories from this strong storm system!

For us we do have a Winter Weather Advisory that goes into effect Thursday 7pm until Friday at 10pm.  While we may not see the heavy snow the central part of the country will see we face several other winter hazards.  The bitter cold temperatures, wind gusts near 45 mph, and scattered snow showers.

For much of the day today we’ll see rain which may be heavy at times.  A rumble of thunder or flash of lightning is not out of the question today.  The rain will last through the lunch hour and into the early evening.

Rainfall amounts will be between a half inch to three quarters of an inch.

The big changes will happen around 7pm when the cold front moves through.  We’ll see a lull in the rain but temperatures will drop like a rock and winds will begin to increase.  Since temperatures fall so quick the rain will change over to snow showers and with winds near 45 and 50 mph expect low visibility.

Big impacts could be icy roads later tonight and Friday morning because of the rain we see today.  The fast drop in temperature may mean those wet roads can become dangerous tonight.  Wind gusts will be between 40-50 mph which may create low visibility.

As far as snowfall amounts looks like we’ll see about 1-2 inches in most locations.  Some areas to the north may see a few 3 or 4 inch spots.

Friday is going to feel awful.  High temperatures will only be around 30 and with winds gusting at times from 40-50 mph the wind chill or feels like temperature will be in the teens.

Hopefully you have procrastinated and have all of your Christmas shopping complete.  If you do have to go out in the weather make sure you pack your patience.

Tara
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