HAPPY NEW YEAR -- Today marks the start of the new Chinese lunar year 4697, which is the Year of the Hare (rabbit). The Chinese calendar is a lunar calendar, with its beginning corresponding to the second new moon following the winter solstice (new moon will be at 0639Z on Tuesday or 1:39 AM EST and 12:39 AM CST, etc.).
UNSETTLED WEATHER ACROSS THE UPPER MIDWEST -- A storm system moved eastward from western South Dakota into the Upper Mississippi Valley on Monday. To the north of this system, an east-west running cold front slowly moved southward across the US-Canadian border, stalling as a stationary front just to the south of the border. As of late Monday night the low pressure system was situated in central Wisconsin. A warm front extended eastward from the low pressure center across the Great Lakes while a cold front trailed to the southwest from the low to west Texas. A secondary low pressure cell had developed near the southern end of the front over the Texas Panhandle.
This system has had little moisture associated with it. Some light snow was reported across the eastern Dakotas and northern Minnesota to the north west of the low and along the stationary front. To the northeast of the storm system, freezing rain and drizzle fell over Michigan's Upper Peninsula as northeasterly winds passed over a shallow layer of cold air near the earth's surface. As temperatures ultimately fall, the freezing rain is expected to change to snow.
Farther south along the cold front, a cluster of severe thunderstorms developed over northwestern Oklahoma.
This storm system is expected to continue to move toward the east, reaching the Great Lakes on Tuesday morning. Additional Gulf moisture should increase the areal extent of the precipitation along the cold front.
PLEASANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACROSS THE EAST -- A sprawling ridge of high pressure remained across the Eastern Seaboard on Monday. The system's center was located off the South Carolina coast. The clear skies and low atmospheric humidity made for a large diurnal temperature variation. Nighttime radiational cooling under such conditions produced cool morning temperatures. A record low temperature was reported on Monday morning at Mrytle Beach, SC as the temperature dipped to 25 degrees. By afternoon, the clear skies permitted maximum solar heating, resulting in seasonal temperatures. A southerly to southwesterly wind flow around the western limb of the high pressure cell also contributed to the afternoon warming.
The high pressure system is expected to remain off the Carolina coast on Tuesday morning.
STORMY CONDITIONS ALONG THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST -- The next potent storm was situated over the eastern Pacific Ocean at a distance of nearly 1000 miles to the west of British Columbia's Vancouver Island late Monday evening. An occluded front, representing a hybrid type front formed when a cold front catches and merges with a warm front, curved eastward from the deep low pressure to a point of occlusion closer to the Washington State coast. At this point of occlusion, or triple point, a warm front extended eastward into interior sections of Oregon, while a cold front continued southward and then southwestward offshore. An extensive area of precipitation accompanied this storm system, extending to the east of the frontal system. As a result, rain began falling along the Washington and Oregon coasts as the storm approached earlier on Monday. By late evening, the rain had extended eastward across the Cascades and southward to the vicinity of San Francisco Bay. Strong southerly or along-shore winds preceding the storm also increased in intensity to speeds reaching 60 mph in gusts. Gale warnings were posted from Cape Flattery, WA to Cape Mendocino, CA and over the northern half of Puget Sound. Heavy surf advisories were also in effect for the Oregon coast. Coastal flood watches were also posted for portions of the southern Washington coast as 42 foot seas passed a moored buoy.
By Tuesday morning the storm system should have gotten sufficiently close to the British Columbia coast that the cold front would have made landfall and moved inland. A variety of snow advisories and winter storm watches have been posted through Tuesday night as additional heavy snow was anticipated for the Olympics, Cascades, Sierras and the mountains of eastern Idaho.
TEMPERATURE EXTREMES IN THE LOWER 48 -- The lowest temperature in the lower 48 states on Monday was 11 degrees below zero at Berlin, NH and Monday's highest temperature was 87 degrees at Presido, TX.
ALASKAN WEATHER -- A large storm system over the central Bering Sea continued to spread clouds across a large portion of the state on Monday. As of mid-afternoon, the low pressure center was near the Pribilofs, with an occluded front that curled northward to the Bering Strait before turning eastward and finally southward over western Alaska, passing over eastern portions of the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak Island. Snow fell at Ilimana and at Cold Bay. Earlier in the day, blizzard conditions prevailed across Saint Lawrence Island and the Bering Strait as a result of the strong winds to 40 mph and blowing snow. A second low pressure system over the Gulf of Alaska off shore of southeast Alaska was responsible for clouds and windy conditions along the north Gulf coast and the Panhandle. Snow fell at Whittier and Seward, while rain was reported at Petersburg. East to southeast winds reaching speeds of 35 mph were reported in the vicinity of Prince William Sound and the Panhandle. Strong winds continued over the Anchorage Bowl. On Monday morning, Alyeska had a gust to 89 mph at an elevation of 3300 feet. A weak trough of low pressure positioned along the Arctic coast contributed to near blizzard conditions to the west of Barrow.
For the first time in three weeks the high temperature at McGrath reached above zero, reaching 19 degrees on Sunday, and on Monday the minimum remained above zero at 7 degrees.
On Monday morning, the lowest overnight temperature in the state was 31 degrees below zero at Nuiqsut, while the highest temperature by mid-afternoon was 48 degrees at Iliamna.
HAWAIIAN WEATHER -- With the ridge of high pressure having moved southward toward Hawaii, the trade winds became light and more easterly in direction across the islands. This ridge is expected to move eastward, but maintaining the weaker trade winds through mid-week. With weaker trade winds, the local sea-land breeze becomes important, with As a result, clouds should undergo a diurnal cycle, with relatively clear conditions in the morning and increased cloudiness by afternoon.
INTERPRETING SATELLITE IMAGES --To view satellite images, and for more details concerning interpretation of satellite imagery, turn to the satellite views and the Tuesday optional electronic Supplemental Information available on the Online Weather Homepage.
From the files of the Aviation Weather Center, Kansas City, MO and Intellicast
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Prepared by Edward J. Hopkins, Ph.D., email hopkins@meteor.wisc.edu
© Copyright, 1999, The American Meteorological Society.