Big Storm Thursday

Here we go with some amazing weather today through tonight.

A severe thunderstorm warning was issued this morning in western Iowa. There is a slight chance for severe weather for most of central and southern Iowa through the rest of the day.

The cold temperatures to the north and all the heat and humidity are forcing those thunderstorms and then we will see ice and snow over the northern 1/2 of Iowa this afternoon and tonight.

There is a winter weather advisory for most of the state from highway 30 north. That is from the Ames area to the Mason City area. Ice is going to be the big issue. .10" to .20" of ice accumulation is possible and then we will have about an inch or two of snow on top of the ice tonight.

North...along the Iowa/Minnesota border... we could see 6" of snow on top of .20" to .30" of ice. Big slow-downs are expected in travel...both on the ground and in the air. This morning two American flights were cancelled at the Des Moines Airport. Those flights could not make it into town from other wintry destinations.

The ice on power lines will also cause power outages in northern Iowa tonight. The wind is expected to whip up the those lines with 20 to 30 mph gusts.

More snow is expected tomorrow night. This time central Iowa has a chance for measurable snow... 2" to 4" are possible.

Make sure you stay tuned to Channel 13 through the day today... and make plans to avoid traveling in the winter weather if you can.

Have a great day...stay safe.

Ed

Windy Wednesday

Iowa...where the wind comes sweeping down the plain. It seems like Oklahoma could take a backseat to the wild wind of Iowa. There is a reason why Iowa is the third largest producer of wind energy in the U.S. We are right behind California and Texas. In fact we often are the second largest wind energy provider. Thank those amazing wind farms in northwest Iowa and the fact we build the big wind turbines right up the road in Newton.

Tomorrow the low pressure system that will grace us with some light drizzle and light snow. Little accumulation of snow or freezing drizzle will hamper our travel. The bigger issue will be the wind that is created as the low moves out and a high pressure ridge moves in quickly behind the storm. This creates gradient wind. That is why we use isobars on the weather maps. Those little lines represent about 10 mph of wind per line. So if you count 4 lines across Iowa...that means 40 mph wind. Tightly packed isobars shows big-time wind.

Tonight I will show you those lines on the map...and make sure you remember the high wind tomorrow as you deal with the light drizzle and snow.

More Snow?!

Here we go again. Another chance for rain and ice and snow. This time it will hit Tuesday and continue into Wednesday. It will be warm enough to give us all rain during the day Tuesday. Then temperatures will start to fall. There is a good chance for freezing rain before we see all snow after sunset.

One to three inches of snow is expected....right on top of the ice and freezing rain. The wind will kick up with gusts of 30 mph....right out of the northwest on Wednesday.

We are still above normal for snow this season. The average is 25.9 inches of snow by the 16th of February. We are now 38.7 inches of snow...that is over a foot above the average. Last year we had 42 inches of snow by now.

Cold temperatures last year.

We had some very cool temperatures last year. Over half of the country reported below average temps between January 2008 and January 2009. In Iowa we were much below the average in 3/4 of the counties.

Check out the information here.... http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/img/climate/research/2009/jan/02_01_2009_DvTempRank_pg.gif

Keep giving us your great pictures on photolink. You can upload your pics on the weather page...under photolink. Look for the camera.

Have a great day...get ready for the mix tomorrow.

Melting = Flooding

Get ready for the big melt-down. Highs are going to be fabulous today and tomorrow. We will be near 50 degrees both days.

The sloppy streets are going to make it tough to see through the windshield of your car. Make sure the wipers are in good shape and the washer fluid chamber is full.

The end of the weekend and the start of next week is going to be interesting. We are going to have a strong storm system swing through the state from the southwest. We are going to see up to an inch of rain. Calculate the extra 1 to 3 inches of water in the snow that is melting over the northern 1/2 of Iowa....we will see some flooding.

Ice jams are possible in rivers. The ice will start to break apart and can pile up near bridges or make dams along the river banks. It causes localized flooding.

Iowa D.O.T. and county workers can take cranes to the bridges and break up the ice. In other states dynamite is used to blow up the ice.

Next week two storm systems are going to collide. The early-week storm will be moving out as the Wednesday/Thursday storm moves into the state. This could give us more rain on Wed. Then gusty wind with a chance for snow early Thursday. Watching and waiting...my favorite thing to do!

Enjoy the great weather today and tomorrow!!!

Ed