March 5, 2018

White Out

Current Conditions

Temperature: 27 °F
Dew Point: 25 °F
Winds: E 16 mph
Pressure:1010.5 mb
Visibility: 0 miles

The weather that was predicted for today did not come until later this evening. The morning consisted of partly cloudy skies leading to overcast skies by mid-morning. The temperature at 8:00 AM was 32 °F with winds ESE at 20 mph. The gusts were a bit chilly but the temperature was overall much warmer than what we had a month ago. The high for today was 34 °F so the temperature did not change much. Winds stayed consistently high with a few gusts here and there. 

The surface map today shows the snow produced by the low pressure system moving over Wisconsin (figure 1). 

Figure 1. Surface map of the United States. Snow is denoted by the white outlined area.

 
The initial prediction was for almost a foot of snow, but the new prediction is closer to 6 inches. The pattern of weather fronts in figure 1 is mirrored in the water vapor satellite image in figure 2.

Figure 2. Water vapor satellite of the United States.

In figure 2 the moisture content over Wisconsin and Minnesota is clearly illustrated and reflects the current heavy snowfall.

Previous Prediction

 My prediction from yesterday was spot on. The temperature was cooler, skies were overcast, and there is definitely some snow!

Prediction

For tomorrow, I predict more overcast skies and snow with temperature similar to today. This is based on the forecast surface map in figure 3 that shows the low pressure system slowly moving through the area.

Figure 3. Forecast surface map of the United States.