LibertyBell

I suspect a lot of our snow droughts down here were great winters up there. I dont know how to find this info but I was wondering where you have to be to get a minimum of 40 inches of snow every year. *actually that's too high, because I dont want to have excessive snow either. I'd settle for a minimum of 20 inches of snow a year (no complete dud winters like 2001-02, 2011-12, etc., or even 2006-07, 2007-08).

Christmas 1980 was the coldest Christmas ever and had snow with below zero temps! Winter 1981-82 had the big snow in January and the unprecedented April blizzard. Then we had the Feb 1983 HECS the following winter, and that was all she wrote for the 80s (more or less.) It was still very cold in the following winters (1983-84 and 1984-85 in particular, that Jan 1985 outbreak was the coldest I can remember) but no more big snowstorms.

Well if the Euro is right, it looks like the rain would end before Thanksgiving morning? Also, you're right, looks like our arctic November is over! No more of those frigid shots at least for the next few weeks.

From what I see in the maps, it looks like the Euro moves the storm in and out more quickly, where it would rain on Wednesday and clear out in time for Thanksgiving. The GFS has a slower storm that drops most of the rain on Thanksgiving.

I'm planning a trip to Northeastern PA- does early Thanksgiving morning sound like a bad day to travel? I wanted to go when the roads weren't busy but the weather also needs to be good. What about really early Wednesday morning (like around 9 AM.)

It was a weird night, I think the fog must've been really shallow because you could see a few stars right through the fog. The meteor was really bright, I'd estimate it was around the same brightness as Jupiter. Really easy to see, even through the fog. The brightest ones I've seen (I'd call them fireballs) were as bright as Venus. I saw the Leonid storm in November 2001, which was really early in the morning, around 5 AM. I could see 100s of them PER MINUTE quite easily even with light pollution, it was like a silent fireworks display. I could see them easily even when I wasn't looking at them or for them. I dont think we'll get a storm like that again for 30 years or so.

History has taught us not to bank on these occurring to save a snowfall season.

I've seen Perseid meteors through the fog in the Poconos, which was pretty amazing!

Yes, I think this is the big change you mentioned in the Pacific since 2010-11.

Is this why May has become the month in which -NAO most frequently occur?

Yes, and an unfavorable Pacific seems to happen more frequently than a favorable one. Later in the season, we also have shortening wavelengths, so it's easier to have an omega block pattern (trough-west, ridge-center, trough-east)

So that's why we see those pictures of 10+ feet of snowfall coming from places like Sapporo!

Chris, is that why when you compare our climate to the far east (Korean peninsula, Hokkaido, Japan, etc.) they get far more snow than we do at the same latitude- because Eurasia is so large that it negates the effects of the Atlantic to the west. While North America is a small continent by comparison and not large enough to block out the effects of the Pacific Ocean to its west?

2010-11 had two storms, one 20" and one 19" There was a third storm that dumped about 10" here but up to 20" on Central LI

well the world is round-- he'll get to the finish line (eventually)!

Will was that 1921 storm the Feb 1921 three day storm that dumped 18" of a mixture of snow, sleet and ice? What an unbelievable storm that was!

must have been a highly amplified pattern! winter 1979-80 was pretty boring though

isn't that what causes manhole explosions?

I actually think we get more emotionally tied because it's something we have no control over. Think about this.... if we could control the outcome, wouldn't the weather be much less interesting? We humans are wired in all sorts of interesting ways.

Indeed and because of the technologically sophisticated society we exist in, it begins very early, even before children reach school age. It really is a kind of experiment, where you see brain development change because of the impact of technology on young minds. What this means for the future (we are seeing the results already) should probably be left to OT.... or the climate change forum, which seems to be a bucket for various philosophical and metaphysical discussions lol.

Psychologically speaking, it must be an escape for them, sort of like sports. Some people seem to emotionally seesaw based on the results of their favorite sports teams too. It's an escape from the reality that bombards them on a daily basis. This becomes their support group.

How soon they forget that some of our greatest winters began after January 20th..... which is becoming more like the new norm.

This is exactly why I've been pondering the idea of what a warmer climate may mean, particularly since the oceans act as heat sinks and they get the brunt of it first. You can also see this with rising humidity levels/dew points and larger slower moving storms that dump much more precipitation. Bigger snowstorms and bigger rainstorms, and in general greater extremes.

interesting that it's right up there with 1976- a dry and cold winter! The 70s were lackluster for snow, with the exception of 77-78 which was much more like our current winters. 76-77 was particularly annoying, as was 78-79; both were very cold and we got scraped with the edges of snowfall. Chris, I wanted to ask if you had any info on the Oct 10, 1979 snowfall event. How did that hit DC and Philly and Boston and yet skipped over NYC and Long Island? Very early anomalous event, maybe the most exciting of that entire season

they get the snow but we all get the snow and wind. I hate dry cold windy weather- I have my house heat AND my space heater going at the same time.