Winter 25/26 General Obs

[Carvers Gap]

It looks like temps (not right by the river) are ranging rom 7-9F for my area of TRI.  It is 8 at the airport.  We had wind chills yesterday in the mid-single digits.

[Daniel Boone]

Down to 6 here this Morning. 4 at Daughters house down in a Valley. Saw couple 2 and 3 degree's on Couple Weather Station's in the in the County.

[John1122]

Went to 5 this morning. High today has been 33.

[John1122]

There's a wild temperature gradient across my area right now. I just came home from Knoxville, and dropped my friend and his wife off in Caryville, it was 57 at his house. It's 31 at my house. I live 10 miles NE of him. 

[Jed33]

Wow, the dew point has just plummeted this afternoon. It’s 53 here but the dew point is 5. I noticed at Tri it was 2 during the last observation. Talk about dry!

[dwagner88]

No AC usage yet, but I did spend about an hour sitting on a chair in the yard in shorts this afternoon. 72 IMBY, 74 official. Tied the record. 

[nrgjeff]

Mele Kalikimaka a warm Hawaiian Christmas!

[dwagner88]

Blew past the record high today at 78. Not sure what the all time December record is, but I bet we were close. I’m sick of this. Someone please bring winter back. 

[Daniel Boone]

4 hours ago, nrgjeff said:

Mele Kalikimaka a warm Hawaiian Christmas!

Lol. That it was .

[Daniel Boone]

2 minutes ago, dwagner88 said:

Blew past the record high today at 78. Not sure what the all time December record is, but I bet we were close. I’m sick of this. Someone please bring winter back. 

Wow ! 69 here. The December Record may have been in early December 1982. There was a 4 (Either 3 or 4 memory failing some)day stretch of Record Highs in the Upper 70's @ KTRI. That was a wild Month. Major Snowfall the 12th(6-10). An inch the 21st then 72 Christmas Day in Pennington gap here in Lee County, Va.

[John1122]

78 would tie the record high in Chattanooga set in December 1951. It was 78 at Tri that same day, 77 in Knoxville, 73 here. 9 days later it was 23 here with a half inch of snow. Otherwise a really warm December. 

Unfortunately, that's one of the all time warmest winters in Tennessee history. Jan and Feb were both well AN. 

 

[Carvers Gap]

Winch chills here in Bristol are in the teens.  Flurries are in the air.  What a reversal in temps.

[Holston_River_Rambler]

Cloud streets meant business this morning:

 

[Jed33]

Stepped outside just now and noticed a few flurries. Looked at the radar and noticed the infamous Bays Mtn. Snow band has set up!! I’m not sure if it ever got going last year? At any rate, sure enough there she be!

[Jed33]

[Daniel Boone]

Flurrying fairly good here now.

[John1122]

22 with a stiff wind from the south, and snow blowing in sideways.

[Jed33]

21 this morning and a very light dusting on the cars outside. Still some flurries floating around and I see the Bays Mtn. Band is still going albeit has shifted ever so slightly. I’d be willing to bet someone around there has some actual accumulation. The problem is it’s such a small area. It does look like it crosses over I-81 though so maybe there’s someone who could tell us?

Edit:

I see reports on social media of the grass being white and some roadways dusted. So, yeah it’s legit. Looks like it’s been going for 13hrs!

[Daniel Boone]

About a quarter of an inch here. Between a half inch and a inch in Dryden , about 2 miles ENE of Pennington gap. Norton and Wise 1-2 inches. 

[Holston_River_Rambler]

1 hour ago, Jed33 said:

It does look like it crosses over I-81 though so maybe there’s someone who could tell us?

There is apparently a TDOT camera in just the right area at mm 53:

 

Under two miles up I-81 a mm 54.8:

I wish I had planned on a Kingsport trip today, so I could do some investigating. 

[Carvers Gap]

I am on a roll this morning.  I absolutely hate agendas.  This came from a local met, and I am embarrassed for this person.  "Possibly aided by an industrial plant in Hawkins Co."  That just burns my biscuits.  

I have news for folks not from this area...we certainly have lots of industrial plants in Kingsport, and they do affect the weather.  But there ain't jack crap upstream from that snow band.  It is orographic lift from Bays Mountain which sets up in the lee of the mountain.  We have studied and documented it here.  I don't understand how a local met hasn't seen this about 1000x time already - and this person should know!!!

2" in Gray reported on the ground

[Jed33]

Sure enough Carver! It’s been documented not just here but in other places that orographic lift aided by Bays Mtn does this. I’m not sure an industrial plant could actually cause 2in to fall. Either he has no knowledge of the phenomenon and/or he has no knowledge of how orographic lift works. Crazy!

Speaking of bands, I noticed earlier that it looked like a second one tried to form in South Knox into Blount Co. I’m not sure about that one. Don’t know that I’ve seen it before. It doesn’t really look like it’s still going, so it could have been something like River effect, Lake effect, steam plant, etc.?

[tnweathernut]

2 hours ago, Jed33 said:

21 this morning and a very light dusting on the cars outside. Still some flurries floating around and I see the Bays Mtn. Band is still going albeit has shifted ever so slightly. I’d be willing to bet someone around there has some actual accumulation. The problem is it’s such a small area. It does look like it crosses over I-81 though so maybe there’s someone who could tell us?

Edit:

I see reports on social media of the grass being white and some roadways dusted. So, yeah it’s legit. Looks like it’s been going for 13hrs!

Can confirm we had about 1/2 inch overnight. I'm about 5.1 miles NNE of Jonesborough on the map, south of I-81.  Was a total surprise.

 

https://freeimage.host/i/fXqnsh7

https://freeimage.host/i/fXqn4kl

https://freeimage.host/i/fXqnLQ9

[tnweathernut]

55 minutes ago, Carvers Gap said:

I am on a roll this morning.  I absolutely hate agendas.  This came from a local met, and I am embarrassed for this person.  "Possibly aided by an industrial plant in Hawkins Co."  That just burns my biscuits.  

 

 

Who was the met?

[Carvers Gap]

10 minutes ago, tnweathernut said:

Who was the met?

Out of Bristol.

[tnweathernut]

7 minutes ago, Carvers Gap said:

Out of Bristol.

Interesting, ole DB would have been my first guess.  lol  - Statements like that make me question his credentials

[Holston_River_Rambler]

1 hour ago, Jed33 said:

Speaking of bands, I noticed earlier that it looked like a second one tried to form in South Knox into Blount Co. I’m not sure about that one. Don’t know that I’ve seen it before. It doesn’t really look like it’s still going, so it could have been something like River effect, Lake effect, steam plant, etc.?

One thing I was wondering about was whether or not the level of the radar beam enhanced the appearance of the returns, but the on the ground truth sure looks like it is a legit band. 

[Holston_River_Rambler]

There is a plant directly upstream (Cardinal Glass) but I can't see how one glass plant could generate that and to not even mention all the below:

Could be reading it wrong, but evidence on satellite suggests to me some new ideas today beyond what we've talked about before. 

 

For the most part I try to mouse over the band area in the above gif.  I get a little excited towards the end and mouse over some clouds flowing over the mountains, lol.

There is a defined area of downsloping to the lee of 3000' high Chimney top, but I also noticed a few other features this AM:

 

This band seems to me to be very very dependent on a specific wind direction, and I'd bet those other features and their leeside convergence have something to do with it too. 

Hypothesis: lee side convergence created by a specific wind vector between the southern side of High Knob (4000+') and the northern side of Chimney Top (~3000'), two of the highest peaks  in the TN Valley basin outside the Smokies, play a significant role in the development of this band. 

 

A more famous and somewhat different example I found is the Puget sound convergence zone:

graphics on the above image are not mine but from this site:

https://opensnow.com/news/post/puget-sound-convergence-zone-explained

[Carvers Gap]

2 hours ago, Jed33 said:

Sure enough Carver! It’s been documented not just here but in other places that orographic lift aided by Bays Mtn does this. I’m not sure an industrial plant could actually cause 2in to fall. Either he has no knowledge of the phenomenon and/or he has no knowledge of how orographic lift works. Crazy!

Speaking of bands, I noticed earlier that it looked like a second one tried to form in South Knox into Blount Co. I’m not sure about that one. Don’t know that I’ve seen it before. It doesn’t really look like it’s still going, so it could have been something like River effect, Lake effect, steam plant, etc.?

For an industrial plant to cause this, it would take something like a massive settlement pond from a paper plant to cause the life and the moisture - like lake effect.  There is nothing to the northwest of Gray that fits that bill - not even a lake.  That little snow line is really similar to the gap in the mountains west of Knoxville which allows Knoxville to get more snow...not quite the same setup, but similar. 

FWIW...BAE and Eastman are due north....and they would actually deter dendrite formation - you can trust me on that one!  Hahah.  Those plants affect weather, but I have never seen those plants add snow to anyone's back yard.  Lots 

There is a notch in Bays Mountain near Laurel Run park.  There is another notch near Baileyton.  Wind cuts through those places and also to the east where the mountain range terminates at the radio towers.  Those wind flows converge back near Gray when NW winds run perpendicular to Bays.  I think the orographic lift between the three area then combines to create convergence in the lee of Bays.  Think of a sports car cutting through air in a wind tunnel.  Air goes around each side and then over the top.  It converges again behind the car.  I think that is what happens.  That band has been there a long time.  

@Holston_River_Rambler, I agree. a small glass manufacturer won't cause that.  That industrial park over there is pretty much defunct.  I don't even really count that as an industrial plant - very small w/ maybe one stack.  If that line of thinking was used for Eastman, there should be a HUGE snow belt downwind from it.  Hahah.  It is 100% orographic life along w/ those gaps in the mountain.  Your last graphic there is right on the money w/ ONP.  There is another one of these in Alpine, Wy.  Where there is a break in the mountain, these little bands set up.  I used to live on Boone Lake and would drive to Kingsport when younger(every morning).  I drove through that band so many times.  Again, you all have done a great job with this.

That area is just one of strong convergence.  Even during summer thunderstorms...same.  Always a lot of convergence there.

 

[Carvers Gap]

Fun story, before I read Holston's posts on this...my family just called it the Twilight Zone.  That area always has the worst weather - thunderstorms (especially out of the northwest), snow showers, wind, etc.  I have traveled that section of road for forty years.  Same deal for that long.  Again, Alpine, Wy, has a very similar deal as does an area just north of Jackson(snow hole area).  I think that place is Moran.