Geography 341 (Weather & Society) Blog

Wednesday, May 9, 2018 Temperature: 63ºF Sky: 100% Precipitation: Rain tonight with possible thunderstorms Wind: N 3 mph With no air conditioning, I am thankful for this brief cool down before it gets hot again. Today we had a bright and sunny morning but as the day went on, the rain moved in. Check out the large section of rain in the Great Lakes region.   The occluded front thats moving through it to thank for the cool down. The cold front that merged with the warm air mass turned into the occluded front you see now. This weekend should also see some rain as the system of low pressure systems makes its way through. For tomorrow, expect a rainier day with similar temperatures. 

Friday, May 4, 2018 Temperature: 67ºF Sky: Mix of clouds Precipitation: None Wind: W 8 mph May the fourth be worth you! Happy Friday! We've been given what looks to be a fantastic spring weekend. Today has been mild with some good sun. A little windy indicating some changes in the next could of days. That is also noted below on the surface map. Now that all the mess is past us, we should be cooling off as the cold front to our North comes down and draws the cooler continental polar air mass with it. There is a possibility of some rain with it, but it shouldn't be much of anything. My forecasting has been pretty good this week. It's not really hard when we start in on warm temperatures and occasional rain. As things develop nationally, that line of storms is still doing damage now from the Rio Grande region all the way up to New Foundland. Its super interesting as Texas is seeing this high pressure system push its way through. Im hoping for the high pressure system...

Thursday, May 3, 2018 Temperature: 75ºF Sky: Mixed cloud cover Precipitation: Moderate in the late night hours (0.3 in) Wind: ESE 4 mph Another let down. After lectures on thunderstorms, I seem to be hooked in watching them develop and track them across our region. As it inched closer on the radar, it became apparent we were not in its path, and another good system has passed us by. We did get the very top of it which brought some rain, but nothing to get excited about. Take a look at it! It just never came far enough north. Its really too bad, it could have been a good one. But we will wait agin for the first good storm. Still, I'm grateful for the rain we got as my lawn is finally starting to look green again! For this weekend, I would expect a perfect May weekend, lots of sun and warm temperatures. Enjoy!

Wednesday, May 2, 2018 Temperature: 71ºF Sky: Mixed cloud cover Precipitation: Moderate in the early morning hours Wind: SW 1 mph What a let down. I spent all day yesterday tracking the storm system and watching it develop. I showed all my buddies the forecast maps and showed them how the moisture and jet stream conditions were setting us up for a great first storm of the season, and then it wasn't anything to bat an eye at! I stayed up for what little storm we had. Around midnight the thunder began and then the lightning. We got some moderate down pours but nothing close to what we could have gotten! To be fair, the storm did not disappoint, it just didn't come put on a show for us. Today we were back to spring in Wisconsin, nice and warm and sunny. That Southwest winds keeping us warm but also hinting at some rain in the forecast (more on that later). Those high pressure systems quickly pushed out those storms and they dissipated. Now most of the Great Lakes regi...

Tuesday, May 1, 2018 Temperature: 73ºF Sky: Near 100% Precipitation: None Yet Wind: N 8 mph With this new heat and the weather gods coming together, we may actually get our first good storm! A cold front is coming in from the west and converging with a warm maritime tropical air mass. Winds from the south west are bringing in moist warm air that when mixed with the cold front, have the ability to produce some hefty thunderstorms! Check out this graphic below for a better representation! With the help of the jet stream, the lower Midwest is set up for some great storms. I would predict that we see some scattered thunderstorms this evening starting around 6pm. It looks like our possibility for severe weather has come and gone, but we should get a good soaking. For the rest of the week, we should stay pretty warm and see a beautiful spring weekend!