Atlanta Snowpocalypse 2014

[max100]

This pretty obvious fact is really getting no attention in the media at all. I bet all the other mayors are pretty happy to let Atlanta's mayor fall on his sword though.

SNL also poked fun at Atlanta, it seems like everybody's piling on! Actually, everybody is piling on.

http://www.nbc.com/saturday-night-live/video/weekend-update-buford-calloway/n45830

Honestly that makes them look more ignorant than they think we are.

[AbsolutZero]

Hey all, I posted in the FFC coverage area thread. Been busy with AMS and stuff and will try to catch up this weekend.  I wanted to ask a science question to those who have been forecasting and observing snow for a while.  Here's the paragraph where i need your help:

 

 

Looking back, I think the takeaway for us is that we didn't do a good job being specific enough about the impact of fairly light snow. I believe the impact would have been the same even with 1/2" of snow, due to the melting and quick refreezing on roads.  Temps of 25-28 seem to be a sweet spot for this phenomenon, especially during the daytime, in my limited experience. Warmer than 28, and the snow will often melt on roads, especially when they're warm (remember Gwinnett and counties east of Atlanta did not have many road issues). Colder than 25, snow may accumulate on roads but not melt and refreeze. We are going to have a Georgia Tech senior who is interning at our office study this sweet spot and road temperatures as best as he can this semester.  What do you think the sweet spot is?  You guys have as much or more experience than me.  Really want to know!!

[DaculaWeather]

Steve, I actually got up to 36 degrees before the precip brought it back down, it could have been far worse. I noticed a lee side low and warmer temps in the ne corner of the state before the precip started. 

 

 

 

 

[LithiaWx]

Hey all, I posted in the FFC coverage area thread. Been busy with AMS and stuff and will try to catch up this weekend. I wanted to ask a science question to those who have been forecasting and observing snow for a while. Here's the paragraph where i need your help:

I have no evidence to support this but in my experience it seems to happen right at 26-27 degrees. I would imagine the sun angle would also play a role in some form. It might take less in late December than a storm in early march. Interesting subject, those are my thoughts.

[SouthernWx2]

Hey, Perry!  Good to see you posting!

  I agree the Atl mets are not bad people, and taking anyone's forecast to heart for winter weather in Atl, is not wise   I just think the whole thing is planning..or the lack there of.  It would be easy enough to look at various scenarios and plan for them, with the public, and the tv, radio, departments of response, etc. etc.  I can't understand why it seems to difficult to do.  The 73 ice storm, and the blizzard are two examples of events that weren't planned for, but could be now.  In 73 people were trapped in their homes without food, and no electricity for a week or more.  In the blizzard people were trapped once again, in dangerous circumstances.  It's like the Gov, and business community forgets that extreme events can happen, then tries to play catch up from moment one.  This time, the trucks weren't out on hills ahead of the rush traffic, and it was too late.  Ga. doesn't have the mild climate all the time, and a little forethought could solve most problems out ahead of the tragedy.  Tony

Thanks Tony!

[AbsolutZero]

Steve, I actually got up to 36 degrees before the precip brought it back down, it could have been far worse. I noticed a lee side low and warmer temps in the ne corner of the state before the precip started. 

 

temp_graph_28th.png

 

edd_802am.jpg

 

Exactly. I watched your time lapse of your house's webcam a couple days after the event and told everyone to notice that your roads were wet until well after dark. Definitely a different story west of the east Perimeter.

[AbsolutZero]

I have no evidence to support this but in my experience it seems to happen right at 26-27 degrees. I would imagine the sun angle would also play a role in some form. It might take less in late December than a storm in early march. Interesting subject, those are my thoughts.

 

 

Thank you much.  I think the opaqueness of the cloud cover (really, how much incoming solar radiation is occurring) is what's important, but just a working theory. Need to see what the research community has done with this already.

[griteater]

Watched the wxgeeks episode on TWC on the Atlanta snowjams.  They had the head guy from the Atlanta NWS on there.  He said since 1929, there have been 4 snow 'events' that occurred in Atlanta with temperatures of 27 degrees or lower.  2 of the 4 occurred during the day - snowjam1 (Jan 1982) and snowjam2 (Jan 2014).  Moral of the story is...

[dsaur]

Watched the wxgeeks episode on TWC on the Atlanta snowjams.  They had the head guy from the Atlanta NWS on there.  He said since 1929, there have been 4 snow 'events' that occurred in Atlanta with temperatures of 27 degrees or lower.  2 of the 4 occurred during the day - snowjam1 (Jan 1982) and snowjam2 (Jan 2014).  Moral of the story is...

Easy to see how a mean drop of a few degrees could bring on another ice age.  If our average snow now falls at 29 or 31....well, the mastodons won't get help by moving south....and the down town connector glacier will form up real fast. T

[GaWx]

Watched the wxgeeks episode on TWC on the Atlanta snowjams. They had the head guy from the Atlanta NWS on there. He said since 1929, there have been 4 snow 'events' that occurred in Atlanta with temperatures of 27 degrees or lower. 2 of the 4 occurred during the day - snowjam1 (Jan 1982) and snowjam2 (Jan 2014). Moral of the story is...

I did some research into KATL 2"+ snows with temp.'s of 27 or colder since 1929 in addition to the two snowjams because 4 very cold storms seemed a little low:

1) 2/10/1934: clearly qualifies with 4" snow and high that day of only 23. This was during a weekend and it started very late night to just after dawn. I won't count this as a daytime start though much of it fell during the daytime. Regardless, even though it may not have been well predicted, it shouldn't have caused a major traffic jam since it started very early and it was the weekend (even if there were already lots of ATL car-owners by then).

2) 2/18/1979: 4" of IP with a high of 28. The IP fell with temperatures in the 21-27 range. If IP events count, this would surely qualify. However, if only snow is allowed, it wouldn't count on a technicality even though driving on IP is very dangerous. This started at night, was during the weekend, and was very well predicted (though it was supposed to be more snow than IP as I recall). So, there was no traffic jam during the storm. There was very little traffic, period.

3) 3/2/1980: clearly qualifies with 2.7" of snow with a high of 27. This started at night and was on the weekend. So, no traffic jam during this storm.

4) 1/7/1988: 4.2" of largely IP with a high of 32 but with the IP falling while temp.'s were mainly 25-27. So, if IP events count, this could very well qualify. This was on a Thursday though it started early in the daytime. A decent number of people likely got caught in this though many more probably stayed home since I think the storm was pretty well predicted. I don't recall this producing a severe traffic jam like 1982 or 2014.

5) 1/9/2011: 3.7" snow with high of 34 just before the snow. However, due to TD's in the low singles, the temp. fell rapidly once it started and got down to 26 during at least part of it. So, much of it probably was when it was 27 or lower and it started sticking very soon after starting. However, not all of it was when it was 27 or less. Therefore, I'm assuming this doesn't qualify. This fell during Sunday evening (so not real heavy traffic). However, it did start pretty suddenly/heavily with quick sticking and maybe an hour or more earlier than some thought (as I recall) thus causing a good number of people to get caught off-guard and a big traffic mess with numerous accidents and traffic stuck on many roads for hours. So, though this probably doesn't qualify on a technicality, it did still cause what seemed to me to be a more modest version of the 1982 and 2014 snowjams.

In summary regarding 2"+ KATL snow events since 1929 at 27 or colder in addition to the two snowjams, I feel that 2/10/1934 and 3/2/1980 make up the other two. So, for pure snow, four events looks accurate if we're only talking about 2"+ (my own minimum). However, if IP also were to count, I think that 2/18/1979 and 1/7/1988 would also count making a total of 6 qualified S and IP 2"+ 27 or colder KATL events since 1929. Also, if events under 2" were also included, there'd obviously be others to add.

[FallsLake]

I did some research into KATL 2"+ snows with temp.'s of 27 or colder since 1929 in addition to the two snowjams because 4 very cold storms seemed a little low:

1) 2/10/1934: clearly qualifies with 4" snow and high that day of only 23. This was during a weekend and it started very late night to just after dawn. I won't count this as a daytime start though much of it fell during the daytime. Regardless, even though it may not have been well predicted, it shouldn't have caused a major traffic jam since it started very early and it was the weekend (even if there were already lots of ATL car-owners by then).

2) 2/18/1979: 4" of IP with a high of 28. The IP fell with temperatures in the 21-27 range. If IP events count, this would surely qualify. However, if only snow is allowed, it wouldn't count on a technicality even though driving on IP is very dangerous. This started at night, was during the weekend, and was very well predicted (though it was supposed to be more snow than IP as I recall). So, there was no traffic jam during the storm. There was very little traffic, period.

3) 3/2/1980: clearly qualifies with 2.7" of snow with a high of 27. This started at night and was on the weekend. So, no traffic jam during this storm.

4) 1/7/1988: 4.2" of largely IP with a high of 32 but with the IP falling while temp.'s were mainly 25-27. So, if IP events count, this could very well qualify. This was on a Thursday though it started early in the daytime. A decent number of people likely got caught in this though many more probably stayed home since I think the storm was pretty well predicted. I don't recall this producing a severe traffic jam like 1982 or 2014.

5) 1/9/2011: 3.7" snow with high of 34 just before the snow. However, due to TD's in the low singles, the temp. fell rapidly once it started and got down to 26 during at least part of it. So, much of it probably was when it was 27 or lower and it started sticking very soon after starting. However, not all of it was when it was 27 or less. Therefore, I'm assuming this doesn't qualify. This fell during Sunday evening (so not real heavy traffic). However, it did start pretty suddenly/heavily with quick sticking and maybe an hour or more earlier than some thought (as I recall) thus causing a good number of people to get caught off-guard and a big traffic mess with numerous accidents and traffic stuck on many roads for hours. So, though this probably doesn't qualify on a technicality, it did still cause what seemed to me to be a more modest version of the 1982 and 2014 snowjams.

In summary regarding 2"+ KATL snow events since 1929 at 27 or colder in addition to the two snowjams, I feel that 2/10/1934 and 3/2/1980 make up the other two. So, for pure snow, four events looks accurate if we're only talking about 2"+ (my own minimum). However, if IP also were to count, I think that 2/18/1979 and 1/7/1988 would also count making a total of 6 qualified S and IP 2"+ 27 or colder KATL events since 1929. Also, if events under 2" were also included, there'd obviously be others to add.

You have to include sleet in your research. The NWS counts snow and sleet accumulations the same. Even thou we know sleet has much more water content. I would much rather have 4" of sleet over 7" of snow. Now take that to 8" and I would have to think about it.

Edit: This ranks as one of my all time events. even with the two foot storm. I got 6" of most sleet. It was amazing.

http://www4.ncsu.edu/~nwsfo/storage/cases/maps/accum.19960107.gif

[GaWx]

You have to include sleet in your research. The NWS counts snow and sleet accumulations the same. Even thou we know sleet has much more water content. I would much rather have 4" of sleet over 7" of snow. Now take that to 8" and I would have to think about it.

Edit: This ranks as one of my all time events. even with the two foot storm. I got 6" of most sleet. It was amazing.

http://www4.ncsu.edu/~nwsfo/storage/cases/maps/accum.19960107.gif

 

 If it were me, I'd absolutely include sleet. There's no question that sleet has much more impact than snow per inch due to the much higher water content per inch. I was just trying to figure out why they had only four that were 27 or colder since 1929 at KATL when there seemed to be six at the very least. I say at the very least because I was counting only 2"+.  Who knows what they were even counting in terms of # of inches? I know that there have been some under 2" S/IP that were very treacherous. For that matter, there have been some very treacherous that weren't just about all when it was 27 or colder like Jan. of 2011.

[dsaur]

I did some research into KATL 2"+ snows with temp.'s of 27 or colder since 1929 in addition to the two snowjams because 4 very cold storms seemed a little low:

1) 2/10/1934: clearly qualifies with 4" snow and high that day of only 23. This was during a weekend and it started very late night to just after dawn. I won't count this as a daytime start though much of it fell during the daytime. Regardless, even though it may not have been well predicted, it shouldn't have caused a major traffic jam since it started very early and it was the weekend (even if there were already lots of ATL car-owners by then).

2) 2/18/1979: 4" of IP with a high of 28. The IP fell with temperatures in the 21-27 range. If IP events count, this would surely qualify. However, if only snow is allowed, it wouldn't count on a technicality even though driving on IP is very dangerous. This started at night, was during the weekend, and was very well predicted (though it was supposed to be more snow than IP as I recall). So, there was no traffic jam during the storm. There was very little traffic, period.

3) 3/2/1980: clearly qualifies with 2.7" of snow with a high of 27. This started at night and was on the weekend. So, no traffic jam during this storm.

4) 1/7/1988: 4.2" of largely IP with a high of 32 but with the IP falling while temp.'s were mainly 25-27. So, if IP events count, this could very well qualify. This was on a Thursday though it started early in the daytime. A decent number of people likely got caught in this though many more probably stayed home since I think the storm was pretty well predicted. I don't recall this producing a severe traffic jam like 1982 or 2014.

5) 1/9/2011: 3.7" snow with high of 34 just before the snow. However, due to TD's in the low singles, the temp. fell rapidly once it started and got down to 26 during at least part of it. So, much of it probably was when it was 27 or lower and it started sticking very soon after starting. However, not all of it was when it was 27 or less. Therefore, I'm assuming this doesn't qualify. This fell during Sunday evening (so not real heavy traffic). However, it did start pretty suddenly/heavily with quick sticking and maybe an hour or more earlier than some thought (as I recall) thus causing a good number of people to get caught off-guard and a big traffic mess with numerous accidents and traffic stuck on many roads for hours. So, though this probably doesn't qualify on a technicality, it did still cause what seemed to me to be a more modest version of the 1982 and 2014 snowjams.

In summary regarding 2"+ KATL snow events since 1929 at 27 or colder in addition to the two snowjams, I feel that 2/10/1934 and 3/2/1980 make up the other two. So, for pure snow, four events looks accurate if we're only talking about 2"+ (my own minimum). However, if IP also were to count, I think that 2/18/1979 and 1/7/1988 would also count making a total of 6 qualified S and IP 2"+ 27 or colder KATL events since 1929. Also, if events under 2" were also included, there'd obviously be others to add.

Don't forget my favorite storm, the sleet one in 59 or 60 that formed my profound love of sleet.  At least 2 inches, but I think more like 3 or 4, it fell right as we were leaving for school, and was bumper cars big time around the school with people trying to let their kids out, and cars hitting each other trying to come down the hill.  It would have been bad all over the city with it starting about 7:30am. Can't say what the temps were...so maybe it won't count? But I remember it wasn't melting, so it wasn't hovering around freezing, with a warm nose moving back and forth overhead.

  Also, the tag end of a big gulf low, with the cold coming in hard left Atl a mess in the late 70's.  Probably only an inch fell, but all the west sides of hills froze all the way to BHam.  It took me hours to get out of town, in my VW.  Probably an hour just to get onto the connector at Ga Tech, from W. Ptree.  It was like a sno jam because the streets flash froze like last year.  All the west side of hills into Ala were covered with jack knifed tractor trailers.  T

[GaWx]

Don't forget my favorite storm, the sleet one in 59 or 60 that formed my profound love of sleet.  At least 2 inches, but I think more like 3 or 4, it fell right as we were leaving for school, and was bumper cars big time around the school with people trying to let their kids out, and cars hitting each other trying to come down the hill.  It would have been bad all over the city with it starting about 7:30am. Can't say what the temps were...so maybe it won't count? But I remember it wasn't melting, so it wasn't hovering around freezing, with a warm nose moving back and forth overhead.

  Also, the tag end of a big gulf low, with the cold coming in hard left Atl a mess in the late 70's.  Probably only an inch fell, but all the west sides of hills froze all the way to BHam.  It took me hours to get out of town, in my VW.  Probably an hour just to get onto the connector at Ga Tech, from W. Ptree.  It was like a sno jam because the streets flash froze like last year.  All the west side of hills into Ala were covered with jack knifed tractor trailers.  T

 

Tony,

 

1) I really want to find your sleet storm! In what part of ATL was your school? That may tell me a lot. Possibilties: 3/2/1960 and 3/9/1960 (both were on Wednesdays). Can you eliminate either of these or, better yet, identify the storm in question from these two? These are the only two reasonable possiblities imo (including also 1958 and 1961 in case you're a year off).

2) I have no idea.

[dsaur]

Tony,

 

1) I really want to find your sleet storm! In what part of ATL was your school? That may tell me a lot. Possibilties: 3/2/1960 and 3/9/1960 (both were on Wednesdays). Can you eliminate either of these or, better yet, identify the storm in question from these two? These are the only two reasonable possiblities imo (including also 1958 and 1961 in case you're a year off).

2) I have no idea.

Inman, in midtown..Va Ave.  I was in 6th or 7th grade...school patrol years. I can't rule out 5th grade, but I doubt it. I got out of high school in 65 so I would have started in Sept of 60 as we had 5 years in high school, so  I guess it was 60 or 59...maybe 58 but that was pretty young to do school patrol.  I don't remember back to back storms, and it didn't seem like a typical March storm, as it was true cold, not spring cold, and we didn't do blizzards back them, lol,  but I was a little kid, and that was forever ago, lol.  I just remember the clouds lowered down to the tops of the roofs, and with a very loud roar sleet just fell out in heaping piles.  But we made it to school, a mile away, in a 49 Ford, which wasn't great in the ice, so it must not have flash frozen either. They closed the school pretty quickly.  I had to be there early to do the patrol bit, so I guess they shut down the city before 9ish, or so.  It was all sleet, nary a flake to spoil the event...that's the way I remember it anyway...I guess it could have been more impressive to a 10 year old   I know I was very impressed, and still am!   Tony

[GaWx]

Inman, in midtown..Va Ave.  I was in 6th or 7th grade...school patrol years. I can't rule out 5th grade, but I doubt it. I got out of high school in 65 so I would have started in Sept of 60 as we had 5 years in high school, so  I guess it was 60 or 59...maybe 58 but that was pretty young to do school patrol.  I don't remember back to back storms, and it didn't seem like a typical March storm, as it was true cold, not spring cold, and we didn't do blizzards back them, lol,  but I was a little kid, and that was forever ago, lol.  I just remember the clouds lowered down to the tops of the roofs, and with a very loud roar sleet just fell out in heaping piles.  But we made it to school, a mile away, in a 49 Ford, which wasn't great in the ice, so it must not have flash frozen either. They closed the school pretty quickly.  I had to be there early to do the patrol bit, so I guess they shut down the city before 9ish, or so.  It was all sleet, nary a flake to spoil the event...that's the way I remember it anyway...I guess it could have been more impressive to a 10 year old   I know I was very impressed, and still am!   Tony

 

Tony,

 I had thought of 2/15/58, which did include a good bit of IP mixed with snow (~3" total) but it was on a Saturday. 12/11/58 had something but it was fairly small and it was mainly snow (1"). 12/13/58 had something with much more precip, but it was on a Saturday.

I found nothing measurable in 1959.

 1960's action was all in March and the first half of the month was very cold: average of 33, which was 17 below normal and would be 10 below normal for mid January!! On Wed. 3/2/60, there was a major ZR storm with some IP. It started ~1-2 AM and lasted ~24 hours. From sunrise on, it was 29-31 F. The next few days were near or below 32 for highs! On Wed. 3/9/60, there was a ZR with some IP. This event started near 6-7 AM and ended near 4 PM. Once precip. started, it wa 31-32 til it ended. Then it fell into the high 20's. The next day it got up to 52.

 I didn't suggest Friday 3/11/60 because it mostly snow. Heaviest was 5-8 AM but flurries fell during the afternoon. This was a 4" snow all of the way down at the airport with more to the north. At the airport. it was only down to 33 during much of the snow though it dropped to 30-32 afterward. Next AM got down to 27 with a high of 39.

 So, could it have been one of these three now that I've given you more details about the cold?

[dsaur]

Tony,

 I had thought of 2/15/58, which did include a good bit of IP mixed with snow (~3" total) but it was on a Saturday. 12/11/58 had something but it was fairly small and it was mainly snow (1"). 12/13/58 had something with much more precip, but it was on a Saturday.

I found nothing measurable in 1959.

 1960's action was all in March and the first half of the month was very cold: average of 33, which was 17 below normal and would be 10 below normal for mid January!! On Wed. 3/2/60, there was a major ZR storm with some IP. It started ~1-2 AM and lasted ~24 hours. From sunrise on, it was 29-31 F. The next few days were near or below 32 for highs! On Wed. 3/9/60, there was a ZR with some IP. This event started near 6-7 AM and ended near 4 PM. Once precip. started, it wa 31-32 til it ended. Then it fell into the high 20's. The next day it got up to 52.

 I didn't suggest Friday 3/11/60 because it mostly snow. Heaviest was 5-8 AM but flurries fell during the afternoon. This was a 4" snow all of the way down at the airport with more to the north. At the airport. it was only down to 33 during much of the snow though it dropped to 30-32 afterward. Next AM got down to 27 with a high of 39.

 So, could it have been one of these three now that I've given you more details about the cold?

Must have been the 9th.  It most closely matches my recollections, and the airport might well have been reporting zr while midtown was covered up in sleet.  That's typical.  The snow event doesn't match, except for the amounts, because it was dry until the sudden on rush of sleet as I was standing in the drive ready to leave for school, and if the airport was reporting snow at 2 am, midtown wouldn't have had a sudden rush of sleet to start it all, at 7 or 8?   The event started just before school and classes started at 8:20, but I would have had to be there before 8? 7:30?  And we would have left around 7:15, and that's when the clouds opened up and dropped roaring sleet piles. There was no zr that I remember, unless it fell after, but I can't recall anything after the time I was helping the kids across the street while the crazies were sliding down at us after they topped the hill and hit their brakes, lol.  That part is seared into my brain.  Hiding behind a brick wall, and waiting to herd the kids across between bumper cars.  It was all sleet to that point, but I'm not remembering much past 9am, so it might have turned to zr.  There was a pile of sleet though as everything was white.  Funny that the snow up to 4 inches a few days after is a blank, and the zr before, but the few inches of sleet is like it happened yesterday, lol.  And it was obviously one of those southern track deals where the impulses come up into the cold dipping jet, one after the other, to get 3 events so close together.  Must have been some great blocking!  Just goes to show how impressed I was with the way that sleet fell in heaps out of those low clouds.  The only time I would have seen clouds that low would have been going over Monteagle in winter where you'd drive in the clouds.  I mean these were heavy, thick dark clouds that kept coming down as I watched until they hid the roof peaks, and with an enormous roar the sleet came down like a tropical down pour will..warning you with the roar, then huge drops falling with no further ado, making you need some scuba gear to breathe.  It was like that, only in sleet   Keep in mind I also saw basketball sized snow clusters in the early 70's in Atl, so some question my clear headedness, lol.  Still I know what I saw, and no one can dissuade me from any of it.  If you love the outdoors, and love the weather and go out in it when it happens, you'll see stuff..... if you live a long time!!  Maybe stuff no one else has seen, and the airport didn't report, but that doesn't mean it didn't happen!  I see rain all the time that doesn't fall a block away, or verse visa...more likely vise versa when it's a drought.  And the same can easily happen in winter, and does. Well, knowing that, I suppose it could have been the snow that fell at the airport, and more further north, if the heaviest was 7ish, and it just only started late and  fell as sleet in midtown, and snow everywhere else.  Would have been a very strange warm tongue, but stuff happens, lol.  Does any of this help   I think we can nail it down to 1960.  T

[GaWx]

Must have been the 9th.  It most closely matches my recollections, and the airport might well have been reporting zr while midtown was covered up in sleet.  That's typical.  The snow event doesn't match, except for the amounts, because it was dry until the sudden on rush of sleet as I was standing in the drive ready to leave for school, and if the airport was reporting snow at 2 am, midtown wouldn't have had a sudden rush of sleet to start it all, at 7 or 8?   The event started just before school and classes started at 8:20, but I would have had to be there before 8? 7:30?  And we would have left around 7:15, and that's when the clouds opened up and dropped roaring sleet piles. There was no zr that I remember, unless it fell after, but I can't recall anything after the time I was helping the kids across the street while the crazies were sliding down at us after they topped the hill and hit their brakes, lol.  That part is seared into my brain.  Hiding behind a brick wall, and waiting to herd the kids across between bumper cars.  It was all sleet to that point, but I'm not remembering much past 9am, so it might have turned to zr.  There was a pile of sleet though as everything was white.  Funny that the snow up to 4 inches a few days after is a blank, and the zr before, but the few inches of sleet is like it happened yesterday, lol.  And it was obviously one of those southern track deals where the impulses come up into the cold dipping jet, one after the other, to get 3 events so close together.  Must have been some great blocking!  Just goes to show how impressed I was with the way that sleet fell in heaps out of those low clouds.  The only time I would have seen clouds that low would have been going over Monteagle in winter where you'd drive in the clouds.  I mean these were heavy, thick dark clouds that kept coming down as I watched until they hid the roof peaks, and with an enormous roar the sleet came down like a tropical down pour will..warning you with the roar, then huge drops falling with no further ado, making you need some scuba gear to breathe.  It was like that, only in sleet   Keep in mind I also saw basketball sized snow clusters in the early 70's in Atl, so some question my clear headedness, lol.  Still I know what I saw, and no one can dissuade me from any of it.  If you love the outdoors, and love the weather and go out in it when it happens, you'll see stuff..... if you live a long time!!  Maybe stuff no one else has seen, and the airport didn't report, but that doesn't mean it didn't happen!  I see rain all the time that doesn't fall a block away, or verse visa...more likely vise versa when it's a drought.  And the same can easily happen in winter, and does. Well, knowing that, I suppose it could have been the snow that fell at the airport, and more further north, if the heaviest was 7ish, and it just only started late and  fell as sleet in midtown, and snow everywhere else.  Would have been a very strange warm tongue, but stuff happens, lol.  Does any of this help   I think we can nail it down to 1960.  T

 

Tony,

 I'm with you on this. I think we finally found the "missing" sleet event!! As of now, 3/9/60 seems like the mostly likely candidate based on the timing and precip. type in combination with your own account. The 3/2 storm started way too early and 3/11 was mainly snow. Getting mainly IP on 3/11 in town on to the north wouldn't make sense as you implied.

 So, unless I find new info that conflicts with what I've already found (such as in the old newspapers), I'm going to consider 3/9/1960 as quite a significant ATL IP event in town & not at airport (probably mixed with or changing to mainly ZR later) even though the airport got no measurable IP and got mainly ZR and a decent amount of it (borderline major ZR there). I may nickname it the Tony sleetstorm of 1960.

 See, I can sometimes talk about Atlanta S/IP events not at the airport even though it isn't easy.

[dsaur]

Tony,

 I'm with you on this. I think we finally found the "missing" sleet event!! As of now, 3/9/60 seems like the mostly likely candidate based on the timing and precip. type in combination with your own account. The 3/2 storm started way too early and 3/11 was mainly snow. Getting mainly IP on 3/11 in town on to the north wouldn't make sense as you implied.

 So, unless I find new info that conflicts with what I've already found (such as in the old newspapers), I'm going to consider 3/9/1960 as quite a significant ATL IP event in town & not at airport (probably mixed with or changing to mainly ZR later) even though the airport got no measurable IP and got mainly ZR and a decent amount of it (borderline major ZR there). I may nickname it the Tony sleetstorm of 1960.

 See, I can sometimes talk about Atlanta S/IP events not at the airport even though it isn't easy.

Here's one for you.  Mother always talks about a storm in the 60's that was so bad she had to leave her car, in Buckhead and take buses and walk home from there as the buses weren't running at all stops, and not on schedule.  I asked her today what year that was and she thinks it was the year Kennedy got shot..the President.  I remember that year as having some bitterly cold weather, but can't pin point that storm.  You got one for then?  T

 

Edit:  You are nearing 5000 posts!  Do we get an inch of ip/sn for each post this year?  Is the minimum upon us?  The Hab Theory in effect this year?