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January 24 - 31 Cold Blast


MNstorms
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54 minutes ago, Geoboy645 said:

Also the records for Illinois are -36 set in 1999 at East St Louis, for Minnesota -60 set in 1996 at Tower, for Michigan -51 set in 1934 at Vanderbilt, and for Indiana -36 set in 1994 at New Whiteland and for Iowa -47 set in 1996 at Elkader. I'd say the most likely records to be broken would probably be Illinois and Iowa with a medium chance for Wisconsin and an outside shot for Minnesota and Indiana.

Good info. Unfortunately, it looks like clouds and/or wind could prevent temps from dropping as low as they otherwise could, given the airmass in place. I hope I am wrong. Still a bit too far away to pin down the details. If any locations can clear out or have lighter winds, then things could definitely get out of hand. Either way, wind chills will be extreme, possibly down to -50 in northern IL. On 1/6/2014, I believe wind chills bottomed near -45.

At this point, I would guess the following lowest temps by state: IL -30, IA -35, WI -35, MN -40.

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Still a bit out there, but we are getting close enough to be able to dive into some specifics.

I'd say there could be a couple shots to approach the all-time record low at ORD.  The first coming on Wednesday morning, which is more of an advective driven cold at that point with a bitter airmass aloft and winds staying fairly elevated.  Then another one potentially coming on Thursday morning after having an extremely cold starting point Wednesday evening.  Overall, Wednesday night/Thursday morning certainly looks like a better radiational cooling setup than Wednesday morning, though even then it appears the winds may not completely die off especially in/around the city.  Also, the airmass aloft looks like it will be warming by late Wednesday into Thursday, so not having full decoupling could be a problem.

I'm still not ready to predict an all-time record low for ORD, but to me, if it happens, the better chance of it occurring is on Wednesday morning because that is when the radiational cooling component is minimized, and anybody who pays attention knows that ORD can have problems with radiating.  That being said, Thursday can't be ruled out due to what was mentioned above about the extremely cold starting point.

Just my 2 cents and thoughts subject to change.

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-27 here this morning.  I could hear things creaking and at one point heard a super loud pop somewhere near the house.  I assume it was a tree.

000
NOUS43 KMQT 261456
PNSMQT
MIZ001>007-009>014-084-085-270256-

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MARQUETTE MI
956 AM EST SAT JAN 26 2019

...SUMMARY OF COLDEST WIND CHILLS MORNING OF SATURDAY JANUARY 26...

LOCATION                     TEMP      TIME/DATE       LAT/LON              

...MICHIGAN...

...ALGER COUNTY...
2 SSW TRENARY                -31 F     0829 AM 01/26   46.16N/86.98W        
MUNISING                     -28 F     0756 AM 01/26   46.41N/86.65W        
AU TRAIN                     -27 F     0702 AM 01/26   46.43N/86.84W        
8 SSW WETMORE                -25 F     0504 AM 01/26   46.25N/86.71W        
CHATHAM                      -15 F     0816 AM 01/26   46.34N/86.93W        
CHATHAM                      -14 F     0900 AM 01/26   46.34N/86.93W        
1 ENE MUNISING               -10 F     0559 AM 01/26   46.43N/86.62W        

...BARAGA COUNTY...
4 NNW WATTON                 -30 F     0803 AM 01/26   46.60N/88.63W        
3 SSW PELKIE                 -22 F     0613 AM 01/26   46.78N/88.66W        
2 S BARAGA                   -19 F     0926 AM 01/26   46.74N/88.50W        

...DELTA COUNTY...
DELTA CO. AIRPORT            -33 F     0756 AM 01/26   45.72N/87.09W        
7 SW STEUBEN                 -32 F     0804 AM 01/26   46.13N/86.58W        
GARDEN CORNERS               -32 F     0805 AM 01/26   45.90N/86.55W        
3 N ESCANABA                 -31 F     0432 AM 01/26   45.79N/87.08W        
2 SE RAPID RIVER             -31 F     0803 AM 01/26   45.90N/86.93W        
RAPID RIVER                  -27 F     0251 AM 01/26   45.93N/86.98W        
2 ENE FORD RIVER             -25 F     0934 AM 01/26   45.69N/87.11W        
3 SE CORNELL                 -24 F     0800 AM 01/26   45.86N/87.18W        

...DICKINSON COUNTY...
1 NNW RANDVILLE              -27 F     0813 AM 01/26   46.00N/88.06W        
KINGSFORD                    -24 F     0354 AM 01/26   45.82N/88.11W        
2 NNW NORWAY                 -21 F     0848 AM 01/26   45.81N/87.92W        

...GOGEBIC COUNTY...
IRONWOOD AIRPORT             -37 F     0256 AM 01/26   46.53N/90.13W        
6 ESE WAKEFIELD              -33 F     0801 AM 01/26   46.44N/89.83W        
WAKEFIELD                    -32 F     0751 AM 01/26   46.48N/89.95W        
WATERSMEET                   -29 F     0737 AM 01/26   46.27N/89.17W        

...HOUGHTON COUNTY...
1 WSW TWIN LAKES             -35 F     0818 AM 01/26   46.88N/88.86W        
1 E TROUT CREEK              -29 F     0833 AM 01/26   46.48N/88.99W        
2 NE ARNHEIM                 -22 F     0851 AM 01/26   46.95N/88.45W        
4 NNW HANCOCK                -19 F     0852 AM 01/26   47.19N/88.63W        

...IRON COUNTY...
2 E PEAVY FALLS DAM          -31 F     0746 AM 01/26   46.00N/88.16W        

...KEWEENAW COUNTY...
WINDIGO - ISLE ROYALE        -27 F     1124 PM 01/25   47.91N/89.14W        

...LUCE COUNTY...
NEWBERRY                     -31 F     0835 AM 01/26   46.31N/85.46W        
2 ESE MCMILLAN               -29 F     0600 AM 01/26   46.31N/85.65W        

...MARQUETTE COUNTY...
SAWYER AIRPORT               -37 F     0945 AM 01/26   46.35N/87.40W        
2 WNW GWINN                  -32 F     0812 AM 01/26   46.29N/87.47W        
1 W SUNDELL                  -30 F     0636 AM 01/26   46.35N/87.12W        
3 WSW SHOT POINT             -30 F     0702 AM 01/26   46.49N/87.23W        
2 SSE WITCH LAKE             -28 F     0902 AM 01/26   46.25N/88.01W        
MARQUETTE COAST GUARD        -27 F     0718 AM 01/26   46.55N/87.38W        
MARQUETTE                    -25 F     0432 AM 01/26   46.55N/87.39W        
MARQUETTE                    -23 F     0203 AM 01/26   46.54N/87.40W        
2 NW NATIONAL MINE           -20 F     0645 AM 01/26   46.49N/87.72W        
2 SSE TROWBRIDGE PARK        -10 F     0601 AM 01/26   46.53N/87.42W        

...MENOMINEE COUNTY...
MENOMINEE AIRPORT            -35 F     0756 AM 01/26   45.13N/87.64W        
8 ESE GOURLEY                -27 F     0806 AM 01/26   45.55N/87.27W        
1 WNW LA BRANCHE             -26 F     0812 AM 01/26   45.89N/87.49W        
STEPHENSON                   -24 F     0700 AM 01/26   45.41N/87.61W        

...ONTONAGON COUNTY...
1 ESE ROCKLAND               -29 F     0841 AM 01/26   46.72N/89.15W        
6 E MASS CITY                -26 F     0903 AM 01/26   46.77N/88.95W        

...SCHOOLCRAFT COUNTY...
SCHOOLCRAFT CO. AIRPORT      -30 F     0716 AM 01/26   45.97N/86.17W        
PORT INLAND                  -25 F     0900 AM 01/26   45.97N/85.87W        
1 S BLANEY PARK              -22 F     0437 AM 01/26   46.10N/85.93W        
1 SW GERMFASK                -17 F     0903 AM 01/26   46.24N/85.94W        

...MARITIME STATIONS...
BIG BAY                      -24 F     0620 AM 01/26   46.83N/87.72W        
GRAND MARAIS                 -21 F     0800 AM 01/26   46.68N/85.98W        

OBSERVATIONS ARE COLLECTED FROM A VARIETY OF SOURCES WITH VARYING
EQUIPMENT AND EXPOSURES. WE THANK ALL VOLUNTEER WEATHER OBSERVERS 
FOR THEIR DEDICATION. NOT ALL DATA LISTED ARE CONSIDERED OFFICIAL.

$$

RJC
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Still a bit out there, but we are getting close enough to be able to dive into some specifics.
I'd say there could be a couple shots to approach the all-time record low at ORD.  The first coming on Wednesday morning, which is more of an advective driven cold at that point with a bitter airmass aloft and winds staying fairly elevated.  Then another one potentially coming on Thursday morning after having an extremely cold starting point Wednesday evening.  Overall, Wednesday night/Thursday morning certainly looks like a better radiational cooling setup than Wednesday morning, though even then it appears the winds may not completely die off especially in/around the city.  Also, the airmass aloft looks like it will be warming by late Wednesday into Thursday, so not having full decoupling could be a problem.
I'm still not ready to predict an all-time record low for ORD, but to me, if it happens, the better chance of it occurring is on Wednesday morning because that is when the radiational cooling component is minimized, and anybody who pays attention knows that ORD can have problems with radiating.  That being said, Thursday can't be ruled out due to what was mentioned above about the extremely cold starting point.
Just my 2 cents and thoughts subject to change.
The top 5 coldest temps at ORD all had 15+ mph winds so I think best shot is the peak advection Wednesday morning.

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3 minutes ago, RCNYILWX said:

The top 5 coldest temps at ORD all had 15+ mph winds so I think best shot is the peak advection Wednesday morning.

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I really feel that way.  Wednesday morning has the better argument for being colder at ORD whether or not it's all-time record breaking.  We may have a starting point that we've rarely or never seen before on Wednesday evening so wanted to respect that.

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I really feel that way.  Wednesday morning has the better argument for being colder at ORD whether or not it's all-time record breaking.  We may have a starting point that we've rarely or never seen before on Wednesday evening so wanted to respect that.
Since the coldest temperature of the 2000s, -18 on 1/16/09, happened on a good radiational cooling night with only about -20 to -21 at 850 mb, have to account for that possibility.

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13 minutes ago, RCNYILWX said:

Since the coldest temperature of the 2000s, -18 on 1/16/09, happened on a good radiational cooling night with only about -20 to -21 at 850 mb, have to account for that possibility.

Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk
 

Getting back to Wednesday... still some model differences in timing/magnitude, but a blend would bring in the coldest temps aloft right in the diurnal min, like 5-8 am.  Hope it works out like that so we can squeeze every ounce of cold out of this.  :guitar:

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12z Euro has about -33C to -35C overhead at 850 mb from 6 am Wed through Wed afternoon.
What's amazing is that the Euro is not quite as cold aloft as the GFS at peak magnitude but would still threaten to break the all time coldest 850 at ILX.

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.LONG TERM...
158 PM CST

Tuesday through Saturday...

Record breaking to perhaps historic cold outbreak still on track
for mid week.

Medium range models remain generally in good agreement in bringing
in a period of record breaking cold, though there are some minor
differences in the details in the models. For days now, the GFS
and GFS-FV3 have remained on the cold end of the spectrum with 2m
advertising fairly widespread -30F temps Wed morning across the
northern CWA and keeping temps at or below -20 all day Wednesday.
These readings don`t just break records, but in some cases shatter
the all-time records. The ECMWF has been and the latest continues
to be more reasonable with 2m temps but still advertises
widespread temps at or below -20F Tues night/Wed AM and again Wed
night/Thur AM.

The ECMWF, GEM, FV3, and GFS all continue advertise all time
record cold 850mb temps and 500mb heights based on the SPC
sounding climo tool. These forecast values have shown some slight
variability from run to run over the past several days, but the
variability has mainly all been within record territory and just a
matter of how much lower than records the values progged are.
Given the run to run consistency and the consistency among the
various medium range models and their respective ensembles, it is
growing increasingly difficult to refrain from forecasting near
all time record temperatures.

Generally speaking, raw 2m temps from the various models
outperform any MOS type products during periods of extreme
temperatures. Have continued to gradually trend the forecast
closer to the model consensus of 2m temps, but still stayed a bit
warmer than the mean and much warmer than the coldest guidance
(GFS & FV3). While remaining warmer than the mean of 2m temp
guidance, we still are now officially forecasting record tying
all time cold high temps Wed at both RFD and ORD. Wind chills
should easily drop into the -35 to -45 range with some -50 degree
wind chills possible, especially Wednesday morning.

There is a bit more uncertainty with temps heading into Thursday
as the latest GFS moderates temps in response to an approaching
clipper. ECMWF and GEM aren`t on board with this idea, so stayed a
bit more above the 2m model consensus for Thursday, but still
officially below zero at RFD and Chicago. Assuming temps stay
below zero Thursday, then Chicago and Rockford both could be
looking at 72 continuous hours (or more) of sub-zero temps, though
the second half of that cold will come with lighter winds and
less extreme wind chills later Wednesday night onward.

Medium range models do indicate that this extreme cold outbreak
will break quickly late week with temperatures potentially
rebounding back up to the freezing mark next weekend.

- Izzi

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Looking back at 1/20/1985 when Chicago broke their all time record, it appears that 850 mb temps were around -32C at the time that the record was broken.  There was 7" of snow on the ground at ORD with plenty of snowcover upstream.  

In this case, 850 mb temps are progged at that level or even colder, and ORD will have deeper snowcover and again a nice snow field upstream.  Based on this historical case and the current model progs, there is every reason to think that the -27 record will be approached (by approached, I mean within a couple degrees) with a real chance to tie/break.

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I think South Bend’s all-time record of -22 will be safe but just barely. Lake Michigan will play a role in moderating the temp just enough. It helps South Bend’s airport is on the northwest side of the city, closer to the lake. Wind chills around -40 on Wednesday will still be enough to shut down the county....and perhaps still cold enough on Thursday.

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So keeping in mind that this situation is so rare/virtually without precedent in northern IL, I think there's a decent shot at the high not getting warmer than -15 at ORD on Wednesday.  -15 would break the all-time record low max by 4 degrees.  

A couple things that could interfere with that.  One, the airmass modifies a bit in the coming days and it just isn't able to stay that cold during the day.  The other would be the dreaded midnight high.  Right now, it looks like the cold comes just quickly enough to prevent the midnight high scenario but it's something to monitor.

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27 minutes ago, Scorpion said:

I don’t understand how Chicago with its massive UHI can approach -27 and Milwaukee cannot?

Does Chicago really have that big of an UHI effect? I'm originally from Northern NJ just NNW of Central Park ASOS by about 10 miles and I used to see 15-20 degree differences sometimes. NYC has the worst UHI. When it comes to Chicago, idk for a few reasons, one being that where the arctic air is coming from (NW of Chicago usually) has nothing but pure flat land. Two, its official observing station is ORD, I think, which is NW of Chicago proper so the temps recorded there don't really reflect what it's like right on the lakefront in Downtown Chicago.

UHI or not, I think you guys break many records with this upcoming cold. I'm hoping ORD and MDW set their all-time low maximum temperatures and you guys don;t get screwed with a "cheap" midnight high. Good luck!!!

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27 minutes ago, Hoosier said:

So keeping in mind that this situation is so rare/virtually without precedent in northern IL, I think there's a decent shot at the high not getting warmer than -15 at ORD on Wednesday.  -15 would break the all-time record low max by 4 degrees.  

A couple things that could interfere with that.  One, the airmass modifies a bit in the coming days and it just isn't able to stay that cold during the day.  The other would be the dreaded midnight high.  Right now, it looks like the cold comes just quickly enough to prevent the midnight high scenario but it's something to monitor.

Agree with your thoughts. I think the midnight high is more of a risk. It looks fairly likely that temps will stay below -11 on Wednesday afternoon. We’ll see what the 0z runs show tonight. 

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23 minutes ago, beavis1729 said:

Agree with your thoughts. I think the midnight high is more of a risk. It looks fairly likely that temps will stay below -11 on Wednesday afternoon. We’ll see what the 0z runs show tonight. 

If there is a midnight high, I just hope it's under -11.  

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Seeing how cold it got this morning really makes me wonder what we may see with the main surge.  It seemingly effortly dropped deep into the -20s which was very surprising.  Granted we had perfect radiational cooling over fresh/deep/dry snow pack.  Kinda makes ya wonder how cold it may get later this week if a certain area can max out their radiational cooling like what happened this morning.

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50 minutes ago, beavis1729 said:

Yes, ORD has significant UHI, along with all of the Chicago suburbs. An example is this morning, when ORD only hit -6 but many rural areas of northern IL were in the -10s and -20s. ORD doesn’t radiate well at all. It’s not quite as bad as NYC...but that’s not saying much...

Wow, I didn't realize it was like that.I know there is a big difference between Rockford and Chicago when it comes to arctic blasts and UHI but I always assumed that Rockford wasn't part of the Chicago metro area (If that's what you guys even call it). I was just going off of general maps I've seen of the area.

BTW speaking of Rockford, did they ever confirm that super record low back in 2014? I think it was something like -30 degrees or something like that and the NWS mets couldn't believe it so they went and checked the ASOS and I think even stayed overnight observing it or something to make sure it was calibrated properly.

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53 minutes ago, BombsAway1288 said:

Wow, I didn't realize it was like that.I know there is a big difference between Rockford and Chicago when it comes to arctic blasts and UHI but I always assumed that Rockford wasn't part of the Chicago metro area (If that's what you guys even call it). I was just going off of general maps I've seen of the area.

BTW speaking of Rockford, did they ever confirm that super record low back in 2014? I think it was something like -30 degrees or something like that and the NWS mets couldn't believe it so they went and checked the ASOS and I think even stayed overnight observing it or something to make sure it was calibrated properly.

No, that was a different location in 2014...I think it was RPJ (Rochelle, IL). The -30 was not deemed official. 

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