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Late February will be rocking. February Long range Discussion thread


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12 minutes ago, psuhoffman said:

Even if I don't say it, its still going to be true.  The problem isn't the people pointing out the reality, its the fact its a reality.  

But it's happened several times over the last few years.  Most recently a couple weeks ago we had an absolutely perfect track storm that was just rain along 95.  I think no one noticed because from range it was supposed to be a cutter and it had no hope of snow anyways due to temps so people stopped paying attention but over the last 72 hours it trended east and ended up an absolutely perfect track coastal low but it did no good.  We had a couple of those in January and Feb 2021 also.  So why are you so sure it can't happen here?  I will acknowledge this is the most extreme example of all these recent events I am citing...but its also the warmest status quo airmass also so while I acknowledge there is a chance (please dont interpret this to mean I am saying there is a 0% chance of snow) I definitely do buy the possibility, if not even the likelihood,  we get a perfect track driving rainstorm.  

You are right that I wasn't really paying attention to the example you provided from two weeks ago. Were temps forecasted to get down into the 30'S for that storm? Was that storm intensifying with a deform band the way this is modeled?  I also don't recall models giving any kind of chance for snow within 7 days, till now. My reasoning is mostly that I believe a strong dynamic storm will form and pull away from Delmarva coast ENE, kind of like what Euro shows. However, if strong storm doesn't form and intensify quickly and take good track, then it will be unquestionably rain. A weak storm that takes perfect track will mean rain was well. 

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16 minutes ago, brooklynwx99 said:

it is very difficult to get a snowstorm when the system is completely cut off from the northern stream with a bad antecedent airmass, no matter the time of year. this would be a major storm if there was any kind of cold air in place

We can't get lucky 

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6 minutes ago, Blizzard Hunter said:

You are right that I wasn't really paying attention to the example you provided from two weeks ago. Were temps forecasted to get down into the 30'S for that storm? Was that storm intensifying with a deform band the way this is modeled?  I also don't recall models giving any kind of chance for snow within 7 days, till now. My reasoning is mostly that I believe a strong dynamic storm will form and pull away from Delmarva coast ENE, kind of like what Euro shows. However, if strong storm doesn't form and intensify quickly and take good track, then it will be unquestionably rain. A weak storm that takes perfect track will mean rain was well. 

As I admitted it wasn't an intense a storm as this but it would have been a 4-8" snowstorm if we had anything resembling a normal winter airmass, even a warm one by "normal" winter standards.  This would be the most extreme example, but this is also the warmest airmass also, with +15 anomalies heading in and just a small pocket of dynamically cooled mix of modified PC and maritime air behind the incoming trough to work with.  

Yes if we get an absolute bomb with a dead perfect h5 pass, and get a meso scale band dropping summer thunderstorm type rates, we could dynamically cool and get snow.  That is within the scope of possible outcomes here.  But much more likely is that any one of several variables doesn't go absolutely perfectly.  The h5 low track isnt perfect.  We don't get an intense enough meso band.  The low moves too slow and torches the thermals before it gets here.  Surface cuts inland too much.  There are way way way more fail scenarios than win.  

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1 minute ago, psuhoffman said:

As I admitted it wasn't an intense a storm as this but it would have been a 4-8" snowstorm if we had anything resembling a normal winter airmass, even a warm one by "normal" winter standards.  This would be the most extreme example, but this is also the warmest airmass also, with +15 anomalies heading in and just a small pocket of dynamically cooled mix of modified PC and maritime air behind the incoming trough to work with.  

Yes if we get an absolute bomb with a dead perfect h5 pass, and get a meso scale band dropping summer thunderstorm type rates, we could dynamically cool and get snow.  That is within the scope of possible outcomes here.  But much more likely is that any one of several variables doesn't go absolutely perfectly.  The h5 low track isnt perfect.  We don't get an intense enough meso band.  The low moves too slow and torches the thermals before it gets here.  Surface cuts inland too much.  There are way way way more fail scenarios than win.  

I don't dispute that there are many ways for this to fail, and probably will fail when it comes to snow. I responded to Euro control chart because it showed a 997 low, which obviously means some were hinting at a deeper low than that. There is no way a low deeper than 997 would not be tightening things up and pulling in more cold. I will be curious to see if other models trend toward stronger system. 

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29 minutes ago, Blizzard Hunter said:

I don't dispute that there are many ways for this to fail, and probably will fail when it comes to snow. I responded to Euro control chart because it showed a 997 low, which obviously means some were hinting at a deeper low than that. There is no way a low deeper than 997 would not be tightening things up and pulling in more cold. I will be curious to see if other models trend toward stronger system. 

Problem is where is it pulling the cold from???  there is no cold to tap to our north within 500 miles.  The only cold is the pocket of dynamically cooled air.
D0904F07-19EB-46BC-8230-3558F23134C7.thumb.png.c8be1ab9cb6ab3eee2363f004300a2f9.png
The slight imperfection that doomed the euro control was the slow movement and early close off of the upper low allowing us to be under easterly flow for too long. Plus by the time the system gets here it’s vertically stacked and not amplifying which is worse for dynamic cooling.  Also there is a limit. We’re not asking to cool a marginal column with a wet bulb of 36 degrees. On that run the boundary is torched. It’s too much to overcome no matter how heavy the precip is.  

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1 hour ago, brooklynwx99 said:

it is very difficult to get a snowstorm when the system is completely cut off from the northern stream with a bad antecedent airmass, no matter the time of year. this would be a major storm if there was any kind of cold air in place

Right from the 1997/1998 playbook, although that year there were multiple perfect storm tracks with all rain. 

History repeating itself 

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I think we should be tracking precip at this point. It’s not even a sure thing that we get anything from this system. We already know the uphill battle in temps given the 5 days of milder weather leading in. The 250mb map shows that there’s just little or no phasing with the northern stream, so how far north this goes is the real question. I’m hoping for precip bc I have the Catoctin’s at 1000ft+ on my doorstep…worst case, maybe I can drive up there for a hike and snow tv. Michaux would be tempting as well if the system gets that far north.

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