Blast of serious cold is on its way!

[deeptrance]

I'm not talking about the late January cold snap in the northeast. The longer-range predictions are showing that a giant high pressure is setting up over Alaska and the north Pacific, which will toss the jet stream straight over Siberia, the North Pole, down the east side of the Rockies and it's going to plunge the entire eastern two-thirds of the USA and Canada into extreme cold all the way into northeast Mexico!

Yikes... I think I'll use my flight miles to get out of Texas next week, I don't want to watch everyone's landscaping die. We haven't had anything colder than about 25 degrees for many years in Austin, so people and businesses have become forgetful about what CAN happen here and WILL inevitably happen again. After all, our record low in Austin is 2 BELOW ZERO! That's enough to take out many thousands of palms and other landscaping trees that have been getting by during recent mild winters. I hope the forecast is wrong, but all the computer models are converging on the same conclusion that we're gonna get hammered in the first week of February.

Brrr.....
California dreamin'....

[the dufferz]

Originally Posted by deeptrance

I'm not talking about the late January cold snap in the northeast. The longer-range predictions are showing that a giant high pressure is setting up over Alaska and the north Pacific, which will toss the jet stream straight over Siberia, the North Pole, down the east side of the Rockies and it's going to plunge the entire eastern two-thirds of the USA and Canada into extreme cold all the way into northeast Mexico!

Yikes... I think I'll use my flight miles to get out of Texas next week, I don't want to watch everyone's landscaping die. We haven't had anything colder than about 25 degrees for many years in Austin, so people and businesses have become forgetful about what CAN happen here and WILL inevitably happen again. After all, our record low in Austin is 2 BELOW ZERO! That's enough to take out many thousands of palms and other landscaping trees that have been getting by during recent mild winters. I hope the forecast is wrong, but all the computer models are converging on the same conclusion that we're gonna get hammered in the first week of February.

Brrr.....
California dreamin'....

wow, Washington has been getting hit hard this winter, sounds like we will miss this one!

Deept. Come to Seattle! See what green trees and gray skies are all about, ride a ferry, do the needle, some sight seeing (see my posts in washington).

[deeptrance]

I've spent MUCH time in Seattle. 3 of my best friends live there, plus my sister (she lives near Greenlake) and I've got cousins who live on Bainbridge Island. I was in Seattle for a month this past summer. Have also been there in winter, much prefer the summer and I'm sure you know why! I love it there, and I can't figure out why I don't want to live there because I love it so much but I never feel like it's home. Yet the first time I saw Austin, it felt like home within 24 hours! Strange, totally irrational.

[cleozmom]

If it's gonig down the east side of the Rockies, I should be realtively warm. If you consider just rising above 0 warm.

[Pensypat]

They are predicting a low of -2 in my part of northeast Pa. With the winds we are going to get tonight, the windchill temperatures are going to be between -10 and -24 degrees. It's definitely a night to stay indoors. Brrrrrr

[Sekretgardengal]

I sure hope it warms up when we get up there to move in!

[deeptrance]

Originally Posted by Pensypat

They are predicting a low of -2 in my part of northeast Pa. With the winds we are going to get tonight...

Keep in mind that what they're talking about is coming a week later and will be WORSE than what you're about to experience!

Hopefully they'll be wrong about this prediction.

[Pensypat]

Originally Posted by deeptrance

Keep in mind that what they're talking about is coming a week later and will be WORSE than what you're about to experience!

Hopefully they'll be wrong about this prediction.

Yikes!!! Time to hibernate! I think we are paying for the mild weather we started out with this winter. It was almost like Spring. I knew it was going to catch up with us sooner or later.

[Pensypat]

Originally Posted by Sekretgardengal

I sure hope it warms up when we get up there to move in!

I hate to say this but February can be a brutal month to be moving to this area. I'll keep my fingers and toes crossed that you luck out and get warmer weather and no snow or ice.

[Corlyx]

Nothing unusual about the temperatures here. Currently 14 degrees and sunny.

[MyAzi]

I am so sorry for those of you on the Eastern Side of the US... We here in the PNW have had our share of cold for us. Right now it is chilly out but has been sunny and I am so glad...I know the rain will come back but it is nice to have a break....

Guess you will all have to GO WEST!!!

[deeptrance]

The computers and humans are compromising as of today.

A few days ago, computer models were forecasting a high in the 70s on Superbowl Sunday, while our local people were forecasting 30s.

Now the computers and humans are getting into agreement about a mild cool-down that won't be anything as bad as originally suggested in this thread. I need to be careful about sounding the weather alarm more than a week in advance because no technology or human intuition has ever mastered weather forecasting much beyond about 6 or 7 days. *shrug*

[Wyoming53]

Deeptrance

You hit it pretty close. I live in Sheridan, just on the Eastern slope of the Big Horn Mountains. (Last of the Rockies going East) Sheridan is about 30 degrees at my house, clear sky's, no wind. However, Gillette, just 120 miles East of here is getting pumbled. Blizzard conditions, near zero visibility, and minus 2 degrees.

So you folks East of here, stand by for tomorrow. It'll reach you eventually.

[Wyoming53]

deeptrance. This is funny. 10 minutes after I made that last post. The Weather bug on my computer lit off. Says, "Severe weather alert".

When I clicked on it, this is what it said.

The National Weather Service In Billings Has Issued A Winter Weather Advisory... Which Is In Effect From 6 AM Thursday To 6 AM MST Friday.

An Arctic Front Will Push South Into The Area Early Thursday Morning. It Will Bring Periods Of Snow And Blowing Snow. Snow Will Be Heaving At Times Late In The Morning And Early Afternoon Thursday... Before Decreasing By Early Evening. The Wind And Snow Will Significantly Reduce Visibilities At Times. Snow Accumulations Are Expected To Be Around 3 Inches.

The Front Will Also Bring Very Cold Air... With Temperatures Falling To Around Zero By Afternoon. This Will Result In Dangerous Wind Chills Of 15 To 30 Below Zero Through Thursday Night.

So you didn't miss it at all.

[Sekretgardengal]

Whatever happens, happens. I still can't wait to get home :)

[MyAzi]

Originally Posted by Wyoming53

deeptrance. This is funny. 10 minutes after I made that last post. The Weather bug on my computer lit off. Says, "Severe weather alert".

When I clicked on it, this is what it said.

The National Weather Service In Billings Has Issued A Winter Weather Advisory... Which Is In Effect From 6 AM Thursday To 6 AM MST Friday.

An Arctic Front Will Push South Into The Area Early Thursday Morning. It Will Bring Periods Of Snow And Blowing Snow. Snow Will Be Heaving At Times Late In The Morning And Early Afternoon Thursday... Before Decreasing By Early Evening. The Wind And Snow Will Significantly Reduce Visibilities At Times. Snow Accumulations Are Expected To Be Around 3 Inches.

The Front Will Also Bring Very Cold Air... With Temperatures Falling To Around Zero By Afternoon. This Will Result In Dangerous Wind Chills Of 15 To 30 Below Zero Through Thursday Night.

So you didn't miss it at all.

Darn that sounds cold... I don't know how you do it!!!

[Wyoming53]

Well, wind chill is a computation to tell you what the current temp feels like on bare skin. So just don't run outside naked and your ok. haha

Wind chill temps have nothing to do with autos or anything else. Only what it feels like on bare skin. So bundle up, your fine.

[MyAzi]

Originally Posted by Wyoming53

Well, wind chill is a computation to tell you what the current temp feels like on bare skin. So just don't run outside naked and your ok. haha

Wind chill temps have nothing to do with autos or anything else. Only what it feels like on bare skin. So bundle up, your fine.

NOT BE NAKED!!!? forget it then!

okay just kidding... I never understood what wind chill really was until I lived in Alaska at a young teen...

[Wyoming53]

Thank you. We are getting hammered here in Sheridan. The snow is coming down sideways. hahaha Winds are 20+ mph and it's snowing hard. They closed the interstate at about 9 this morning. When I got up at 5 it was 26 degrees. Now it's 15 degrees and dropping. They say zero by noon and still dropping. Yesterday they said, 2-3 inches. Today they're saying accumulations of 8-10 inches of snow. We'll see.

[Sekretgardengal]

I will still take the cold and snow over hurricanes any day!

[MyAzi]

Originally Posted by Sekretgardengal

I will still take the cold and snow over hurricanes any day!

I am with you!!! I hate the wind.

[Wyoming53]

Me Three! Snow is pretty predictable. Hurricane's, not so much. With cold and snow, add a few layers. With hurricane's, run like hell. haha

Well, now it's 6 degrees. Winds are hitting 30mph. Snowing bad enough I can't see the house across the street.

I've went out and swept the partly cloudy off my deck twice so far. Figure if I keep it swept off all day, I won't have to shovel heavy stuff later.

[MyAzi]

Originally Posted by Wyoming53

Me Three! Snow is pretty predictable. Hurricane's, not so much. With cold and snow, add a few layers. With hurricane's, run like hell. haha

Well, now it's 6 degrees. Winds are hitting 30mph. Snowing bad enough I can't see the house across the street.

I've went out and swept the partly cloudy off my deck twice so far. Figure if I keep it swept off all day, I won't have to shovel heavy stuff later.

Stay warm and make sure you have sources of heat in case you lose your power. We lost ours here for 4 days and it was only in the 20's IN THE HOUSE!!! The winds were horrible!

[Wyoming53]

Heat? Not to worry. I have 3 heat sources.

Typical natural gas furnace. Propane radiate heat. And the best one of all. I have a big rock fire place and lots of wood. :-)

[Sekretgardengal]

We have a backup generator. We bought it when we had the hurricane.
We have a coal stove and then the electric heat.
We are getting a propane stove for the livingroom that will heat up the whole house too.

[MyAzi]

well you are all smarter than we New Washingtonians were.. all we had was our fireplace and wood...WET WOOD!!!! some critter chewed a hole in the tarp covering it... we used all the dry wood we had and were down to half a dozen logs and on came the lights... and do you think we are ready for more outages...NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Dumb Southern Californians!

[Wyoming53]

Second day in a row. Yesterday we got hammered until about mid afternoon and then it kind of cleared up and the wind died. Then, last night it started up again and it's still going. I swept my deck about an hour ago and there's a 4 inch drift right in front of the door and about an inch over the rest of the deck.

Winds are 25+ mph. Temp isn't real bad, it's 16 degrees.

My son-in-law works in Buffalo and tonight, he's going to sleep in Buffalo. They closed the interstate about noon so he can't get back here to Sheridan. No word when they're going to open it again. It's closed due to wind and visibility, not accumulation of snow.

[cleozmom]

Last I looked around 10 o'clock it was 6 above and little to no wind. Husband is out in Des Moines and they are under the windchill watch until Noon Saturday, could get -20/-30 windchill temp.

[MyAzi]

Oh gosh you guys, my heart goes out to you. Try to stay warm!!!

[Wyoming53]

Originally Posted by MyAzi

Oh gosh you guys, my heart goes out to you. Try to stay warm!!!

I'm trying. haha

I swept my deck at 1 this morning. At 7 when I got up, I had 8 inches of snow on the deck and it's still snowing. At least the wind stopped. but the snow rolls on. 10 degrees. Interstate still closed. With no wind they should be opening that up real soon.