Here's why this ice storm is a big deal: (They flew hurricane hunters into it) [View all]
The ice storm underway in the South is going to be one of the most damaging storms of its kind in decades, if current projections pan out. The storm, which is gathering strength along the Gulf Coast, is pushing warm, moist air up and over an entrenched cold dome of high pressure that is keeping temperatures below freezing at the surface from Maine to Alabama.
Ice more than an inch thick is expected to coat much of central and eastern Georgia into central South Carolina. This may not sound like much, but considering that tree branches will break at just a quarter to a half-inch of ice accumulation, entire trees and power poles are likely to come crashing down in the hardest-hit areas.
Freezing rain results when a layer of warm air aloft and cold air at the surface causes rain to fall and freeze upon contact with the ground. Today, a strong area of high pressure across New England has been funneling cold air all the way down the East Coast and into Georgia, in a phenomenon that weather forecasters call “cold air damming.” The cold air damming was so strong this morning that the 32 degree Fahrenheit line was advancing southwest across Georgia, as the cold, dense air oozed its way down the eastern seaboard.
Want Proof It's Serious? Hurricane Hunters Flew Into the Storm
In an ominous sign, meteorologists at the National Weather Service (NWS) office in Atlanta have run out of adjectives to describe this event, writing in an early morning forecast discussion:
“This is an event of historical proportions!! Catastrophic...Crippling… Paralyzing… Choose your adjective. This is a very very big deal especially from metro Atlanta east along the I-20 corridor… generally anywhere south of I-85 and north of I-16 where the most significant ice totals are forecast. Stay safe out there!”
In order to improve the reliability of the computer models that its forecasters use to predict the weather, the NWS tasked the famed U.S. Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunters to fly a reconnaissance mission above the Gulf of Mexico last night. The aircraft dropped instrument packages known as dropsondes, which sent back data on air temperature, pressure, and winds, among other information. This data was then fed into an overnight run of one of the main computer models, known as the North American Model (or NAM for short).
<snip>
More:http://on.mash.to/1bNjdJ4
The only scare card they have left is to say it will be more damaging than Hugo.
= new reply since forum marked as read