westMJim

Just took a snowfall, depth measurement and since 7AM yesterday I have 10” of new snow and now have a total of 18” on the ground. Here in NW GR the new snowfall is a big event now. I have at least 10" of new snow overnight. And there is at least 18" on the ground there is some drifting. I am sure the roads are not the best.

The official H/L yesterday at Grand Rapids was 33/21. There was 3.9” of snowfall and 10” on the ground. The highest wind speed was 45MPH out of the S. the sus can out for a few minutes and gave us 5% of possible sunshine. For today the average H/L is 31/19 the record high of 53 was in 1928 the record low of -15 was in 2015 the most snowfall of 7.2” was in 1963 (that very well should be broken today) The most snow on the ground was 23” in 1979. Last year the H/L was 32/18.

We will test the past statements that a warm/open lake in mid January should produce a good lake event. At this time that looks like the potential set up for tonight. The NWS is calling for this and we will see if that plays out or not. At the current time in MBY I am getting light snow with a temperature of 25. I will point out that the roads in Grand Rapids area at this time are good and well plowed. I hope everyone has their driveways cleared of the wet snow as that will become as hard as a rock with the cold.

I know there are some who love the cold and snow and some who do not like it as much. While the start of this winter season has been one for the people who do not like the snow and cold the winter of 1978/79 was one for the ones who do like it.

Starting on November 27^th 1978 Grand Rapids had 2” of snow on the ground and there was at least 1” of snow on the ground for every day up to March 14^th 1979 that is a string of 108 days in a row of 1” or more on the ground.  All 31 days of December 1978 had 2” or more topping out at 8”. The end of December seen a snowstorm with 8” on New Year’s Eve 1.8” more on New Year’s Day. On New Year’s Day there was 11” of snow on the ground that was the least amount of snow on the ground that month. As every day in that January had more than 11” on the ground. There was a several day snow event with a total of 21.8” in mid month. The most snow on the ground was 23” The most on the ground at Muskegon was 33” Back at Grand Rapids every day in February 1979 had over 12” of snow on the ground. With the most being 17” At Muskegon every day had oner 11” in February. The most there was 21” March started off with 11” at Grand Rapids and Muskegon the snow pack was gone in GR by March 14^th it held on to March 19^th at Muskegon. I am sure there were parking lot piles on the ground at the start of April. The meteorological winters of 1978/79 and 1903/04 are the only ones with 1” or mote of snow on the ground for the whole meteorological winter season.

There has been a lull in the snowfall overnight in much of SW Michigan. Overnight there has been around 0.2” of new snowfall.  Here in MBY at 6AM  there is light snow falling and the temperature is 31. The temperature has hung around 32 for many hours now and the snow that has fallen is very wet and sloppy.

For January 12^th the official H/L at Grand Rapids was 34/28. There was 0.71” of precipitation and a reported 7” of snowfall. There was 3” of snow on the ground yesterday at 7AM the highest wind gust was reported at 38MPH our of the E. For today the average H/L is 31/19 the record high of 58 was set in 1932 and the record low of -5 was set in 2015. The most snowfall of 10.5” fell in 1979 the most on the ground was 20” in 1918. Last year the H/L was 35/24. The official snowfall at Grand Rapids was 7” yesterday here in MBY I had 4.2” of very wet snowfall and there is now a total of 7” on the ground here in my yard. Some other snowfall totals from yesterday are 3.9" at Lansing, 4.5" at Muskegon. 4.6" at Detroit, 

At 3PM here in MBY there is now moderate snow falling with a temperature of 32. The road now has  coating of snow on it the driveway about the same On the snowboard there is now 0.5” of new snow and a total of 3”. I will be going into work shortly so I will not have any updates until around 10PM.

Well it is snowing here. But in looking at the current radar I wonder how long it will be before we can call this winter storm "bust?" I am starting to think that west Michigan could get more lake effect snow than system snow out of this.

In looking at the current radar there is a small area of light snow moving into Michigan. All of the current heavier snow is off to the west heading north. There is a large "dry" area to our south than some a large area of rain to the south of that dry area. 

At 7:40 AM the temperature here in MBY is 31 with cloudy skies. The current snow depth here is 2.5". I have a snow board set up a yard stick for measuring the snowfall. I also have several snow  shovels some are OK while a couple are not that good. I have gas for the snowblower so I guess I am about as ready as I can get for what may or may not come.

As we wait for the snow to start. The official H/L yesterday at Grand Rapids was 37/30 there was 0.9” of snowfall. The day started with 5” on the ground. There was 6% of possible sunshine. For today the official H/L is 31/19 the record high of 57 was in 2013 and the record low of -14 was set in 1918. 1918 also seen the record snow fall of 10.0” at Grand Rapids and the record snowfall of 8.0” at Muskegon at Lansing the record snowfall for today is 5.0” in 1867. The most snow on the ground was 22” in 1918. Last year the HL was 43/35.

23 minutes ago, Stacsh said:

Set up reminds me of Nov 2014.  

If and this is still a very big IF this plays out the way it looks like it might at this time I would look at January 1999 more than that November event. We shall see there are still things that may not happen will have a better handle on it tomorrow and Saturday. We shall see.

Here is some weather history for southern Lower Michigan for January 11

1890: Temperatures reach a record high of 63 degrees at Lansing during one of the warmest Januarys on record.

1979: Arctic air and a deep snow cover combine to drop the temperature to a record low of 21 below zero at Grand Rapids.

2005, the city of Maybee in Monroe County received 7.2 inches of snowfall from a passing snowstorm.

Across the USA 

1898:  An estimated F4 tornado struck the city of Fort Smith, Arkansas, just before midnight. The tornado, which touched down about 100 miles southwest of town, killed 55 people and injured 113 others along its track

1918: A powerful area of low pressure brought snow and bitterly cold temperatures to Chattanooga, Little Rock, and Shreveport. Birmingham, Alabama, picked up an inch of snow. In far southeastern Alabama, an estimated F3 tornado virtually damaged every building in the town of Webb. The tornado leveled one rural school, killing one teacher and seven students.

1963: An F2 tornado was reported in Scott County, Indiana, north of Louisville, Kentucky. It was on the ground for 5 miles north of Scottsburg and damaged or destroyed several homes and barns.

1972: Downslope winds hit the eastern slopes of the Rockies in northern Colorado and southeastern Wyoming. Boulder CO reported wind gusts to 143 mph and twenty-five million dollars in property damage.

2010: Bitter cold temperatures gripped central and southern Florida with lows in the teens and 30s.

The official H/L yesterday at Grand Rapids was 34/30 there was 1.5” of snowfall and at 7AM there was 5” of snow on the ground. The highest wind was 34 MPH out of the west, there was no sunshine. For today the average H/L is 31/19 the record high of 58 was in 2018 and the record low of -21 was in 1979. The wettest was 2.02” in 2020 the most snowfall of 6.9” was in 1991. The most snow on the ground was 19” in 1999. Last year the H/L was 47/31.  

If anyone is wondering the records snowfall at Grand Rapids for this weekend are for Friday 10.0” in 1918 For Saturday 10.5” in 1979 and 7.2” in 1963 for Sunday

The official snowfall at GRR for the event yesterday is 4.1" but that came with 0.94" of melted snow. And that 0.94" is a record for the date. Here in MBY I have 3" of very wet snow on the ground and to my  surprise  the county plowed the road already.

Yesterday had the 1^st major snowfall of the winter season. It was a very wet snowfall and Grand Rapids set a new record for the wettest January 9^th with 0.94” with a reported snowfall of 4.1” Here in MBY this morning I have 3” of very wet snow on the ground. For today the average H/L is 31/19 the record high of 57 was set in 1975 and the record low of -19 was set in 1942. The record snowfall of 5.2” fell in 1999. The most on the ground of 17” was in 1999 and 1979. Last year the H/L was 39/30.

As of 5:30 PM the official snowfall at Grand Rapids was 2.5" Here in MBY my 7PM measurement was 2.0" of wet heavy sloppy snow. It is still snowing here at this time with a temperature of 33.

Some weather history for January 9 in southern Lower Michigan 

1930: A snowstorm drops from 4 to 8 inches of snow across southwest Lower Michigan.

1977: Record cold prevails during one of the most severe winters in Michigan history. Records include the 17 below zero at Lansing, 14 below at Grand Rapids and 8 below at Muskegon.

2015: Temperatures in the single numbers and lake effect snow showers create icy roads resulting in a 193 car pileup on Interstate 94 and both east and westbound lanes are shut down between Battle Creek and Galesburg.

 2004, a band of lake effect snow formed over Lake Huron and dropped 4-6 inches of snow across the northeast tip of the thumb.

 1997, significant ice accumulation on the wings of Comair flight 3272, crashed in a field outside Detroit near Ida, Michigan. The plane was en route from Cincinnati, Ohio. All 29 people, including 26 passengers and three crew members, were killed.

So far this snow event has almost been a no show here in the Grand Rapids area with some light snow and a temperature of 33 there is just 0.2” of snow on the ground. While it is too early to say how the Friday to Saturday system will play out just remember a few days ago this system was said to be a "huge" storm and so far it has been not much of anything and at this time there is less than a half inch of snow on the ground here in MBY.

The official H/L yesterday at Grand Rapids was 34/31 there was a trace of snowfall and no sunshine. The official snowfall for this season at GRR as of yesterday was at 3.5” that is a departure of -30.6” below average as of this date. For today the average H/L is 31/19 the record high of 57 was set in 1939 and the record low of -14 was set in 1977. The wettest January 9^th was in 1946 with 0.85” (all rain) the most snowfall of 8.0” was in 1930 The most on the ground was 19” in 1999. Last year the H/L was 39/29.

THE WOLVERINES ARE NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!

Congratulations to the Wolverines for their resounding defeat of the Washington Huskies 34 to 13!  

Also congratulations to the ones who have gotten snow so far out of this so called 1st system. Here in MBY so far just 0.2" of snowfall that right just .2" of snow on the ground here with light snow falling and a temperature of 33

Some weather history for southern Lower Michigan for January 8th

1880: Temperatures remain above freezing for the fifth consecutive day during the warmest January on record at Lansing.

1965: Temperatures soar to record highs of 59 degrees at Grand Rapids and Lansing and 55 degrees at Muskegon. A cold front moves through and temperatures will only reach the 20s the next day.

 2005, the city of Samaria in Monroe County received 6.0 inches of snow when a snowstorm hit the area.

1973:  Georgia’s worst ice storm since 1935 occurred from the 7th through the 8th. Freezing rain and sleet began during the early morning hours on Sunday the 7th and ended in most areas on Monday. Total damage was estimated at well over $25 million. The electric power companies suffered losses estimated at $5 million, and telephone companies had another $2 million in damages. Some schools were closed for more than a week.

2019: An unusual January tornado impacted Cortland, Ohio, during the mid-morning hours. The EF-1 tornado developed northeast of Champion Township in Trumbull County and moved east. The tornado brought down numerous trees and wires along the 4.5-mile path.

The official H/L yesterday at Grand Rapids was 36/30 the day started out with 1” of snow on the ground here in MBY that melted quickly. Officially there was 0.5” of pricp and 0.3” of snowfall. There was no sunshine. For today the average H/L is 31/20 the record high of 59 was set in 1965 and the record low of -13 was set in 1988. The wettest was 0.74” in 1937 the most snowfall was 5.2” in 2015. The most on the ground was 20” in 1999. Last year the H/L was 32/28.

We are now 7 days into January and the warmth has continued the mean at Grand Rapids for the week was 31.3° that is +5.1 the highest so far is 36 and the lowest so far is 24. Over at Lansing the mean there so far is 29.9 that is a departure of +4.7 the highest so far is 35 and the lowest is 22. At Muskegon the mean is a very mild 34.4 that is a departure of +6.4. the warmest so far has been 39 and the lowest is just 29.

Some weather history for southern Lower Michigan for January 7 

1942: Record cold high temperatures occur as arctic high pressure prevails. The high temperature is only 4 degrees at Grand Rapids and 6 at Muskegon. At Lansing, the thermometer struggles to reach the zero mark during the day, with a frigid northwest wind making it feel even colder

1988: An arctic blast brings several days of sub-zero cold to Lower Michigan, including record lows this morning of 15 below zero at Grand Rapids and 11 below at Muskegon.

2014, Southeast Michigan was amidst a 3-day period of record to near-record cold temperatures. Record lows were recorded at Detroit, Flint, and Saginaw. Detroit and Flint each fell to -14 degrees while Saginaw fell to -11 degrees. The coldest spot in Southeast Michigan was the city of Saline in Washtenaw County which fell to -23 degrees! The high temperature in Detroit on this day reached only -1 making it one of the coldest days on record for the city. Widespread wind chills in the -30s and -40s were recorded.

2008, record highs were set across Southeast Michigan. Detroit reached 64, Flint 61, and Saginaw 59. These temperatures were only 3 to 4 degrees off of the all-time January high temperatures. Later in the evening, thunderstorms moved across the region. Some of these storms were severe in Midland, Washtenaw, and Monroe Counties! Since 1986 only two other January have had severe weather, 1990 and 1996.

Some USA weather history for January 7.

1989,  Empty foundations are all that remain of four homes on the southwest end of Allendale, Illinois after an F4 tornado ripped through. The tornado was extremely rare due to its strength and the fact that it occurred so far north during the middle of meteorological winter.

2008,  2008,A rare, EF3 tornado tracked across southeastern Wisconsin. Experiencing a tornado in Wisconsin in January is extremely rare. In fact, it had only happened once between 1950 and 2007, when an F3 tornado affected parts of Green and Rock Counties on January 24, 1967. That tornado in South Central Wisconsin was part of a much larger outbreak of 30 tornadoes across mostly Iowa, Illinois, and Missouri. Wisconsin ended up with 30 tornadoes in 1967.

The official H/L yesterday at Grand Rapids was 33/28. There was a trace of snowfall before midnight. There was no sunshine once again. For today the average H/L is 32/20 the record high of 63 was wet in 2008 and the record low of -15 was set in 1988. The wettest was in 1907 when 0.59” of rain fell. The most snowfall of 5.4” was in 1962 the most on the ground of 20” was in 1999. Last year the H/L was 32/29 there was a trace of snowfall and a reported 1” on the ground.

Here in MBY there was 1” of snowfall overnight and there is 1” on the ground. There is light snow falling with a temperature of 32 here in MBY.

Looking back at 2023

The highest reading was 93 on May, 31^st , August 24^th and September 5^th. The lowest was 8 on January 31^st The average H/L was 61.8/44.5 The mean for the year was 51.0 that is a departure of +1.7. 2023 was the 9^th  warmest on record at Grand Rapids. The last last low of 32° or lower was on April 27^th. The first day with a low of 32 or lower was on October 23^rd for a growing season of 199 days.  There were 10 days of 90 or better, that is +2 days above average. There were only 8 days with highs below 32° that was well below the average 43 days. There were 72 days when the lows were below 32°, that was well below the average of 123 days. There were no days with lows of below 0 that is below the average of 3 days.  There was a total of 37.43” of precipitation 30 year average is 34.36” there were 146 days of 0.01” or more that is average. There were 78 days of 0.10” of more 74 is average. There were 23 days of 0.50” or more 22 is average and 7 days of 1.00” or more and that is average. The most rain in 24hrs was 2.81 on August 14/15. There were 5230 HDD’s -1103 below average and 641 CDD’s -349 below average so even though 2023 was the 2^nd warmest on record the energy use was below average. The highest wind speed was 53 MPH on February 15^th the sun was out a total of 48% of the time. There were 154 clear days, 100 partly cloudy days and 110 cloudy days. For the year there were a reported 30 thunderstorms. 35 days with heavy rain, 127 days with light rain, 4 days with fr rain. 5 days with heavy snow, 50 days with light snow. Fog on 190 days visibility lest that ¼ mile on 31 days.  The annual mean of 52.4 at Muskegon was the 2^nd warmest the mean of 51.2 at Lansing was the 3^rd warmest and the mean of 50.1 at Grand Rapids was the 7^th warmest. So that is 2023 in review.

While we are now in meteorological winter this past Tuesday the Earth was at its closes point to the sun known as perihelion at 7:38 PM and is now heading out towards aphelion.  Earth's perihelion takes place in early January. The exact date shifts because the calendar year doesn't perfectly match Earth's orbit. 

The word comes from Greek and literally means around (peri) the sun (helios). Aphelion is the point at which an orbiting body is furthest from the sun.

Earth's perihelion takes place in early January. The exact date shifts because the calendar year doesn't perfectly match Earth's orbit. While this year it was on January 2^nd in 2025 it will be on January 4^th in 2026 it will be January 3^rd in 2027 back to January 2^nd and in 2028 it will be on January 5^th

As for aphelion, that is when the Earth is the far point from the sun. This year it will be on July 5^th The date for aphelion also happens on different days every year.

So bottom line is that here in the Northern Hemisphere we are closer to the sun in winter and farther from the sun in Summer. The difference is around 3 million miles.

3 hours ago, tStacsh said:

More cold air in place for this one.  That's all I got.

That one will go to the south of us