2-17 Lower Lakes Winter Storm

[Sciascia]

Yes I was thinking the same earlier. Usually a sign of convection possibility

Glad someone else sees it. I'm trying to be a level headed weenie & not make things up for dramatic effect, haha.

[Tom]

Same here Scott!  I was making breakfast and looking out my kitchen window and noticed how dark the clouds are.  BTW, its pretty rare to get hit by such a strong storm when winds are out of the SE.  I cant think of a storm dumping this much snow with winds out of the South...maybe a Clipper but not a Pacific system. 

 

Anyway, about to get hit by a short live 35dbz band....already got a nice coating of snow.  Should be some interesting drifts on the other side of the house this time around.

[East Dubzz]

Madtown, I take it that's also adding some of the snow possibly from Thursday?

[Madtown]

it says snowfall through wed.

[DominicR]

Same here Scott!  I was making breakfast and looking out my kitchen window and noticed how dark the clouds are.  BTW, its pretty rare to get hit by such a strong storm when winds are out of the SE.  I cant think of a storm dumping this much snow with winds out of the South...maybe a Clipper but not a Pacific system. 

 

Anyway, about to get hit by a short live 35dbz band....already got a nice coating of snow.  Should be some interesting drifts on the other side of the house this time around.

 

Same here. Pretty impressive.

[East Dubzz]

Returns to my west are really starting to look nice.

[ChiTownWeather]

Thundersnow has been reported down by Champaign-Urbana!

[Tom]

Wow, getting creamed right now with Heavy Snow!   Easily 1/8 mile visibility...flakes are huge and pouring out of the sky!  Here is a pic I took 5 min ago.

[jaster220]

Wow, getting creamed right now with Heavy Snow!   Easily 1/8 mile visibility...flakes are huge and pouring out of the sky!  Here is a pic I took 5 min ago.

 

Wow! at this winter Tom. Nice shot too! Good Luck over there. Hoping SWMI can get in on the bullseye area too!

[Iowawx]

Main band is now moving into Cedar Rapids, Iowa now. You guys in Chicago are going to get hit good. Lots of tiny flakes coming down, visibility down to 1/7 of a mile. 

[Madtown]

rippin pretty good atm

[The Snowman]

Legitimate 1"/hour rates ATM.

[Tom]

Snow band just keeps redeveloping to the SW over Cook county...this is what I'm talking about.

[Geos]

Nothing here yet in Racine.

[Money]

I would give it 15-20 mins in Racine. Heavier returns just to your south moving N.

[6789]

If there are bands that continue to redevelop like the last system we could be looking at a significant event. I'm just a little worried about the actual main line moving to fast. However, if there are 2-3" snows per hour in that band I think we will all see 4-8"

[Madtown]

looks like a big dry hole about to move in... thinkin we be in a screw zone

[Tom]

It doesn't look like we will see 8" totals around here...the back edge is already in E IA...we'll prob be done around 5pm or so.

 

Edit: Measured 0.5" with that band that lasted 30 minutes.

[Iowawx]

Thundersnow was just reported in my area. 

[Sciascia]

It doesn't look like we will see 8" totals around here...the back edge is already in E IA...we'll prob be done around 5pm or so.

Any belief that this will slow down? I would assume a neg tilt system would have some lasting power. Unless, of course, the tilt never fully happens.

[Money]

Via Americanwx out in independence, IA

 

Absolute rip city here last 30 minutes.  Pouring down flakes.  Can't accurately assess, but would think at least 2 inches in 30 mins.  Crazy stuff.

[Tom]

I would start watching the radar in SE IA/W IL over the next hour as there are blossoming cloud tops as the system is beginning to develop a comma shape signature.  This is where we will start seeing more Thundersnow reports.  Looking nice on water vapor imagery.  Initially I thought the convection over Champaign Urbana was going to steal the moisture away but I'm now noticing development over in the SE IA/W IL.

[Sciascia]

The calm before the storm here.

[Money]

The heavy band moving across east-central Iowa is dropping snow at 2-4 inches per hour.  I got 1" in 30 minutes, a guy just south of CR got 2" in 30 minutes.

 

poster in e. ia

[Tom]

I'm seeing the snow building back in extreme NE MO and that is the placement of the SLP.  This precip should pivot into N IL as the system tilts more in a NW/SE fashion.  According to LOT, we will begin to see intensification from now till the evening hours.

[bud2380]

I got over 2" in just under 30 minutes. It was beautiful.

[Tom]

Money, those are incredible snowfall rates.  That band will probably be in NE IL around 3-4pm right when the evening rush hour begins.  I could see ppl having 3-4 hour commutes back home.  Rush hour is going to be mayhem.  Hopefully with the Holiday the impact won't be as great.

[bud2380]

Heavy snow started right at 10:09 and didn't let up until 10:37. At least 2" in that time and probably just a tad over. I got 2.8" from 920-1040 and from 920-10:08 it only snowed lightly

[East Dubzz]

Looks like they whiffed on the winter storm warning over here. Gonna see some nice snowfall here soon, but my guess is 3" is what the total is here.

[Money]

Still nothing here lol, not even a flake

[Tom]

Skilling's RPM model showing the back edge of the snow will be done around 9:00pm...we may see some redevelopment of the snow shield as this puppy intensifies. 

[Scott26]

Yup, no reason to worry. This system is still continuing to intensify and redevelopment will continue. I still think a lot of areas could get 6 plus from this when all said and done. The snowfall rates later are going to be pretty ridiculous with 2-3 inches per hour and possible thundersnow so some areas may get warning amounts in a couple of hours.

[Tony]

Looking like the heavy bands will start moving in before noon.

[Money]

Just started here. Flakesize is pretty good

[jaster220]

D**n near bliz conditions here with

 

 

 

[Scott26]

Man this dry slot is starting to annoy me. Fill in! lol

[6789]

Small flakes starting to fall, heavy band just to my South, literally on my door step. The sky does look quite dark too, maybe some convection!

[Money]

https://twitter.com/OnMilwaukeeGull/status/435464076223721473/photo/1

[Geos]

Money, those are incredible snowfall rates.  That band will probably be in NE IL around 3-4pm right when the evening rush hour begins.  I could see ppl having 3-4 hour commutes back home.  Rush hour is going to be mayhem.  Hopefully with the Holiday the impact won't be as great.

 

And for those reasons I might stay at work a little longer. Hopefully the defo band pushes out by 6pm.

 

Was really ripping here in Racine for about 40 minutes.

 

But now it is back to flurries/--SN. Looks like about 3/4" fell. Lol, people were having a fit inside watching it! 

[Money]

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MILWAUKEE/SULLIVAN WI  
1129 AM CST MON FEB 17 2014  
   
UPDATE  
ONE HEAVY SNOW BAND IS MOVING THROUGH THE ERN AND NRN  
CWA WITH A LARGER AREA OF SNOW APPROACHING FROM IL. EXPECT THIS  
AREA TO BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD AND HEAVY DUE TO THE STRONG  
SHORTWAVE TROUGH OVER MO THAT WILL TRACK NEWD AND POSSIBLY BECOME  
A CLOSED 500 MB LOW AS EARLIER AS THE CHICAGO AREA OR OVER SRN  
LOWER MI. CYCLOGENESIS WILL OCCUR FROM SRN IL TO LAKE ERIE FROM  
THIS AFTERNOON INTO THE EARLY EVENING. THUS STRENGTHENING WARM  
ADVECTION...PVA...AND FRONTOGENESIS WILL BRING HEAVY SNOW THIS  
AFTERNOON. SE WI IS IN THE MOST FAVORABLE POSITION FOR THE  
HEAVIEST SNOW WHILE SOUTH CENTRAL WI WILL SEE A LITTLE LESS GIVEN  
THE FAST SPEED OF THE SYSTEM. OVERALL SNOW ACCUMS WILL RANGE FROM  
4-7 INCHES WITH THE HIGHER TOTALS OVER SE WI. THE WINDS HAVE BEEN  
WEAKENING FROM WEST TO EAST ACROSS THE AREA THIS MORNING AND THEY  
WILL CONTINUE TO DO SO INTO THE AFTERNOON WHEN THE HEAVIEST SNOW  
ARRIVES. THUS BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW WILL NOT BE AS PROBLEMATIC  
AS IT HAS BEEN AT TIMES THIS MORNING.