Mountain West Discussion

[Front Ranger]

Very warm day here with a high of 78. Not close to a record, though...records are still in the mid 80s until late in the month.

[Black Hole]

Nice today, mid 50s and sunny. Saturday looks chilly still with 700 mb temps falling to -12C, but with little moisture it may just bring some flurries to a dusting. 

A stronger storm may arrive next weekend. 

[Kayla]

Pretty run of the mill but pleasant weather here this week. Strong, downsloping winds develop today with temps climbing up to around 70F.

 

Cold front moves in Friday afternoon which will likely turn the rain to snow by Friday evening. We'll possibly see some light accumulations by Saturday morning before a ridge quickly develops raising temps to above normal once again. 

[Black Hole]

The storm on Saturday ended up being weak with no snow, or at least nothing that stuck since it was mostly while I was sleeping. The storm next weekend is also quite watered down at this point. Probably just pleasant fall weather for a while with limited action for now. 

[Front Ranger]

The storm on Saturday ended up being weak with no snow, or at least nothing that stuck since it was mostly while I was sleeping. The storm next weekend is also quite watered down at this point. Probably just pleasant fall weather for a while with limited action for now. 

 

Yeah, looks like we're stuck in a boring pattern for awhile.

[Kayla]

It was crazy warm here today. Pulled off a 74F/57F day with strong downsloping winds all day and night. Looking forward to tomorrow afternoons cold front that will drop the temps back into the 30's by late afternoon. Should see some snow fly but unlikely to see much accumulation, if any.

 

Next week is beginning to look a little more interesting (cold/snowy), especially as the week progresses. 

[Kayla]

Very dynamic cold front just moved through here. Had wind gusts up over 40mph and a very sharp temperature drop. From 58F at 3pm down to 36F at 4pm. 22F drop in just one hour during the afternoon hours!

Currently getting very heavy wet snow at 32F.

[Kayla]

Ended up with an 1.5" of wet snow with yesterdays front. Starkly cooler today, currently 34F.

 

Unsettled pattern for the rest of the weekend with strong downsloping winds forecasted once again Tue/Wed and warming temps. ECMWF continues to show a very strong cold front moving through Wednesday night bringing a sharp temperature drop and possibly my first significant accumulating snowfall of the season.

[Guest happ]

Salt Lake Valley

 

Photo: Dan Pope

 

[Black Hole]

Salt Lake Valley

 

Photo: Dan Pope

From that view it looks like the Cottonwood heights area, which is the SE part of the metro. It is among, if not the snowiest place where people live in the SLC area. 

[Front Ranger]

After two listless weeks of dry, warm, boring weather, it looks like the pattern finally starts getting interesting again in about a week or so. In the mean time, at least there's a very fall-like cold front to look forward to on Friday. Should produce highs in the mid 40s with brisk northerly winds. Maybe a few snow showers in the morning.

[Kayla]

Sharp cold front is still on for Wednesday night here. Strong downsloping winds tomorrow will raise the temps up into the upper 60's tomorrow afternoon before crashing back into the low 30's Wednesday night.

 

Not a whole lot of moisture with the front as we're lacking upper level support being on the western fringes of the trough. Probably will still be enough to pick up a quick 1-2" of snowfall though.

[Black Hole]

Down in Utah we may get a little spillover of cold air from east of the Rockies on Halloween, but otherwise boring weather continues until around Nov 5th. At that time, assuming models don't change, it looks like much cooler weather and perhaps our first real snow may be possible. Time will tell. 

[Kayla]

Beautiful warm 65F sunset last night was replaced by a cold brisk morning and 2" of fresh, dry snow. Still rather cold out at this hour, currently 27F.

 

 

 

[Front Ranger]

In Vegas for work, but looks like my area is getting moderate snow with a temp of 32 right now.

[Front Ranger]

Afternoon temps in Denver Wednesday were low 80s. 24 hours later, they were in the low 30s.

[Kayla]

12z ECMWF says winter starts Monday and sticks around for the foreseeable future up here. Plenty of snow chances beginning Wednesday and lasting through the weekend. Operational shows about a foot over the next 10 days for my area while the EPS ensemble is showing even more.

 

First below zero readings could also start to show up by the weekend as well. Fun times ahead!

[Kayla]

Cold front is currently passing through here this morning. Should start to see the snow start around noon with light accumulations (1-2") expected through this afternoon.

 

After todays front the focus continues to be the Wednesday-Monday period. ECMWF and EPS continue to show significant snow accumulations while the GFS shows just light accumulations as the cold air gets hung up just north of here. GEFS mean shows the cold air sagging more southward so the GFS operational is kind of out on its own.

 

As of right now the NWS seems to be siding with the GFS but it's been a lot more inconsistent over the last few days while the ECMWF has been steadfast. Time will tell!

 

00z ECMWF meteogram for the Bozeman Airport

[Black Hole]

Unlike weatherbell images, Ryan's new page I believe is open source so what Kayla posted is ok as far as I know. 

[Kayla]

Unlike weatherbell images, Ryan's new page I believe is open source so what Kayla posted is ok as far as I know. 

 

Yeah it's open source and can be posted with credit per their T&C.

 

Great alternative for those that don't have WxBell access!

[Kayla]

Looks like the GFS finally caved to the ECMWF... Good agreement now for a long duration snow event here (with some breaks) beginning Wednesday evening through the weekend. 

 

The Euro once again proves that it's the superior model.

[Black Hole]

ECMWF shows a great storm here next weekend. It has about 3" at the airport with 1.5" of liquid, and at my place its closer to 10-12" of snow. Probably overdone but nice to see.

[Kayla]

Chilly this morning with a low of 19F. Should only top out in the mid 30's today with full sunshine.

[Front Ranger]

Temps around freezing here with light snow/freezing drizzle all morning.

[Black Hole]

Temps around freezing here with light snow/freezing drizzle all morning.

How much snow have you had this year?

[Front Ranger]

How much snow have you had this year?

 

About 5". Only a trace today.

[Kayla]

Had a 36/18 day here yesterday. Not bad for a little clipper!

 

Under a Winter Storm Watch here now for the first round of 4-8" Wednesday-Friday. Front will lift northward Friday afternoon then drop back south Saturday night bringing another round significant snow accumulation of 4-6". Cold air really settles in here on Sunday night and with a healthy snowpack we should see our first single digit lows to possibly even some below zero readings by Monday morning.

 

Even the airport in Belgrade (driest and lowest location in the valley) continues to show significant accumulations.

 

[Black Hole]

Models have backed off a bit on the cold but not the precipitation. So it may end up being a rain event here in SLC, but possibly a good amount of it so that is fine as long as we get something. 

[Kayla]

Wow, the 12z ECMWF just buries me. 18" of snow at the airport and 20-24" for me through Sunday. The front sags just a little more southward on this run and stalls out and dumps over 2" of precip over the area through Sunday. Things are getting interesting!

 

[Kayla]

Winter Storm Warning just issued from midnight tonight through Wednesday for my area.

 

They're going with 5-10" of snowfall with this first round which looks about right. 

[Kayla]

Heavy snow has begun here at 32F and forecast is on track thus far.

 

The 00z ECMWF is sticking to it's guns showing a storm total of 20-24" IMBY and 12-18" in town. Snow is already sticking to the roads even in town so a very snowy day with significant accumulations is ahead as the front stalls over the area.

[Kayla]

Just dumping snow now. Even here in downtown at MSU there is already 3-4" on the ground.

 

 

[Front Ranger]

Awesome! Your first full winter there is off to a great start.

[Kayla]

Awesome! Your first full winter there is off to a great start.

 

It really is! Not sure how long it will last but at least November is looking good here (cold/snowy).

[Kayla]

Picked up 8" on the day so far. Downtown Bozeman picked up 5" as of 5pm. Front moved through this afternoon and really dropped the temps.

 

Currently 25F and still snowing moderately but I doubt I'll head out to get another measurement tonight.

 

Snow should taper tonight then increase once again tomorrow night. ECMWF continues to show another 12-18" for me through Sunday. It's going to be quite the week!

[Kayla]

The heavy wet snow that fell yesterday afternoon froze up pretty well overnight here with a low of 23F. Formed some pretty massive icicles! Was a cold, icy and dicey on the roads this morning as well. 

 

Looks like we'll stay below the freezing mark today which will be my first of the season. Currently 26F as of the noon hour.

 

 

 

[Kayla]

Snow has been relentless here. Getting really tough to keep up on plowing and snow measurements. Haven't even seen the sun since Monday! Picked up another 3" overnight and it's still snowing currently.

 

We're under another Winter Storm Warning through 6pm tomorrow with another 6-10" expected. The warming that was forecasted hasn't materialized as once again the cold air is winning out. We've been in the prime boundary area where the warm moist air is meeting the cold air.

 

Looks like a very heavy snow band associated with the cold front is going to move through here this evening dropping 2-3" per hour snowfall rates. Hard to keep up with this stuff!

[Front Ranger]

Looks like a weak system will bring a chance of snow early next week, then the pattern turns warm/dry. The warmth may or may not end up extending all the way across the rest of the Rockies and Great Basin, but looks like it will definitely be warm here and probably for much of the West.

[wx_statman]

Over a foot of snow in the Kalispell area today with highs in the low 20's. Spotter report of 12.7" in Evergreen, just north of town. 

[Kayla]

And it's only November 3rd.  You may have 5 more months of this.

 

Yeah... Winter came in with a bang this year!