September 2019 Weather Discussion for the PNW

[snow_wizard]

The local news here in central Oregon has rain and snow in the forecast for Saturday and then some snow showers on Sunday around with highs in the low 40’s. Hope winter isn’t blowing its load too early.

 

This early is good.  

[Blizzard777]

The best match I can find when looking at a mix of 500mb pattern and surface pressure gradient is early October 1985.  In Landsburg that cold snap resulted in a 53-28 day.  For the outlying areas in the Puget Sound region I'm going for...

 

Coolest max temps = low to mid 50s

 

Coldest low temps = upper 20s to low 30s.

 

The NWS is certain to be too high.  To look at their forecast one would think it's impossible to go below 40 this time of year.  I have seen much less impressive patterns bring lows in the mid 30s here.  I still think it could go even lower than these numbers given the details of the upcoming pattern.  I wouldn't be shocked to see one night down to 35 here by midnight.

Yellow stripy things will not like this at all!

[TacomaWaWx]

I’m really looking forward to the crisp, sunny days later this weekend and early next week too.

Things start to get kind of confusing when you try to fit people’s preferences into neat little boxes.

yeah everyone wants different things but for the most part around here there’s 2 different types of weather weenies lol.

[Jesse]

yeah everyone wants different things but for the most part around here there’s 2 different types of weather weenies lol.

Oversimplifying things. Just like the disastrous two party system in our country.

[TacomaWaWx]

Oversimplifying things. Just like the disastrous two party system in our country.

I honestly don’t know what everyone’s preferences really are. Hard for me to make an accurate statement on that.

[Jesse]

I honestly don’t know what everyone’s preferences really are. Hard for me to make an accurate statement on that.

 

Me too.

[kokaneekidz]

When will Puget Sound be blanketed with this type of weather ?

 

 

[Jesse]

When will Puget Sound be blanketed with this type of weather ?

 

 

 

If the Puget Sound can't get a storm like that in late September, when will they ever!

 

Seriously though, that's a cool graphic from NWS Missoula. I just sent it to my buddy who has family in Eureka. And of course my significant other has family in Whitefish.

[MossMan]

Currently 56 and cloudy. .01” so far on the day.

[Chewbacca Defense]

When will Puget Sound be blanketed with this type of weather ?

 

 

 

 

Looks like my wife's family ranch could be in for about a foot of snow.... 2019 has been very rough for Montana cattle ranchers, and it doesn't look like its going to get any easier.....I think they just finished haying within the past few weeks, something that is usually done in July/early August at the latest...

 

 

 

Speaking of them, they have a Davis Vantage Vue weather station, and I am trying to help them figure out how to wirelessly get the data to the internet/logged.  So far all I have found is a very expensive USB --> computer plug set up.  The location of the weather station display does not support having a computer near by.

 

Does anyone have any suggestions?  They suffered heavy losses to the herd last winter and are wanting to keep better weather records, especially since this winter looks to be just as bad if not worse (according to the old timers there).

[ShawniganLake]

I hate when storms impact the Sunday morning commute

[Requiem]

When will Puget Sound be blanketed with this type of weather ?

 

 

Love to see that dark red over the Portland metro area someday

[umadbro]

When will Puget Sound be blanketed with this type of weather ?

 

 

Almost in February 2019.

[Requiem]

Really curious- what is the top 24-hour snowfall record for Oregon? I find conflicting information out there- many sources say January 9th, 1980 in Hood River (47 inches).

[BLI snowman]

Really curious- what is the top 24-hour snowfall record for Oregon? I find conflicting information out there- many sources say January 9th, 1980 in Hood River (47 inches).

 

Officially that is the record, yes. 

 

https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/extremes/scec/records

 

That was a great storm.

[Requiem]

Officially that is the record, yes. 

 

https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/extremes/scec/records

 

That was a great storm.

 

That was a brilliant storm. I'd like someone more well-versed in meteorology than I am to take a look at the synoptics behind that one. Most impressive I've experienced is probably that massively impressive December 20-23, 2008 storm.

[ShawniganLake]

Officially that is the record, yes.

 

https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/extremes/scec/records

 

That was a great storm.

And a very good January

[Deweydog]

That was a brilliant storm. I'd like someone more well-versed in meteorology than I am to take a look at the synoptics behind that one. Most impressive I've experienced is probably that massively impressive December 20-23, 2008 storm.

Luckily someone has:

 

https://climate.washington.edu/stormking/

[TigerWoodsLibido]

Really curious- what is the top 24-hour snowfall record for Oregon? I find conflicting information out there- many sources say January 9th, 1980 in Hood River (47 inches).

 

For the Willamette Valley it's probly the Jan 1969 event where like 36" fell in Eugene/Springfield in 72 hours.

[Requiem]

Luckily someone has:

 

https://climate.washington.edu/stormking/

 

I might just be blind, but I cannot seem to find the January 1980 storm at all. I found the January 1990 storm trio, but not 1980.

[Deweydog]

I might just be blind, but I cannot seem to find the January 1980 storm at all. I found the January 1990 storm trio, but not 1980.

It’s the first on the list.

[Requiem]

It’s the first on the list.

That’s...January 9, 1880. Also a cool storm. I’m interested in January 9, 1980, which dropped 15+ inches on most of Portland and the Gorge.

[Deweydog]

That’s...January 9, 1880. Also a cool storm. I’m interested in January 9, 1980, which dropped 15+ inches on most of Portland and the Gorge.

Ahh. My bad.

 

Here’s the 500mb for that day...

 

http://mp1.met.psu.edu/~fxg1/NARR/1980/us0109.php

[Requiem]

Ahh. My bad.

 

Here’s the 500mb for that day...

 

http://mp1.met.psu.edu/~fxg1/NARR/1980/us0109.php

Thank you! Looks like I have some observing to do.

[TigerWoodsLibido]

That’s...January 9, 1880. Also a cool storm. I’m interested in January 9, 1980, which dropped 15+ inches on most of Portland and the Gorge.

North valley special with that one. When y’all get buried it often means we are still under a maritime profile (but not always...see Jan, 1969).

[Deweydog]

Thank you! Looks like I have some observing to do.

Yeah that was a pretty juiced up baroclinic zone that stalled for a while.

[SilverFallsAndrew]

Yeah that was a pretty juiced up baroclinic zone that stalled for a while.

 

If I had been around back then Jesse would have been wildly entertained at my meltdown.

[TT-SEA]

00Z ECMWF is about the same... partly sunny over the weekend and then sunny early next week. Basically dry over the weekend as well.

 

And the rain never makes into WA with trough later next week. It stays south and then moves off to the east.

[Deweydog]

If I had been around back then Jesse would have been wildly entertained at my meltdown.

#sleetgate1980and2016

[SilverFallsAndrew]

00Z ECMWF is about the same... partly sunny over the weekend and then sunny early next week. Basically dry over the weekend as well.

 

And the rain never makes into WA with trough later next week. It stays south and then moves off to the east.

 

Highs in the 80s?!

[ShawniganLake]

[SilverFallsAndrew]

5966AAB9-3C5A-487A-A6E5-F4FB64AE09B6.png

 

Perhaps this winter will be better than 1985/86 .

 

Lots of cool/cold snaps even before the big blast in November. 

[ShawniganLake]

Perhaps this winter will be better than 1985/86 .

 

Lots of cool/cold snaps even before the big blast in November.

I’d take a 34/35

[MikeInEverett]

Breezy night

[BLI snowman]

That was a brilliant storm. I'd like someone more well-versed in meteorology than I am to take a look at the synoptics behind that one. Most impressive I've experienced is probably that massively impressive December 20-23, 2008 storm.

Yeah, an Arctic airmass filtered into WA on the 6th and got hung up just south of Portland. Like Dewey said, a warm front swung in and a baroclinic band intensified along the OR/WA border on the 7th and persisted through the 8th and 9th.

 

There was an incredible gradient across the Portland metro where the upper level boundary stalled. Everyone in the metro area west of the West Hills and south of about Stark Street had just a few inches of snow but got a major ice storm with 1-2" of freezing rain. Portland was the transition zone and everywhere east of I-205 or north of the Columbia had about 48 hours straight of heavy snow. There were 20-30" totals throughout Vancouver and Gresham, and outlying areas like Ridgefield had about 3 feet over the three days.

 

The gorge was absolutely paralyzed with 71.5" in 3 days at Hood River.

 

Interestingly that storm also peaked 100 years to the day after the 1880 craziness.

[TacomaWaWx]

Breezy here in Tacoma currently 60 degrees. No rain yet.

[TT-SEA]

Highs in the 80s?!

I don't really care that much about the temperatures as long there is a dry period with some sun.

[jcmcgaffey]

This is a cool story:

 

https://komonews.com/weather/scotts-weather-blog/longtime-weather-observer-who-continued-familys-orcas-island-legacy-passes-away

[TT-SEA]

I wish winter would come.

You are an odd duck (pun intended).

 

You talk glowingly about Oklahoma weather and you were very excited about a chance to move to Dallas (of all places)... and yet you mope around during our comparatively gloomy and chilly summer saying it has no redeemable value. And now you are wishing away fall.

 

You seemingly only really feel comfortable when its very wet and dark.

[TT-SEA]

Pouring rain here. My wife has an outdoor event in Seattle this afternoon... she was very skeptical of me saying this morning that it will probably be quite nice.