Changing Again

I haven't had much time to blog this week with the crazy weather that we are having in Kansas. We are still in need of moisture here in the state, but it is probably a good thing we missed the more significant moisture, otherwise we would've ended up with a HUGE amount of ice in southern Kansas and 5 or 10 inches of snow elsewhere. Oklahoma has been hit very hard the last few days with the freezing rain. They declared a state of emergency for Oklahoma with power outages all over the place. The ice accumulation on the pine cone gives you some idea of how bad the conditions are in the Oklahoma City area.

We haven't had much in the way of active weather this month, but it looks like January will end on a quiet note. It still looks as if the first part of February will be active with another system rolling out of the west sometime next week. I don't think it will be a major storm system, but the computers have been struggling with the extended forecast lately. We haven't had a major winter storm this winter, and it is possible we won't have one at all this winter. But we still have several more weeks of winter to get through and I know we haven't seen the last of the snow yet. As soon as I have a definite feeling on the rest of the season, I'll be sure to post it on the blog. Hope the rest of the week treats you well.

Spring Fever.... Gone!

It felt a little like March on Thursday, but those warm temperatures are now a thing of the past. We continue to watch for wintry weather going into Sunday and Sunday night. Light freezing drizzle is expected for southern Kansas Sunday night and Monday. When we start talking freezing drizzle and ice, you probably start thinking back to the major ice storm of 2005 for Wichita and others think of December 2007 when ice hit central Kansas. That will not be the case with this storm, but we'll watch it through the weekend. There just isn't that much moisture to work with, so we should escape a big icing event.

I'm taking a quick day off Saturday, but will be back to track the system with you on Sunday. I hope everyone stays warm. Have a great weekend.

Changes Ahead

Our current weather pattern is nothing short of amazing. Highs in the 50s and 60s have helped us forget that we are still in the middle of January. We haven't had any real significant moisture for about a month now and we are still waiting for our first significant winter storm of the season. Snowfall has been rather limited this winter as the main snow track has been well north of Kansas.

However, the computer models that help guide our extended forecast have finally started to pick up on the weather pattern change that is coming at week's end. The main pattern will shift back to the southwest, and as I indicated in my last blog entry, that type of pattern brings moisture from the Pacific as well as the Gulf of Mexico. Where and when will the storm develop? Right now what is clear to us is that a cold front will be coming through on Thursday, taking us out of the 60s. It gets even colder going into the weekend and chances for moisture should be increasing during that time too. We do have snow in the forecast for next weekend, but I'm not 100% sure that we will really get that much snow yet.

Have a good week and enjoy the January warmth. Wednesday should be the warmest day, so record highs will likely be crashing during the afternoon. The forecast for Inauguration Day calls for mostly cloudy skies with a high of 32 in Washington D.C. There is going to be a stiff northwest wind too, so expect most of the people to be wrapped up in heavy coats.