Tuesday: 3/31/15

9:00

Current Temperature: 55° F 

Humidity: 24 %

Wind Direction: NW

Wind Speed: 5 mph 

Sky Conditions: Mostly Clear

This morning in Eau Claire, fog persisted over the Chippewa River, as a result of clear skies and high humidity.  The day was beautiful with clear skies and temperatures reaching 60°F.  Right now the temperature is 55°F with a northwest wind and clear skies.  Expect temperatures to continue to rise tomorrow.  Wednesday night there is a chance for thunderstorms.

Tomorrow the wind will shift from northwest to south as a low pressure system moves through the area.  After the warm front passes Thursday and Friday will drop in temperatures, but the wind will remain somewhat strong.  The south warm wind will converse with the cold north air causing some precipitation and storms.

Figure 1: Right now the wind is coming from the northwest, however tomorrow the winds
will switch from the south, as seen in the Nebraska and South Dakota

Figure 2: With the south winds, rain will follow on Wednesday night.  Water vapor is currently
sitting over Wyoming and the Dakotas and will move into Minnesota and Wisconsin by Wednesday

Monday: 3/30/15

5:00

Current Temperature: 47° F 

Humidity: 74 %

Wind Direction: S

Wind Speed: 8 mph 

Sky Conditions: Mostly Cloudy

The temperature is starting to warm up after a cold week, it is currently 47°F and the week outlook looks pretty good with temperatures in the 50s and 60s.  Eau Claire did experience a little rain earlier with a decent amount of water vapor in the air.  The struve chart shows the air to be stable but it was it is close to being unstable.

Tomorrow the temperature will be in the 50s and the winds will pick up and coming from the northwest.  Expect the winds to continue to rise as a low pressure system approaches. Once the Low pressure system moves through there will be some possibility of thunderstorms later in the week.

Figure 1: Low pressure system brought a little precipitation to the Eau Clair area

Figure 2: The south winds mixing with cold temperatures resulted in precipitation

Figure 3: Not a lot of water vapor in the air, but enough to produce some rain 

Figure 4: The dew point and temperature are the same around 750mb, resulting in a high humidity

Tuesday: 3/24/15 EAST WIND

10:00 P.M.

Current Temperature: 36° F 

Humidity: 70 %

Wind Direction: S

Wind Speed: 9 mph 

Sky Conditions: Snow Mix/Freezing Rain

Right now the temperature is sitting above freezing, however, there is freezing rain falling from the sky, the warm front and south winds are mixing with the cold temperatures causing precipitation.  This will continue throughtout night and last till the morning.   There is an east wind right now, and east winds always bring bad weather

Tommorrow will be breezy as the low pressure system approaches, followed with more clouds, the high will be 39°F and more snow melt will continue.

Figure 1: Much activity is resluting from the warm front over the Dakotas and the Low pressure
systems from Canada and Missouri

Figure 2: The water vapor in the air is sure to bring some freezing rain and snow in the night

Figure 3: Winds will pick up tomorrow as the low pressure system moves closer

Monday: 3/23/15

10:00 P.M.

Current Temperature: 30° F 

Humidity: 72 %

Wind Direction: S

Wind Speed: 6 mph 

Sky Conditions: Overcast

Snow returned last night as Southern Minnesota got pounded with a wet snow, totals were any where from 1 inch in Minneapolis to 12 inches near Rochester.  Eau Claire, was lucky enough to be on the northern edge of the system, and only was hit with 1 inch of snow.  The temperatures were in the low 30s all day and the relative humidity was high, remaining perfect conditions for a spring snow fall.

Tomorrow the high will be 44°F and the skies will be relatively clear.  Expect the rest of the week to be pretty miserable with rain and snow possible for Tuesday nigh and Wednesday.

Figure 1: an occluded front will approach on Tuesday night possibly bringin precipitation

Figure 2: Tomorrow will be clear, but clouds will be follwing

Figure 3: South Eastern Minnesota was pounded with 8 to 12 inches of snow, big blow to spring

Thursday: 3/19/15

10:00 P.M.

Current Temperature: 44° F 

Humidity: 37 %

Wind Direction: SW

Wind Speed: 5 mph 

Sky Conditions: Overcast

The temperature, again, remained in the mid 40s for the 3rd straight day.  The air has been a little cool and cloudy skies, cumulos clouds I believe, filled the sky.  There has not been much chance of precipitation and I see none coming any time soon.

Tomorrow, the skies will clear up and the air will be warmer.  The surface data maps are showing clear skies and which will move our way tomorrow and it will warm up by the south winds moving into the Eau Claire area.

Figure 1: Surface data map is showing cloudy skies, however it will be clear tomorrow

Figure 2: A south wind is keeping the air somewhat warm, compared to the
areas to the west who are being hit with a northwest wind. 

Figure 3: This water vapor map isn't showing much activity for the Midwest, it also looks like
clear skies are heading our way, and no precipitation in the future

Wednesday: 3/18/15

7:30 P.M.

Current Temperature: 42° F 

Humidity: 30 %

Wind Direction: SW

Wind Speed: 3 mph 

Sky Conditions: Cloudy

Today was very similar to yesterday, the temperature remained in the 40s and there was a little wind to cool the air.  The sky was cloudy and I couldn't tell what type of clouds were in the sky because the entire sky was covered.  There is not much wind today as a high pressure system is sitting about an hour west of Eau Claire.  Tomorrow the temperature is expected to again be around 45°F, with little winds as nothing serious is headed our way.

There is some thunderstorm activity in Arkansas, as spring moves closer and warm and cold air fronts collide this type of weather will increase.  As warm weather coming up from the Gulf of Mexico and colder weather from the North resulted in some rain and storm activity in Arkansas.

Figure 1: Everything is staying pretty normal in the Mid West, while a storm in the south hits Arkansas

Figure 2: The Warm and cool air and winds collide in the Louisiana and Arkansas region producing storms

Figure 3: This struve chart shows the unstable conditions and the
LI level is at 0.3, indicating the likeliness of a storm 

Tuesday: 3/17/15

2:30 P.M.

Current Temperature: 42° F 

Humidity: 22 %

Wind Direction: N

Wind Speed: 12 mph (gusts up to 26 mph)

Sky Conditions: Clear

The temperature has taken a significant hit the last couple of days dropping the highs to the 40s.  As the cold front moved to to Southern United States, the temperatures to the north have dropped.  This cold opened up the air to be moved in from the north.  The high pressure system in Nebraska, rotating clockwise, is bringing winds from Canada into Minnesota, and Wisconsin.  The humidity has also dropped from yesterday, making the air feel chilly and cold.

Tomorrow, the high is expected to be around 46°F and partly sunny, much similar to today, but less clear.  The only clouds in the sky right row are cirrus, high in the atmosphere.  As the high pressure system continues to move East, expected winds from the North to continue.

Figure 1: The cold front, in south eastern United States, is opening up the North, and cooling temperatures.  The
 high pressure system in Nebraska is rotating clockwise, bringing winds from the north to Eau Claire. 

Figure 2: Visually seeing the high pressure system rotating and bringing winds from the north

Figure 3: There is a direct correlation between the cold front and the huge drop in temperature across the Mid West

Monday: 3/16/15

10:30 P.M.

Current Temperature: 42° F 

Humidity: 71 %

Wind Direction: N

Wind Speed: 13

Sky Conditions: Overcast

The weather continues to dip down to colder temperatures after a beautiful Thursday, Friday and Saturday of last week.  The Omega High, is almost gone, dropping temperatures in the Mid West, as they expected to continue to drop.  Right now the temperature is 42°F with North winds at 13 mph. These north winds coming off a cold front and a high pressure system sitting in Montana, is dropping the temperature 20 degrees.  There was a little rainfall earlier in the day resulting from the high humidity and the water vapor in the air.

Tomorrow, the high will 44°F and sunny skies.  The jet stream is dipping right across the Midwest, bringing colder temperatures to the area.

Figure 1: The Omega High is now gone as the Jet Stream will open
up the North West and Midwest for cold air

Figure 2: Strong North Winds are bringing cold air to Eau Claire. 

Figure 3: The high pressure system will keep skies clear but the cold front in
Canada will bring cold temperatures

Thursday: 3/12/15

12:30 P.M.

Current Temperature: 54° F 

Wind Direction: S

Wind Speed: 19

Sky Conditions: Partly Cloudy

Today is expected to be great, as the temperatures will reach 60 degrees, the Omega High is still in affect as the Mid West is WARM.  Tomorrow the temperature is again expected to reach 60 but still windy, however they will be warm winds from the south.

Figure 1: The Jet Stream is opening up Central United States, warming the entire state. 

Figure 2: This model shows clear skies and warm temperatures throughout the Midwest. 

Wednesday: 3/11/15

3:15 P.M.

Current Temperature: 55° F 

Humidity: 38 %

Wind Direction: NW

Wind Speed: 4

Sky Conditions: Sunny

The Omega high is still currently in affect as high pressure systems hold over central United States.  The snow continues to melt and grass is starting peak through as the sun is shining down.  The warm weather will continue through the weekend as Sunday's high is expected to be around 62°F.  Right now the temperature is 55°F, a little cooler than yesterday, but still very pleasant for March 11th.

This Omega high will result in HEAVY snowfall on the east coast this weekend, which I will keep track of later in the week.

Figure 1:  Seen on this surface map is the Omega high, the cold front is blocking cold
weather from reaching the states, High pressure systems are clearing the sky and bring warm weather. 

Figure 2: A -7 degree temperature change occurred from yesterday, showing how warm it was yesterday. 

Tuesday: 3/10/2015 Omega High

4:30 P.M.

Current Temperature: 62° F 

Humidity: 35 %

Wind Direction: SW

Wind Speed: 13

Sky Conditions: Clear/Sunny

The temperatures have continued to climb as it reached 60 DEGREES, this is a dramatic change from a couple of weeks ago where it looked like spring may never come.  There is zero signs of this weather of slowing down as the rest of the week is suppose to remain in the 60s and 50s.

This temperature is because of a weather event titled the omega high.  Where the jet stream is pushed north of Canada allowing high pressure systems to float over the midwest, warming the area.  This omega high also causes storms in the North East.

Tomorrow the high is expected at 53°F with sunny skies.

Figure 1: Omega high causing above normal temperatures in the Midwest

Monday: 3/9/15 WARM

4:30 P.M.

Current Temperature: 54° F 

Humidity: 43 %

Wind Direction: SW

Wind Speed: 18

Sky Conditions: Overcast/Partly Cloudy

The Midwest has seen a dramatic increase in Temperature over the past four days.  This started Friday as temperatures were in the mid 30s and then Saturday and Sunday temperatures reached upper 30s and low 40s.  This is due to a change in wind patterns that is bringing warm air from the south.  The huge dip in the air mass, figure 1, below is bringing very warm continental air form Texas and Mexico.

Expect temperatures to continue to rise in the next couple of days.  Tomorrow is expected to be 57°F and sunny skies.  This is a time to monitor rivers because of the melting of snow.  However, the Midwest didn't receive a heave snowfall this winter  making the danger of flooding not as violent.

Figure 1: Graphic Image showing the warming up of the United States

Figure 2: Winds blowing from the southwest have warmed up Minnesota and Wisconsin

Tuesday: 3/3/15, Not much snow

12:00 P.M.

Current Temperature: 23° F 

Humidity: 88 %

Wind Direction: Calm

Wind Speed: Calm

Sky Conditions: Light Snow, Fog, Mist

The blizzard conditions expected to hit Minnesota and Wisconsin early Tuesday morning were not so blizzard like.  Right now there is light snow falling from the sky as only about 2 inches has fallen.  Also, the 30 mph gusts of wind are somehow not blowing as strongly in Eau Claire.  Looking at figure 3, Eau Claire reports 0 mph wind, while most everywhere else is reporting 5 to 25 mph winds.  Right now the temperature is 23 °F but if feels much warmer than that with the humidity being at 88%.  There is a slight chance for up to inch of snow to fall by 3 p.m. but after that all precipitation will stop.

The reason Eau Claire did not receive much snow as expected is because there is not much water vapor in the air, seen in figure 2 below.  The huge amount of water vapor stayed south and caused heavy precipitation areas near Kentucky.

Tomorrow temperatures will drop to high of 10°F and a low of -8°F, the same temperatures will remain for Thursday before jumping ABOVE FREEZING temperatures.  The 10 day outlook looks fantastic with temperatures reaching 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

Figure 1: The strongest areas of the storm are over Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and farther east

Figure 2: Eastern United States is about to be again hit with snow and freezing rain, the huge amount
water vapor is sure to produce snow and rain.  Minnesota and Wisconsin remain mostly dry. 

Figure 3: Eau Claire is reporting a light snowfall and no wind.
A North West wind is expected to arrive soon

Figure 4: Wednesday and Thursday will be cold, before warming up for the weekend. 

Monday: 3/2/15 SNOW STORM

7:30 P.M.

Current Temperature: 24° F 

Humidity: 44 %

Wind Direction: SE

Wind Speed: 6 mph

Sky Conditions: Clear

Today started to warm up a little bit after a cold weekend, as the current temperature was 24°F.  The sun was shining bright and I could see a little bit of melting snow around noon to 3 pm.  The skies have been clear for a bout 5 days now as a high pressure system continues to float around the mid west.  However, things are about to change.  Snow and high winds are expected to hit the area, starting around midnight and lasting until about noon.  Predictions have been anywhere from 1 to 5 inches of snow and blizzard like conditions because the winds will reach up to 30 mph.  Seen in figure 2 below, the jet stream is coming down to Utah and then heading Northwest to Minnesota, this is bringing warmer air along with fast winds.  Along with the wind, the jet stream will bring a high amount of water vapor over the Midwest, causing a huge storm to Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Missouri.  Snow, a wintery mix, and freezing rain are all in play depending on ones location.

Tomorrow the high is expected to be around 31°F and followed by a dip back down into the teens.  Then the weekend we could reach 40 degrees!!!! This would be the "first" sign of spring.

Figure 1: A high pressure system continues to clear skies, but not for long, snow and winds apporach

Figure 1: The jet stream is bringing strong winds and stormy weather to the midwest

Figure 3: A large amount of water vapor is sure to bring precipitation