Updraft: March 10, 2008 Archive

Quiet Here, But Turbulent Elsewhere

Posted at 12:10 PM on March 10, 2008 by Mark Seeley

While we enjoy a break from winter with a string of 40 degrees F days this week, some pretty heavy weather action is going on elsewhere.

A deep mid-latitude cyclone is approaching Western Europe today. Central pressure at one time was near 950 mb (about 28.05 inches on the barometer) as the storm center approached the south coast of Ireland. Winds were registering 75 to 85 mph producing sea wave heights of 50 to 60 feet! One might guess that the Brits and the Irish were paying close attention to the shipping forecasts. You can check out the BBC Weather Center coverage of this storm.

In the Southern Hemisphere Tropical Cyclone Kamba was migrating south in the Southern Indian Ocean and intensifying, with wind gusts over 150 mph. Fortunately it was over 700 miles from any landforms (Diego Garcia was to the north) and it was expected to weaken over the next two days as it travels over cooler waters and encounters more vertical wind shear. Nevertheless it was producing sea waves of 35 feet and was to be avoided by any shipping interests. More information can be found at
Joint Typhoon Warning Center Products. (secure site)

In case you missed it

Posted at 12:35 PM on March 10, 2008 by Craig Edwards

A blizzard struck Ohio on Saturday with considerable advance warning. Snow accumulated nearly a foot in Dayton and over 20 inches in Columbus. This heavy snowfall occurred mainly during the quiet hours of the weekend, thus the story was under the national radar.

Last week in the Twin Cities slightlly more than an inch of snow fell at the morning commute. A barely plowable snow in Minneapolis/St. Paul became a local top news story. Traffic was tied up for hours and motorist shared their angst. So far this winter a large portion of central Minnesota is falling well short of the normal seasonal snowfall.
National Snow depth

Indeed, the weekend snow storm in Ohio makes a case for timing is everything. Columbus has received 44 inches of snow this season. Minneapolis/St. Paul a little more than two feet.

Be sure to check out the recent blog by Dr. Seeley on the nasty weather around the globe.
CE