Hailstorm photoPosted Sep29, 2006 at 11:22 PMThe photo linked here, from Jim Bullington of Blue Ridge, shows the intensity of Thursday's hailstorm, with hail collecting on the ground like a snowfall. (It doesn't show up well in the small format, so be sure and click on the blue type above for the photo) Hail of a stormPosted Sep28, 2006 at 04:05 PM
There have been a number of reports of 3/4 to 1-inch hail in the Roanoke Valley with the passage of this storm. I'm also hearing reports of hail accumulated so deep in some parts of Botetourt County that it looks a light snowfall. Also some reports of trees blown down in the storm. (Click here for a list of storm reports throughout Virginia.) Please email me with any reports or photos. 
Below-freezing temperatures aloft helped hail to form in apparently prolific amounts with today's storms. Afternoon heating caused updrafts to carry moisture up beyond the freezing line, where it froze, and sometimes got carried up repeatedly, adding extra layers of ice until the hail was big enough that it fell to Earth. 
The severe thunderstorm watch issued for the area earlier this afternoon has expired, as the strong cold front that triggered these storms has pushed the activity farther east. You probably already feel the difference in temperatures outside, as things have cooled off considerably from earlier. Severe weather will be replaced by much cooler fall-like weather for the weekend. Severe thunderstorm watch in effectPosted Sep28, 2006 at 02:41 PMUPDATE 6:20 P.M.: The severe thunderstorm watch has been lifted for our area, as the strong storms have pushed east out of the area. A severe thunderstorm watch is in effect until 8 p.m. for the Roanoke and New River valleys and points south. A line of thunderstorms is moving into the area from the west, and some of these storms could put out damaging winds and hail larger than 3/4 inches in diameter. This is some more of that cool, dry air from Canada colliding with warm, sticky air from the Gulf of Mexico. Follow the latest warnings and radar on the National Weather Service-Blackburg's Web site. Wide right, part 4Posted Sep27, 2006 at 05:52 PM
You can follow the latest on T.D. 9, if you really want to, on the National Hurricane Center Web site. September storm chasePosted Sep25, 2006 at 02:32 PM
Ominous shelf cloud races out from a severe thunderstorm in Granville County, N.C. All last week, I kept an eye on the strong cold front advancing across the nation as it triggered severe weather in the central U.S. My particular interest was whether this front would be able to trigger strong storms in our region on Sunday, and whether I would have a rare opportunity for a fall storm chase. The conditions lined up less perfectly than they appeared they would a day or two earlier, but after an early church service Sunday, I decided to head toward south-central Virginia to see if I could catch a severe thunderstorm.  Towering cumulus clouds billow near South Hill, Va. Storms go eastPosted Sep24, 2006 at 09:40 PMA few severe thunderstorms did fire today, but far to the east of our region in north-central/northeast North Carolina toward the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. I was out chasing and photographing some of those storms today. I'll share some photos soon. Severe weather marches our wayPosted Sep23, 2006 at 06:49 PMIt was a rough night in middle Missisippi River Valley and lower Ohio River Valley last night, with 37 reports of tornadoes and more than 100 reports of hail larger than quarters. (Click here for a map of Friday's severe weather reports). Storms moved over many of the same places repeatedly in Missouri, Illinois and Arkansas, resulting in deadly flooding. Here's a link to an Associated Press story recapping the storms. 
Honestly, it looks like more of a threat in eastern Virginia, and even at that, nothing like the Midwest has experienced. But don't be surprised to hear some rumbles of thunder or the wind rattle the trees pretty hard. May in SeptemberPosted Sep22, 2006 at 04:32 PM
By Sunday, there will be some threat of severe thunderstorms as far as east as our area, though it doesn't look to be nearly as intense as what is currently being seen in the Plains. The seasons are colliding ... there is always a price someone must pay for changing weather. A cold summer morningPosted Sep21, 2006 at 11:51 AMFollowing the astronomical calendar, it's still summer until a few minutes after midnight Saturday morning ... but some folks in western Virginia saw a bit of summer frost this morning. The low in Roanoke was 42 degrees. It's not a record for the date, but it is the coldest it has been this early in the season since it dropped to 40 on Sept. 17, 2000. Blacksburg dropped to at least 37, and I've had one report of 34 there. Let me know if any of you (a) saw frost or (b) had a thermometer that touched the freezing mark, 32 degrees, this morning. A frosty night?Posted Sep20, 2006 at 05:07 PMThe word "frost" is in some forecasts for the first time tonight (click here for a special weather statement on the threat of frost)... mostly in the deeper mountain valleys to the west of the Roanoke, in the New River Valley and points north and west of there. Lows in those areas could dip as low as the mid 30s, which would allow some frost to form in grassy areas. As for record cold, tonight will not be that. The record low for the date in Roanke is 36, set in 1956; in Blacksburg, it's 30, set in 1962. Neither of those marks is likely to be challenged. How low will it go?Posted Sep18, 2006 at 03:47 PMThe season's first strong Canadian cold front is set to arrive on Tuesday. It'll push through some showers and maybe a rumble of thunder or two ... don't expect much of that, arriving at the coolest part of the day ... late tonight and Tuesday morning. By Wednesday, cool -- shall we say cold -- Canadian high pressure settles in, promising to send temperatures to their lowest readings since May by Wednesday night. Current National Weather Service forecasts are calling for the upper 30s in the mountainous areas, ranging upward to the mid 40s here in the Roanoke Valley and points east and south. This chill won't last long though, as temperatures warm up sharply for the weekend before yet another cold front by Sunday Hurricane headed our way?Posted Sep16, 2006 at 08:02 PM
More severe weatherPosted Sep16, 2006 at 07:49 PM
This front will make it here by about Tuesday, but we'll have less instability and less wind shear aloft and won't see this kind of severe weather outbreak. A few rumbles of thunder, maybe. After it goes by, we'll see some autumn-like weather settle in for a few days as astronomical summer fades into history by Friday. Severe weather returns to the PlainsPosted Sep16, 2006 at 12:40 AM
So while winter is returning to the northern Rockies and Dakotas, and fall will return for us next week, spring has returned at the end of a long, hot, dry summer in the Plains. Winter arrives for some; fall coming for usPosted Sep15, 2006 at 06:43 PM
A tightening low pressure system in the northern Rockies and a batch of cold air from Canada will trigger the first major winter storm of the season for parts of Idaho, Montana and the Dakotas this weekend. The inset HPC map shows the areas of highest probabilities of snow by Saturday evening, with the red areas showing a 70 percent chance of at least 4 inches (some areas especially in the higher elevations will likely get a foot or more). The snow will move eastward into eastern Montana and the Dakotas for Sunday. This weather system will affect us by the middle of next week ... not with snow, but with our first real fall chill of the season. This is that "first autumn cold front" that I like to talk about looking forward to when it's humid and in the 90s during mid-summer. It'll drop us into the 40s at night, and maybe even 30s in the deeper valleys, by Wednesday or Thursday. It'll arrive just in time for the official start of autumn on Friday. Finally, a major hurricanePosted Sep14, 2006 at 05:46 PM
Tropical Depression 8 has matured into Tropical Storm Helene, but, barring major changes, it looks to follow on the heels of Florence and Gordon and drift northwest then north into the open waters of the Atlantic. More on each of these on the National Hurricane Center's Web site. It's El Nino!Posted Sep13, 2006 at 07:01 PM
As National Weather Service meteorologist Stephen Keighton noted at Tuesday night's Town Hall Meeting in Roanoke, the correlation of El Nino to events in our area is rather weak, but a stronger El Nino can drive the southern jet stream a bit farther north bringing precipitation-bearing storm systems through the winter. El Nino is likely to mean that the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season will continue to underperform, as the warmer waters in the Pacific focus storminess in that ocean and drive powerful upper level winds that rip apart the tops of developing tropical systems in the Atlantic. A chillPosted Sep13, 2006 at 06:17 PMRoanoke's high temperature of 64 on Tuesday tied the coolest high temperature recorded on Sept. 12 since official records began being kept in 1948. This is called a "low maximum" record. The high also only made it to 64 on Sept. 12, 1985. Persistent low clouds and fog, plus chilly northeast winds banking against the mountains, were the reason for the relative chill. It continued today, but the previous low maximum record of 61 in 1964 was surpassed with a high (as of 5 p.m.) of 63. With normal highs near 80 this time of year, these highs are much below normal. Nighttime lows in the upper 50s to near 60 are very close to normal. Another in the tropical paradePosted Sep12, 2006 at 02:05 PM
Tropical Depression 8's early track is to the west-northwest. We'll just have to keep a close eye on whether it too will be turned northward by the persistent troughing over the eastern U.S. We have many days to watch this one. Chilly soaker on the wayPosted Sep11, 2006 at 07:51 PMWednesday looks like a chilly, wet day for Southwest Virginia, and much of the eastern U.S. Expect pretty much an all-day rain with temperatures hanging in the 50s to low 60s most of the day. We frequently get some days like that as summer turns to fall. Lots of Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic moisture will be overrunning a shallow cool, dry layer of air at the surface. It's a setup we'll see more and more of as fall moves toward winter, and one that we'll have to watch for ice and snow in about 3 more months. Click here for projected 5-day rainfall totals from the Hydrometeorological Prediction Center. 1-2 punchless for U.S.Posted Sep11, 2006 at 07:43 PMWith a Category 1 Hurricane Florence moving north toward colder waters after making a running swat at Bermuda today, Tropical Gordon has formed on its heels to the south. Gordon looks to follow a similar path to Florence, missing the U.S. far to the east, as we see how long the hurricane no-hitter can continue for our nation in 2006. For more on both storms, see the National Hurricane Center Web site. Early week cooldownPosted Sep09, 2006 at 09:33 PM
This likely won't be the long-term arrival of autumn-like weather, though. The Climate Prediction Center is currently forecasting above-normal temperatures over the central and eastern U.S. in both the 6-to-10-day and 8-to-14-day periods as upper-level high pressure is expected to build overhead. Forecasts that far out are always subject to change, though. Florence looking healthierPosted Sep09, 2006 at 09:21 PM
To follow Florence, click on the National Hurricane Center Web site. Where hurricanes go to diePosted Sep08, 2006 at 05:54 PM
A similar fate is likely to befall what is now Tropical Storm Florence over the Atlantic. Florence, floudering as it is now like every other Atlantic system so far this tropical season, with a somewhat disorganized look and winds of only 50 mph, is likely to intensify into a hurricane during the next 2 or 3 days as it encounters a region of warm waters and light winds aloft. It may strike, or at least brush, Bermuda.  It will lose its tropical characteristics but likely maintain a large-scale spin as a strong extratropical low pressure system. Florence will bring cold rain squalls and perhaps even some snow to places far to the north ... Newfoundland, perhaps Greenland, Iceland and Scandinavia. It could be a terrible storm to ride a ship through in the North Atlantic. But, barring extreme and unforeseen atmospheric shifts, it will not be a factor for the United States. Drought relieved, againPosted Sep07, 2006 at 06:03 PM
This is a lot like what happened after the week of heavy rain in late June. Will more regular rain occur in the upcoming weeks to keep drought from returning, or will it go dry again as we head into fall? Half of Roanoke's 8 months with 10 or more inches of rain have occurred in the fall ... but four of our fivest driest months have also occurred in autumn. It's been a drought-or-deluge season, historically. We'll see how it develops, but my early bet would be a bit more to the drought side than deluge. Town hall meeting reminderPosted Sep07, 2006 at 10:06 AMThe National Weather Service in Blacksburg will be conducting a town hall meeting from 7 to 9 p.m. on Tuesday in the Performing Arts Theater at the Roanoke Civic Center. If you are interested in attending, please register by Friday ... either email Phil Hysell at the National Weather Service at phil.hysell@noaa.gov or call him at (540) 552-0084. Weather service meteorologists will be there to present information on the weather service's mission, to show slides and film of weather phenomena, and to answer your questions. Rainfall relative to normalPosted Sep06, 2006 at 09:50 AMWhile I was away the past week, the combination of Tropical Storm Ernesto late last week and an approaching cold front early this week has added some rainfall to the yearly totals. Roanoke is still 5 1/2 inches below normal, but Blacksburg has shot up to nearly 5 inches above normal. A once-massive deficit at Lynchburg has closed to under 2 inches below normal, but Danville is still more than 7 below its normal. Click here for daily climate information around Virginia. Click here for monthly climate information for cities in and around Southwest Virginia. Tropical Storm Florence formsPosted Sep06, 2006 at 09:41 AMTropical Storm Florence has formed in the open Atlantic. Long term, this system is expected to strengthen and turn northwest. How much it curves will determine whether it will be a threat to the Carolinas or harmlessly (for the U.S.) turn out to sea. Hurricane forecast loweredPosted Sep02, 2006 at 11:18 AMThe Colorado State University hurricane forecast team led by Dr. William Gray and Dr. Philip Klotzbach has again lowered its tropical forecast for the Atlantic basin, now calling for only 13 named storms and 5 hurricanes. Click here for the full report. Ernesto scrapes byPosted Sep02, 2006 at 11:10 AMUPDATED 9/5 TO REFLECT TWO-DAY TOTALS The remnants of Tropical Storm Ernesto scraped just east of most of Southwest Virginia. Roanoke had only .39 inch of rain on Friday after 1.33 on Thursday for 1.72 total; Lynchburg, just 50 miles east, topped 3 inches after getting nearly an inch on Thursday. All in all, a beneficial rain in our area. For a look at what many other areas are getting out of Ernesto, including nearly a foot of rain parts of eastern Virginia, click here.
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