Watching to see how far snow spreads
UPDATE 9:50 PM: Snow has developed rapidly into much of the Roanoke Valley and some of the New River Valley this evening. The storm system appears to be developing faster than earlier expected. Will monitor the next few hours to see how quickly and where a dry slot forms in parts of Southwest Virginia. END UPDATE
Some snow has already begun in the I-64 corridor (reports in parts of Alleghany and Rockbridge counties) and northward. Earlier sleet and some snow were reported farther south, even into the Roanoke and New River valleys, mixed with rain as the initial wave of precipitation encountered dry air aloft and initiated 
evaporational cooling, but most of that has changed to rain. Later tonight and into early Wednesday morning, it is expected that cold air aloft will spread eastward and southeastward so that snow expands into more of the region, but it will be a race against time as to whether it will spawn significant snow farther south before the initial precipitation shield shifts eastward rather rapidly. Once low pressure begins to form along the North Carolina-Virginia border to our east, it will rotate a shield of wet snow over much of central and northern Virginia, where widespread 4+ and some 10+ amounts are projected. Most model guidance suggests the bulk of this will stay north of the U.S. 460 corridor (Blacksburg-Roanoke-Bedford-Lynchburg). So the Roanoke and New River valleys are very much on the rim of snow expectations tonight and early Wednesday, and that has made this an unusually difficult snow forecast. Forecasts have tended to drift into the mid range of 1-3 inches, but could easily go to minimal snow or larger amounts depending on how these factors play out.
So we’re very much in a “nowcasting” phase now. We’ll watch how it develop tonight and early Wednesday.
March 5, 2013 - 8:24 PM
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Snow falling north of Troutville in Botetourt with temp of 35
Getting sleet again at my location, 1,400 feet, just south of Roanoke.
Closer to Eagle Rock, but backside of Fincastle is all snow now. Been mixing in for better part of 2 hours, but rapidly accumulating on cars and grass within switching to all snow about 10 minutes ago.
4 miles wsw of fincastle 1300′ big clumps of snow started about ten minutes ago. Temp at six was 37 now 33
Starting to see snow flakes with freezing percip now in Fairlawn. Temp dropped a degree to 34 from 35 in 20 minutes.
About an inch in half an hour up here in Hot Springs, Bath County. Not quite a white out, but VIGOROUS. I can hear some tickety-tick of sleet on the windows too. We’re getting some fair gusts. At last a snow that isn’t just here to annoy us.
Some snow now in radford
As a dear friend of mine said recently…”It’s snickering” here in the Nace area of Botetourt. That means…it’s snowing & sticking…YAY!!!!!
moderate to heavy sleet in Grandin Village
Mixed rain and snow. More rain than snow. Making a quick transition.
Hi, everyone. I’ve been blurking for a while, but this is my first post.
There is a heavy wet snow/rain mix in Troutville, 1500′. Back deck is white, and it is starting to stick to the grass. Even messed up the tv dish for a bit. Seems to be more rain than snow now.
Enjoy it right now folks in the RNK/NRV. This will be over by 1:30am. You can already see the dry slot. Precip is almost over in TN already! I have no clue why the NWS has a WWA ending at 6pm Weds. This baby will be done in about another five hours. Can’t deny what we are seeing on radar. By the way there is alot of snow mixing in right now, but what difference does it make, it won’t last long enough to accumulate much.
It was snowing for a while here in Daleville near Lord Botetourt but has turned to sleet now. Ground is white, cars are white.
Grayson County, heavy rain coming down but no snow (yet) up on this high mountain top.
80% snow in Daleville – things are getting white and crusty on the surface
Rain has changed to snow here in Prices Fork…not sticking, but snow in the air for sure.
Temp is 39 and big fat…raindrops here:(
34 degrees and moderate rain at 2550′ elevation at Milepost 153 on the Blue Ridge Parkway in Floyd County.
Some sleet on the ground here in Craig County; not doing much right now.
Leigh, can’t wait to see it “snickering” here too. Cute phrase and so appropriate.
Light rain here. Temp about 40. Still calling for upwards of a foot. Still don’t see it happening.
Heavy downpour here…
Almost all snow in blacksburg. And I thought there was going to be wraparound precipitation Blacksburg Mike?
Steady rain in Roanoke City (Towers Mall/I-581) no snow at all
36 degrees here in Roanoke. Where’s the snow??
All sleet here now, 1,400 feet elevation, south of Roanoke.
Since 4 pm intermittent light sleet/rain/snow–wintry mix! Now rain & occ snow flurries, light dusting of snow on deck.
Still just rain here in the Town of Pulaski…..Temp 35.4
some snow flakes mixing in here near bedford definetly colder
Getting quite a bit of sleet here in my section of SW Co Roanoke. I can even hear the sleet hitting my windows.
Snowing hard in Lexington. Ground is white. Weatherbug says it is 32 at W&L.
Pouring rain in Salem.
I’m getting some snowflakes mixed with sleet now just south of Roanoke.
It’s changed back over from sleet to snow again here in Daleville not far from Lord Botetourt HS.
When will the precip.end.
We have snow in Buchanan. Temps are at 36. I love the white stuff but have a horse with issues tonight and a little worried. Enjoy it while it is here- it is probably the last of the season! Loved the term snickering!
Snow starting to mix with rain in Vinton.
Light, mixed precip, but freezing rain starting to ice things up
live in bedford city, all rain as off the last few minutes but havent been checking. going to open up the blinds, come on snow!
Collecting on the grass and driveway on Brush Mountain
BB Mike
Wrap around in the predawn? thoughts?
To braydenofbtown and Blacksburg Mike’s points: You both may be right. Radar and the newest NAM model seem to suggest this whole thing is happening faster than expected. Same evolution, just faster, earlier. NAM does want to bring an arm of precip back close to us midday tomorrow.
Surface low appears to be forming in NC between Charlotte and Winston Salem. This could be why we’re seeing snow now, colder air getting pulled south just a bit ahead of schedule.
Rain here in western Greene county. Temperature is dropping pretty quick, down to 38 already! Changeover to snow might not be far off. It was 45 just few hours ago. Is this the storm dynamics that is cooling the air so quickly?
All snow and sleet at the star. Deck in front of star is white.
Just dropped to 32 and we have “0.52″ inches of rain. Still raining but I am expecting it to change over soon. Looks like there is some snow mixed in that has landed on top of the picnic table but mostly a really wet slush there. Even the dogs did not want to go out for the walk but I told them they could come back in and lay by the fire and dry off.
Big fat snowflakes mixing with the rain in downtown Roanoke.
Big BIG flakes on top of sleet. Nice.
Its sneeting here in Rocky Mount. I don’t know how long its been falling but it looks like its trying to snow.
Pretty decent snow falling in the Hanging Rock area of Salem!
Fat snow flakes mixed with rain 1000ft 35 Deg, Roanoke City
This is moving WAY faster than expected. Yes, there may be a brief period of wraparound in the RNK/NRV on Wednesday, but for all intents and purposes this entire event for our area (not you Jared of Greene, don’t panic) will be over by 12 midnight (earlier than the 1:30am I said before). Just watch it move on radar and look at that dry slot building and expanding from Abingdon down to Knoxville. This one is about done.
Big fat snowflakes here in Cave Spring
Thanks Kevin. just had a changeover back to rain in Blacksburg.
Big flakes here in salem! Grass and deck covered!
Snowing in the Glenvar area of Roanoke County.
Just tweeted you a picture Kevin. Rain changing over to snow here in SW Co. Roanoke. Starting to accumulate on mulch, deck and grill. Not on the grass yet.
Mostly snow downtown. Sticking to cars.
Big wet snowflakes in cloverdale. Grass is coated cars as well.
Seeing some snow starting to mix in here in Roanoke! (:
The coastal low is clearly forming and taking over now. The question is… where do the best snow bands set up?
hey kev do u agree with blacksburg mike
Eastern slope of Potts Mt in Craig County covered with light snow. US 311 going up Kays Mt and Potts Mt are snow covered with black ice.
This is moving quick but there does seem to be a band rotating over Ohio valley that could come back across the mountains. Probably the prediction of higher snowfall for tomorrow.
Huge snowflakes in north county!!
I am in Salem and less then 1 hour ago it was rain with sleet mixed in. My son just came dow and we opened his garage door and it is snowing like crazy. Big huge flakes and coming down rapidly. Cars, decks and streets are already covered. I have kept a low profile on this one as my son always tells me I will be wrong, well, not tonight and I am gloating!!! It is so refreshing to see. If it’s going to be cold bring on the snow!!
Puff Ball snow started in SE but isn’t sticking yet
Heavy snow near downtown Salem. Sticking to everything but the roads.
Slushy stuff on the porch with big fat raindrops and 31*
Close to 1/2″
Correction temperature is now down to 35! Also its snowing! This has started earlier then it was supposed to. It was supposed to be around 1am when it changed over. We might get that foot after all!
Huge snowflakes mixed in with the rain here in Vinton.
Long time reader, weather nerd, first comment. Crazy interesting storm. Snow line always changing and it moved North so long ago yet snow started in Roanoke city 3 hrs earlier than expected. Kevin any changes in accumulations due to all of this. Thanks for all you do Kevin. I count on weather to schedule my day and week because a lot of what I do is outside. I’ve used your blog as a tool that has been invaluable. Keep it up
Can’t trust the radar entirely.
Showing blue in Christiansburg for 30 minutes. Central Christiansburg not a single flake – all rain
1/2″. Temp. 33.8
I agree it’s moving/developing faster than expected. Hard to tell exactly what is happening. If there is a surface low starting to bomb south of us in NC, we could see some recharging of the precip field and it last quite a bit longer than midnight. Kind of in a “fog of battle” so to speak now with an energy transfer between two low centers.
Plain old rain here in Blacksburg. Bring on the flowers…
Just started snowing at Exit 137. Not sticking yet.
I think I saw 2 flakes!!!
Still mostly rain here.
Rain has changed to snow here just north of the Bedford city limits.
WDBJ7 posted a link to their snowcam
http://www.wdbj7.com/wdbj7-wdbj7s-snow-stick-camera-20130305,0,3413546.htmlstory
They have more snow there than I do in the county right now
Huge flakes coming down fast here in Daleville. Hoping this lasts longer than the midnight cutoff Blacksburg Mike predicted.
Don’t tell me we’re having a second event where Roanoke is getting more snow than Blacksburg.
Whiteout up here on Jeters chapel just east of vinton but up in elevation a little bit! Checked about 20 minutes ago, big flakes mixing with rain, just checked, and I have about 3/4 an inch and can’t see anything due to the size of the flakes and how hard its coming down! I hope this lasts for awhile! It’ll really add up if it keeps this up!
All snow here in North Co. Ground is white
Do you think blacksburg will change back over?
Kevin I know this may take a little research but has Roanoke ever accumulated more snow than Blacksburg over an entire winter? #goroanokebooblacksburg
HUGE snowflakes coming down in Troutville. Was shocked to look outside to see that the rain had changed to snow and that the ground was already almost completely covered.
Snow mixing in with rain but not sticking to anything in Raleigh Court, Roanoke City.
It’s been snowing for about 45 minutes in Verona, about 3 miles north of I64. We had very, very light rain for about an hour before it changed over to snow. An inch of snow on deck railings.
Ground completely covered! Still large flakes! Near Walmart in salem!
Back to a rain/snow mix downtown.
Snow just started,temp is 38.It started as all snow too!Didn`t think that would happen with the temp near 40.But it has begun.Lets go snow.John in Ruckersville,and Jared keep posting your Temps and Conditions down that way.Thanks!
Its snowing. Hard to believe it got up to 50 today and its snowing now
Anymore snow in the burgs?
At 9:16 pm I left work on Bent Mountain itwas raining and sleeting! When I got to the base of Poor Mountain, itwas pouring snow, huge flakes of snow, sticking to the roads. Elevation 3100 feet, temperature 30 degrees.
34 degrees now in Roanoke and looks like the snow is definitely starting! I don’t know how long it will last, but maybe we will get more than planned. Any thoughts??
Both locations have too much Swiss cheese in their snowfall records to really say, Jack. My guess would be that it has probably happened once or twice in a year with a big storm that was heavier eastward.
I am going to discourage the locality vs. locality rooting/taunting though. Don’t want to get that going the way region vs. region rivalries develop on other weather boards.
Nothing but rain here in the 24179. Hoping to see that change soon enough!
Fair enough snow for all then
All snow in Karen Hills in Salem now. Street, lawn, and cars white with snow.
All snow again downtown. Grass and cars are covered.
Checking in from FC. Keeps switching back and forth from snow to rain and back again out here. Not even a dusting or anything really noticeable yet. 34 degrees last I looked.
I have seen nothing but rain so far here in Elliston, just south of Salem. Temp at my house is 33. This is strange, typically if anyone is getting any snow locally, I am getting pounded with it.
Rain all the way home from Floyd. 35F and the rain has let up a bit. I think it is going to be like earlier this winter when I had barely got any snow and Roanoke got the bulk of the snowfall. Enjoy the snow Roanokers!
FAT FAT heavy flakes 1000ft Roanoke City 34 deg. Ground is white at my house and it’s getting cold. Now only if we get more moisture and wrap around.
Sorry Kevin, didn’t read your post #96 before I posted my last comment.
So is it seriously snowing everywhere but here?? No kidding, I’m seeing mostly rain. A few flakes mixed in but mostly rain.
Was snow earlier went back to rain in Radford and still raining.
Kevin, since the snow has started earlier here then expected does that mean it will end earlier tomorrow?
Lakeside Salem.
Yard, road, cars covered.
Giant, heavy, wet snowflakes falling hard and fast as of 10:10PM.
Well the snickering continues here in Nace area of Botetourt, over an inch on the deck, grass and driveway… Please say it is going to continue longer than midnight and keep spreading to all you good folks further south…
Snow falling fairly heavy in Bedford. That dry slot on radar looks like it may be here soon though.
Been snowing for 1/2 hour, and its coming down heavily now. Grass and cars covered, and its starting to stick to the street.
Looks like the model from the NWS is about accurate with larger local amounts along the Blue Ridge Parkway and then fans out near the 460 in Bedford. http://www.erh.noaa.gov/rnk/activeWxEvent/active_STS.png
It has started to absolutely dump here in C’ville roughly 3 hours ahead of schedule (rain to snow wasn’t projected until 1am or so). The grass is already covered with roughly 1/2 inch on the ground.
Just raining here in Wytheville.
Looks like we are almost done here in the NRV and hasn’t changed to all snow yet. The back edge is approaching quick. Unless what I see coming through Kentucky and Tennessee is going to make it through I don’t see us getting anything in the NRV.
Still raining pretty hard here. Looks like I missed some snow showers while cooking dinner.
Not. A. Single. Flake.
Christiansburg
Is the worst of this “over” for the roanoke area, or is the wrap around going to catch us? Or is the dry slot gonna be too much to fill in? I hope it does, we got cold enough up here, I hope it can keep it up through the mornin atleast!
Roanoke County is closed tomorrow
What about what KM said in comment #74
Changing back over to rain at Read Mountain.
Cold, hard rain here in Blacksburg, just like my feelings about this storm.
If we miss out on the snow, does this mean we miss out on the wind? I’m still a little…or a lot…jumpy about wind after the derecho last summer.
Looks like it is starting to wrap around
Pure rain and 38* in Woodlawn …don’t think we are going to see much of anything here…
looks like snowhole in bedford again mixing w rain now oh well maybe next year who knows right only god knows why
Northeast Rke/Hollins – a light dusting of snow and now back to rain ??? Some “winter storm”.
We are visiting Louisville. Snow started in Hillview around 5pm. About 4-6″ more expected
We head back Thursday…
I was sure this was going to be a non-event, which really, REALLY upset my snow-loving self. No cloud sign for two days and the birds were having a party this morning. The radar is teasing us with all that snow to the north. I am going to sit in the corner and grumble about it all. HA! It is snowing right now, mixed with rain. About an hour ago it was sneeting rather hard. *sigh*
Snow coming down harder now.Starting to stick on top of my grill and also in the grass.Temp at 35 and falling.
Fat wet flakes of snow here in NW Roanoke near Valley View Mall. Dog had a grand time romping through the grass around 10:25pm and still falling. Cars, stairs, lawn coated — road is coated white in some places, but slushy all over.
For the questions about what this earlier storm evolution means in terms of how long the precipitation lasts, it depends on where the “pivot point” develops, the point at which the storm’s moisture starts backbuilding. Trying to pick this out on radar is kinda difficult, could be the little dry slot hole near Martinsville/Danville moving northeast.
-
No explanation right now for why much of NRV has gone back to rain while there has been snow in the Roanoke Valley and points east.
To my untrained eye, it looks like the moisture is starting to refire over Kentucky and Tenn.
Yucky drive up 311 after bowling. Very heavy, wet snow, everything covered, guess about an inch here at the house. Really putting it down.
I’m mainly rain again in SW Roanoke City. Only a slight dusting on the cartops, but nothing else.
Dry Slot filled in
It’s interesting NRV rain/snow mix but north and south on 81 snow. WDBJ says precip won’t even last much longer for NRV!
Not much hope for the nrv unless some of that wrap around can hold together and move through.
My sister in Smyth Co texted me and said they are having torrential rains and are having to pump their basement right now.
Not a Single Flake Belmont, Belview, or Pepper’s Ferry.
Christiansburg
What time does the 12″ start falling?
Thanks Kevin if I interpreted you right you said back building will occur causing more accumulation. Can you talk back building timing now?
Talk about a dry slot on this water vapor map.
http://www.weather.com/maps/maptype/currentweatherusnational/uswatervaporsatellite_large.html?
Temperatures in Pulaski are bouncing up and down by about 0.5 degress….35.0 now, 30 minutes ago it was 35.8
Calm winds last observation at ROA airport…
looks like the low is just about right over the valley.
Pressure is still dropping..and occasionally getting
a northerly vector..
observations are from 0229z to 0332z..
some of these are special observations at the airport (speci)
PREFR (Pressure falling rapidly..) read as close to low center..
KROA 060332Z 00000KT 1/2SM SN FG OVC004 01/00 A2968 RMK AO2 PRESFR
P0010= (SPECI)
KROA 060323Z 02003KT 1/2SM SN FG BKN006 OVC009 01/00 A2969 RMK AO2
P0008= (SPECI)
KROA 060308Z 00000KT 1/2SM SN FG OVC004 01/00 A2971 RMK AO2 P0004=
(SPECI)
KROA 060254Z 00000KT 1/2SM SN FG OVC006 01/M01 A2972 RMK AO2
RAE25SNB25 SLP067 P0017 60042 T00111006 58026=
KROA 060238Z 11003KT 1 3/4SM -SN BR BKN008 OVC013 01/00 A2973 RMK AO2
RAE25SNB25 P0010= (SPECI)
KROA 060229Z 00000KT 4SM -SN BR BKN008 OVC013 02/01 A2974 RMK AO2
RAE25SNB25 P0008= (SPECI)
KROA 060154Z 00000KT 4SM -RA BR OVC013 02/00 A2975 RMK AO2 SLP080
P0019 T00170000=
ROA SP 0332 AO2A E4 OVC 1/2SF 34/32/0000/968/ PRESFR PCPN 0010=
ROA SP 0323 AO2A E6 BKN 9 OVC 1/2SF 34/32/0203/969/ PCPN 0008=
ROA SP 0308 AO2A E4 OVC 1/2SF 34/32/0000/971/ PCPN 0004=
ROA SA 0254 AO2A E6 OVC 1/2SF 067/34/31/0000/972/ 58026 6042/
RAE25SNB25 PCPN 0017=
They say that in Callaway, where our rump backs up against the Blue Ridge, we get more rain than the rest of Franklin County. Not feeling sorry for myself or anything, but that certainly is true tonight.
Came in just after 9pm from a meeting in Saltville. Rain was still falling heavily but has now let up. Temps were in the low 40′s and now down to 37. Winds are howling and temps are dropping. Radar seems to be building with snow out towards middle TN and KY. Guess I’ll go to bed and see what happens in the morning. We will see if that WWA was necessary. Good night all.
Bumped the totals for Roanoke from 1-3 to 2-4in. Hope its right!!!
SNow Lover – see what you mean
I’m just seeing alot of rain in Hokieburg right now.
Wet wet wet snow it didn’t take long to make everything white. Here is Harrisonburg things could get interesting
Not a flake in central Franklin County. Moderate rain though… good for the rivers and the kayakers, myself included.. as we say, “rain is a good thing!”
Long time lurker, first time posting. Rain pretty much all day, temps are dropping. Only hope is the wraparound. Heading to Florida in a couple of weeks. I hear ‘A Pirate looks at 40′ + some years in the background. Looking forward to spending some time on a boat in the near future. Bring on Spring.
Refire is right Roger!
http://radar.weather.gov/Conus/centgrtlakes.php
Loop it!
Been snowing here since 9:15 already have 2 inches temperature 31 degrees
I have a coating of confectionery sugar on driveway, grass, walkway. Even this ol’ snow hater has to admit this snowfall is beautiful. It may be starting to melt, however, because I can hear water running down the downspouts. Robin Reed’s model says 2 inches for ROA, 1 for Blacksburg, but any of you snow lovers in Staunton?!?! Model predicts 18 inches for “youse guys,” as a Brooklynite might say.
Jeff Haniewicz on Fox 21/27 has ROA in a 1-4 range. I do not care for that much of a range at the low end. Considerable difference for those of us who work outside between a 1-inch nuisance and a 4-incher.
Visibility has gone to zero out back
Inch an hour here……..central Ohio. Hope u guys get a big one! Good luck.
Nothing but rain in Fairlawn. Suits me fine:-) I am so ready for spring.
Seems to have been raining all evening, though there may be some snow or sleet mixed in. I am encouraged though because our Winter Weather Advisory is for 2-4″ now instead of the 1-4″ it said earlier.
Around an inch and a half here is South Salem, looks like we are going to get around 4 out of this.
Shanon, does your 9-year-old go to a Roanoke County school? If so, she will not be a happy camper in the A.M., based on what you said a week or two ago. I hope that you get the day off tomorrow in the city. Otherwise both of you may be disappointed.
NWS reporting light snow in Christiansburg at 36 degrees ???
To this point at CHS, a 100% rain event.
Probably will get some wraparound snow overnight, but not a flake yet.
Snowing again ….. Green valley elm. SW RO. Co. …everything but streets covered. Just drove back from 12 oclock knob road and streets completely covered with 1/2 to 1 inch on street.
joe… curious.. could we get a crash course in that aviation lingo? I’m interested.. and correct me if I’m wrong but isn’t 0Z 7:00pm right now (until the 10th)?
32 and still raining – total rainfall so far “0.72″ inches. Also just a light breeze blowing.
Laurie, do you bowl at Lee-Hi Lanes? I used to bowl there til 2000 when my back said to quit. Also, I used to bowl in those Sunday night No Tap tournaments in the late 80s, early 90s. My fond memories are telling me I might know you.
It’s still snowing briskly here at the farm. Maybe, a half inch of snow. Cars and grass are covered. Streets are beginning to show snow.
A full inch or more and pouring snow earlier than expected. Back Creek area, SW county
Heavy snow in Lexington, VA with at least 2 inches on the ground. 34 degrees. Would have been deeper by now if the ground/air temps were cooler.
Marjie!!! (Of comment 141) I am pretty sure I met you way back in January. You work at a certain business on Electric Road near Tanglewood, right? It may have been January 17th. I strongly advised you to forget some afternoon appt. you had and get home ASAP, remember?
Still getting rain and still above freezing – 33 degrees – looks like an inversion to me since Roanoke is getting snow.
Grrrr (at myself!) Senior moment number 978. Marjie of comment 146.
Heavy snow right now in Roanoke! Hope ot lasts a little longer
If the NWS has gone to 2-4..its obvious they
expect the pivot point to keep a westerly/northwesterly
flow in there for a while..
theres still a good slug of moisture to work with
over WVa and Ky..
itll bear watching for the next several hours..
When does the area around Parkersburg / Huntington and Eastern KY
start to move from the NW ..and how long will it last.
We went from rain to sleet to a wintry mix to snow pretty much as predicted. All snow now with mild accumulation on the deck and yard.
Doug, my 9yr old and 4 yr old are in private school. My 15yr old is in the county and quite pleased that she is already called off for tomorrow LOL. Meant she stayed up later watching some crazy show with her dad. They were both downstairs laughing hysterically.
Snowing in Lynchburg. 1/2 inch. sticking to neighborhood streets
Over an inch on our back porch in South Salem
It’ll be interesting to see if that precipitation in Kentucky continues to make its way in our direction.
@don (comment 167) – yes I bowl at Lee-Hi on Tuesdays, Hilltop on Wednesdays and Vinton on Thursdays. Used to bowl a lot of no-tap in early 90′s. still snowing last time I took the dog out.
Coming down hardest I’ve seen tonight in cloverdale.
Thanks for asking Matt..
yes…the 00z is midnight Greenwich time (London)
Its also called Z time or zulu or more currently UTC..(universal coordinated time…dont ask me why they turned the c and t around)
though hardly anyone in aviation uses that term…
we just use “z” or zulu..and any time mentioned in a NWS
sequence is in London time..and date as well..
of course its early AM in London on the 6th of Mar.
Anyone know if the snow is starting to stick to the roads in Roanoke?
Have about 2″ already. Big, wet, and heavy. Still coming down hard.
And still putting down that heavy, wet snow. Interfering with satellite signal.
Just took another peek outside, and our streets are completely covered. Still snowing with gusto.
Earlier (9PM), I moved my car from the garage to the driveway to get a snow wash. I’m sure the wet snow will remove the dust and bird dung from my car.
Going to bed, but still coming down SW Roanoke City 1000 ft reading 33 deg.
Cynthia…
That wouldnt be a signature of an inversion..
An inversion has warmer air over a relatively thin
layer of cold air at the surface,,
an inversion usually turns snow into rain or freezing
rain at the surface.
I’m so hyper now that it is snowing that I know I won’t sleep! BUT….Roanoke City still has not called school off, so therefore I must go to bed…….just in case!
Nice big snow flakes falling on Bent Mountain- 2 plus inches.
My direct TV went out, must be heavy wet snow flakes!
Dry slot seems to be filling. More returns in east tn and kentucky
The new low pressure system is located just south of Greensboro.
Bumped up the totals for Roanoke City again! 3-5 inches
But Cynthia, you are sort of right about one thing. The radar map and actual accounts verify that a rare event is happening. Floyd County is getting very little snow, while I and lots of other places in the Roanoke area are getting some. Robin Reed explained that warm air is approaching from the NRV and points west, while colder air that was north of Roanoke has “dropped” south. Being a snow hater and having to drive around on possibly slick roads, I say send some of that warmer air down here!!
Someone asked about roads. My street has a fine coating of wet snow, very thin. Does not appear to be icy.
Here’s a graphic showing where the new low pressure center is forming.
http://i218.photobucket.com/albums/cc289/blriesenbeck07/63264_580954481917330_1235790464_n_zps6d0d2ade.png
Getting a heat wave here! Temp has gone up to 39F now and nary a snowflake yet.
Quite a bit of rain though – guessing it has been about 3/4 inch so far, brought the rain gauge in earlier this winter so it doesn’t freeze and crack when I forget to empty it.
Really coming down hard now.If this keeps up we may have quite a big snowfall by tommorrow night.Temp down to 34.Ground is white.Wind is starting to pick up here.Just checked the web cam at the Homestead in Hot Springs it is pouring up there.
I understand the GFS has shifted the storm southward. Could that have been the reason the changeover occurred much sooner?
The new GFS Snowmap has just moved the heavier snow south and west.
Also, the SPC has issued a Meso Discussion for very heavy snow for VA. This thing is really going to bomb.
Heavy rain at 36 now in Goochland Co with sleet mixing in.
posting links to new snowmap next comment. My trip got postponed so I’m back hom.e
@ Joe #182: (According to Wikipedia) UTC is a compromise abbreviation. French speakers wanted to use TUC (for “temps universel coordonné”), and English speakers wanted CUT (for “coordinated universal time”). The committees ended up going with UTC (unofficial English: “Universal Time, Coordinated”, and unofficial French: “Universel Temps Coordonné”), which also allowed them to standardize abbreviations for variants of Universal Time (UT0, UT1, UT2, UT1R, etc.).
Universal Time is based on astronomical observations. UTC is actually an approximation of Universal Time based on the atomic clock and the SI second, and using leap seconds to keep it within 0.9 seconds of UT1.
Hope, you keep saying that “Bumped up totals for Roanoke City again.” Who bumped up the totals? NWS?
Temp is 32.5* and holding there for past hour. I wonder if it will be higher or lower at 6 A.M.
Right now Salem is getting covered. The roads are white and getting slick. Bad enough I put the truck in 4wheel just to be safe as I had some trouble getting going when the light turned green.
When I got into Roanoke the roads were just wet.
This is as of 10 minutes ago from my drive home from work.
Hey Jared are you happy now?I bet you have a grin on your face bigtime tonight.Enjoy this one man its probaly the last one till next winter.
Matt…here are 4 sequences of Roanoke..
spanning from 0332z to 0408z…(0408z is 1108pm there)
in normal conditions these obs would be just taken hourly
but since its a rapidly changing event they issue “specials” (SPECI)
..Top one is read by voice as follows… :
Roanoke at 0408z on the 6th..Calm winds 1/2 mi visibility moderate snow and fog..500 overcast temperature plus one dewpoint zero..altimeter
29 point 66 inches,,, (after that are precipitation codes..tells of the type and accumulations in some observations)
Later note -SN that notes light snow…
the vast majority of the time when you see visibilities 1 mile its light snow if its snowing…1/2 mi is at least moderate snow..and 1/4 mi is heavy snow..unless there is fog mixed in to assist with the lowering of visibilities.
KROA 060408Z 00000KT 1/2SM SN FG OVC005 01/00 A2966 RMK AO2 P0003=
(SPECI)
KROA 060354Z 00000KT 1SM -SN BR OVC005 01/M01 A2967 RMK AO2 SLP050
P0012 T00061006=
KROA 060345Z 00000KT 1SM -SN BR OVC007 01/M01 A2967 RMK AO2 P0011=
(SPECI)
KROA 060332Z 00000KT 1/2SM SN FG OVC004 01/00 A2968 RMK AO2 PRESFR
Radar shows that the precip has stopped on Bent Mountain, and will be stopping soon for me. I am close to Sugar Loaf Mountain, about a mile up from Allstate and Oak Grove Elementary School.
On my drive home just a few minutes ago…it is raining a crunchy snack mix of some kind…sneet, sleet, maybe snow and some of that is accumulating off of Prices Fork Road. But it’s mostly rain. Temp at my house is 33. Roads are good.
I don’t really care what kind of snack mix it is…this Hokie is just DONE with winter.
The weather channel. @Doug
SPC Meso Discussion for heavy snow in VA mainly north of Roanoke but this may be amended to a more south location…
http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/md/md0248.html
New GFS Snow Map…from DT…only one I can find on short notice.
https://www.facebook.com/WxRisk#!/photo.php?fbid=496272970419966&set=a.148807335166533.25889.129478830432717&type=1&theater
Winds are picking up here out of the ENE temp down to 35 and more sleet with some snow mixing in in Goochland Co.
Temp has actually bumped up a degree in Radford and it’s still raining. But for some reason they have went from 1-3 to 2-6 for us.
Being lazy – I am guessing 2.5 inches in Daleville and big flakes continue – Bot, Schools are now closed tomorrow – kids are happy – I am still skeptical – I thought snow was supposed to start after midnight tonight and continue through Wednesday Noonish – in reality – it started snowing around 8:00 PM earlier this evening and per radar looks like it ends at midnight ………….confused, but at least white at this point.
Mike in Marshall, this is sweet! First real snow in 3 years and the latest GFS has moved the bullseye for heavy snow right over Greene and Madison county.
Is Bedford going to get another snow hole or is it just a matter of waiting for the snow to get here from Roanoke? All these updates from Roanoke have me anxious!
THis is the SPC MD report and has important info for us geeks. WoW!
MESOSCALE DISCUSSION 0248
NWS STORM PREDICTION CENTER NORMAN OK
0952 PM CST TUE MAR 05 2013
AREAS AFFECTED…ERN WV…PORTIONS OF NRN/WRN VA…A LARGE PART OF
MD…WASHINGTON DC…PORTIONS OF FAR SRN PA
CONCERNING…HEAVY SNOW
VALID 060352Z – 060945Z
SUMMARY…SNOW WITH RATES OF 1-1.5 IN/HR WILL SPREAD NEWD ACROSS
PARTS OF THE MID ATLANTIC AND CNTRL APPALACHIANS OVERNIGHT.
DISCUSSION…AS THE LEADING EDGE OF A STRONG MID-LEVEL PV MAX
CONTINUES OVERTAKING A LOW-LEVEL BAROCLINIC ZONE OVER THE
CAROLINAS…A SFC LOW IS DEVELOPING ALONG THE ATTENDANT FRONT IN
CNTRL NC WHERE PRESSURE FALLS OF 3-4 MB PER 2 HOURS HAVE BEEN NOTED.
AS THE SFC LOW TRACKS NEWD/NWD DURING THE NEXT SEVERAL HOURS…A
STRENGTHENING 850-700-MB FRONTOGENETIC CIRCULATION WILL SUPPORT
INCREASING MESOSCALE ASCENT. IN TURN…PRECIPITATION WILL CONTINUE
TO OVERSPREAD THE AREA TONIGHT AMID AN ELEVATED WARM CONVEYOR BELT.
WHILE LOW-LEVEL THERMAL PROFILES ARE INITIALLY MARGINAL FOR SNOW
FROM THE DC AREA INTO NRN VA…THE COMBINED EFFECTS OF COOLING OWING
TO FORCED ASCENT AND WET-BULB/NOCTURNAL EFFECTS SHOULD AID IN
LOWERING WET-BULB ZERO HEIGHTS TOWARD THE SFC DURING THE NEXT FEW
HOURS. FURTHERMORE…ISALLOBARIC FORCING SHOULD ALLOW LOW-LEVEL FLOW
BACK AND BECOME MORE NLY…RESULTING IN COOLER AIR BEING DRAWN INTO
THE REGION. AS SUCH…SNOW WILL BECOME THE PREDOMINANT PRECIPITATION
TYPE ACROSS THE AREA BY 06Z…WITH SNOW RATES INCREASING TO 1-1.5
IN/HR THEREAFTER. LOCALLY HIGHER RATES MAY OCCUR IN UPSLOPE-FAVORED
AREAS AND RIDGETOPS OVER THE CNTRL APPALACHIANS. THESE RATES WILL
LIKELY SPREAD NEWD WITH TIME…ROUGHLY IN TANDEM WITH THE TRACK OF
THE LOW…REACHING THE DC AREA MORE LIKELY AFTER 08Z. THESE RATES
WILL LIKELY CONTINUE THROUGH DAWN.
..COHEN.. 03/06/2013
Better GFS snow map…
https://www.facebook.com/WxSouth#!/photo.php?fbid=597170943646298&set=a.358160627547332.99358.356106867752708&type=1&theater
OK, this is getting odd. Temp is now 42F. NWS Point forecast has 26F as the low for today (tomorrow by the time it gets posted) and 36F for the high tomorrow and 1-3 inches of snow for “tonight”
Wondering how much snow Jared got so far. Will be enough to keep him off the roof?
Wow this just got interesting. Kevin and all this is of course how this winter would go out.
Very wet snow in northeast salem near 460/main/melrose. Trees holding snow and drooping. NWS says 33 here. Snow has shifted from huge flakes to fine.
Finally seeing some light snow here in Radford temp has recently dropped 1.5 degrees down to 35
One of the things we’ve talked about the last few days is how a slight jog to the south and we could see higher snow totals. I’m not saying that’s going to happen, but it sure does look like it’s trending that way.
Jared how much snow do you have down there now?Only 1 inch here so far.
We were at 2 inches on the ground at 11:45 pm with a outside temp of 33.4 F. That was up from 0.5 inches on the ground at 10:30 pm with a outside temp of 33.9 F. It is still snowing.
Lovin’ that GFS! 1″ in SW Roanoke City (1043′) so far.
What is see as an issue for more snow is the temperatures for tomorrow. They need to stay in the low 30s.
Temp now down to 34 from 37 in one hour still some fine light snow.
An interesting thing that has happened is that a band of precipitation has stayed more or less parked on the Blue Ridge, and keeps recharging. This appears to be part of the “deformation zone” of the low pressure in NC. With another piece of upper-level energy moving in, it may keep recharging more or less in place for a while. This has kept snow on Roanoke, and these bands keep moving up along I-81 as well.
About 2″ here and our power is out already. Word of warning; charge your phones.
Just rain and 36 deg here in Willis.
New River has gone from light NE wind to light NW wind to calm
in about an hour.
“Parked” seems an appropriate term for now.
(UP) is a dastardly term when you have auto reporting..”unknown precipitation” type
KPSK 060515Z AUTO 00000KT 5SM UP SCT003 BKN015 OVC021 01/01 A2962 RMK
AO2=
KPSK 060455Z AUTO 00000KT 7SM UP BKN003 OVC015 01/01 A2962 RMK AO2=
KPSK 060435Z AUTO 33003KT 7SM UP OVC003 01/01 A2961 RMK AO2=
KPSK 060415Z AUTO 32003KT 3SM UP OVC003 02/02 A2962 RMK AO2=
KPSK 060355Z AUTO 06003KT 4SM UP OVC003 02/02 A2962 RMK AO2=
moderate snow now in Radford starting to stick to the grass and cars.
Temp is going down, at 35F now, must have been some warmer air in between. It started snowing.heavily about twenty minutes ago but the ground is so wet that it is turning into a thin layer of slush. NWS revised point cast an inch downward to 1-2″. Looks like the ground will be white when I wake up in the morning. WInd is starting to get gusty. Good night all.
Looking at the latest radar kinda looks like the wrap around is falling apart a little bit I hope this isn’t a trend.
Ok people, If you could do me/us a favor. If you are going to give a snow total, it would be so nice if you would include the area you live in so we can see how much snow different areas are getting. I live in Vinton and we may have a half of an inch!
Finally seeing some flakes in Christiansburg, just a dusting so far. Guess if my toddler wasn’t such a bad sleeper, I wouldn’t have known! =P
Is the deformation zone that is developing right now, stay over lynchburg to?
I am sorry NrVBrandon but I am not seeing that at all. Kevin what do you think?
Definitely see the moisture in kentucky and tn slowly disappearing don’t think we will reach an inch here in Radford now. Had hopes this would’ve held together better.
Just posted a new blog post for the overnight/early morning.
It is really putting it down in clifton forge va as of 1;50am
415am Cloverdale, 3 inches, appears nothing is currently falling but I aint moving off the covered deck cuz Im grilling a steak.