You may be waking up to some white this morning that you weren't expecting (nor was I, nor just about anybody else).
I just finished walking my dog at 2 a.m. in a steady snow here in south Roanoke County. Some slushy accumulation on grass and car tops, but it appears to be slightly above freezing. (UPDATE 4:30 a.m.: Now about 3/4 inch of snow, sticking on pavement as well). From my deck, I watched the rain -- splotchy on my windshield headed home, signaling that it was melting snow not far above the surface -- gradually mix with and change to snow early this morning. It doesn't appear that all of the Roanoke Valley is experiencing this snow, as the airport was still reporting rain at last check, but some sleet and snow may be mixing with the rain. (UPDATE 3:20 a.m. -- Roanoke Regional Airport now reporting light snow and 34 degrees). I would be interested to know how much snow you folks in the higher elevations have gotten out of this. (I've gotten one report of over an inch near Christiansburg).
Why did this happen? A low pressure system high in the atmosphere was stronger and earlier than expected. More moisture than expected arrived faster than expected, catching up to a cold atmosphere.
(UPDATE 9:30 A.M. -- To keep this entry going as the place to post any snow reports you may have in the comments section, I have added the National Weather Service's latest public information statement on snow accumulations in the extended entry below. Sounds like snow accumulation may have varied a lot across the Roanoke Valley, from a dusting to about an inch, which is what I got where I live just south of the city. It's really the fifth "spotty" winter weather event we've had this month -- it all depends on exactly where you were. Here, it was pretty impressive for a few hours early this a.m. as very large conglomerated flakes up to half-dollar size plummeted down. Now, it's all melting rapidly, and walking under trees is like being in a rainstorm. I plan to post some pictures later today)
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
SPOTTER REPORTS
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BLACKSBURG VA
933 AM EST FRI DEC 21 2007
VIRGINIA
...CITY OF RADFORD...
RADFORD 0.3 908 AM 12/21
...CRAIG COUNTY...
PAINT BANK 4.0 400 AM 12/21
NEW CASTLE 1.5 400 AM 12/21
...FLOYD COUNTY...
COPPER HILL 1.6 700 AM 12/21 SNOW SLEET MIX
COPPER HILL 1.0 800 AM 12/21
...FRANKLIN COUNTY...
ROCKY MOUNT 1.2 700 AM 12/21 COCORAHS
...MONTGOMERY COUNTY...
CHRISTIANSBURG 0.5 908 AM 12/21 COOP OBSERVER
BLACKSBURG 0.3 907 AM 12/21 NWS OFFICE
...PITTSYLVANIA COUNTY...
CHATHAM T 720 AM 12/21 COCORAHS
...ROANOKE COUNTY...
CATAWBA 1.0 400 AM 12/21
CLEARBROOK 0.8 453 AM 12/21
...ROCKBRIDGE COUNTY...
COLLIERSTOWN 1.5 521 AM 12/21
GLASGOW 0.5 700 AM 12/21 COCORAHS
Comments
[December 21, 2007 3:47 AM]
Tracy Bryant3:41am
Kevin,
Thanks for the info. You seem to be the only one that knows whats going on out there. Right now we have about a half inch at the foot of Bent Mnt. .Never underestimate what God can or will do.
Tracy
[December 21, 2007 8:34 AM]
Other JohnWe had a light dusting of snow/sleet just before midnight in Blacksburg. The rain started probably around 1030, and when I woke up this morning we probably had about 1-1.5 inches on the cars and grassy areas. Roads were mostly clear, although some shady areas were slushy and slick.
[December 21, 2007 8:46 AM]
JulieKevin, We had sleet/ZR from 1 a.m. to 7 a.m. in Check (Floyd Co.), occasionally mixed with a little snow. About a 1/2" of accumulation so far. The roads were clear but the fog was very thick; vis. < 1/8 mi., even after the sun started to rise.
[December 21, 2007 11:16 AM]
RuthMostly sleet in Radford. Possibly some snow. Just a dusting when I woke up. The funny thing was, when it started last night around 10, the temp was 42 degrees!
[December 21, 2007 2:12 PM]
Sean Pecor : →http://www.pecorfamily.comI'm not sure if this url will break, but I've got a cahas mountain webcam. It archives a photo every 60 seconds. Here is the snowcover at about 9:21am:
http://extranet.digitalspinner.com:8180/cahascam/2007-12-21/2007-12-21%2009-21-01.jpg
If the URL breaks, you can just visit http://extranet.digitalspinner.com:8180/cahascam/ and jump to 2007-12-21 and pick the desired timestamped image.
[December 21, 2007 5:46 PM]
DannyIt looks like we ended up with just over 2 inches (rough estimate) in Newport. Drive to town was a little slippy, but the main roads were only damp.
Nice December gift!