Monday, January 16, 2017

Winter Storm Jupiter's Icy, Snowy Mess Spreads Into the Upper Midwest; Targets New England Tuesday, Wednesday

January 16,2017
Winter Storm Jupiter is now spreading its icy mess into parts of the Upper Midwest, after leaving a mess of downed trees and power outages acrosss parts of the Plains this weekend.
This winter storm will have a final chapter in parts of the Northeast, wringing out accumulating snow and some ice beginning Tuesday.
(MORE: How Winter Storms Are Named | Winter Storm Central)
Ice storm warnings continue for parts of the central Plains. An assortment of winter weather advisories and freezing rain advisories now stretch into the Great Lakes and parts of the Northeast.
(MORE: 5 Things to Know About Ice Storms)
Winter storm warnings are also posted for parts of the High Plains for accumulating snow and ice.

Winter Weather Alerts

Current Conditions and Latest Reports

Accumulating ice has begun to focus on a swath from northwest Kansas to Nebraska, Iowa, and northern Illinois.
(INTERACTIVE: Radar | Storm Reports)

Current Radar, Temperatures, Conditions
One quarter to one-third of an inch of ice accumulation has been observed in Grand Island and Hastings, Nebraska. Power was said to be "unstable" in Fairbury, Nebraska, according to a Jefferson County emergency manager.
Overnight, roads around Des Moines, Iowa, and Omaha, Nebraska, were covered in a glaze of ice, though surface temperatures have warmed to 32-33 degrees Monday morning.
Meanwhile, in parts of the ice-ravaged Plains, precipitation has now changed to snow. Up to 3 inches of snow fell in 2 hours early Monday in Boise City, Oklahoma.
At least six deaths have now been blamed on the slick travel conditions caused by Jupiter since Friday.
(NEWS: Latest Jupiter Impacts in Each State)
We have a complete rundown of notable winter storm reports after our forecast section below.

Monday

  • With warmer air pushing northward, the area of ice threat also pushes farther north into the upper Midwest and Great Lakes.
  • The swath that will see ice accumulations that may at least impact travel includes areas from Nebraska and northwest Kansas eastward to Iowa, southern Minnesota, Wisconsin, northern Illinois, southern Michigan and far northern Indiana.
  • Much of eastern Kansas, central Missouri and central Illinois will see plain rain.
  • A pocket of snow should persist and spread north from the High Plains of Colorado to western Kansas and central Nebraska.

Monday's Outlook

Tuesday

  • A few pockets of snow, sleet or freezing rain may persist in parts of the northern Great Lakes.
  • Snow, sleet or freezing rain begins in parts of the interior Northeast and northern New England, continuing into Tuesday night.
  • Other areas should be mainly rain.

Tuesday's Forecast

Wednesday

  • Light to moderate snow will linger over parts of northern New England, from Vermont and New Hampshire early, to Maine later in the day.
(MAPS: 7-Day Rain/Snow U.S. Forecast)

Wednesday's Forecast

Forecast Ice Impacts

Hazardous Travel, At Least

A swath of the central Plains, Upper Mississippi Valley and Great Lakes should see at least hazardous roads, particularly untreated roads, bridges and overpasses, for a time through Tuesday.
Monday, some southernmost areas that experienced ice this past weekend will see rain, or at least above-freezing temperatures, helping to thaw out any frozen roads.
The exception will be in parts of the Texas panhandle, western Kansas and western/central Nebraska where temperatures may struggle to rise much above freezing, keeping the threat of hazardous roads in play, and where snow may fall on the previous ice accumulations.
Some pockets of the interior Northeast Tuesday into Tuesday night may see a light glaze of ice, as well.

Damage/Power Outage Potential

Additional ice accumulations capable of tree/power line damage, and power outages, will be confined to a relatively small strip of the Upper Midwest going forward.
More than a quarter-inch of ice may accumulate in these areas.

Winter Storm Jupiter Additional Icing Potential
In the ice accumulation forecast above, the following definitions are used:
  • Glaze: Hazardous travel, spotty power outages
  • Damaging: Some tree damage, numerous power outages
Unlike many Plains winter storms, winds should be relatively tame during this event. However, some 10 to 15 mph winds in the worst ice-affected areas would add stress to ice-loaded trees and power lines.
(MORE: Worst U.S. Ice Storms)

Snow Forecast

The best chance of at least 6 inches of additional snow is over the High Plains of western Kansas, eastern Colorado and southwest Nebraska.
Some lighter accumulations are possible, before changing to sleet and ice in Minnesota, northern Wisconsin and parts of the upper peninsula of Michigan, as well as in the Denver metro area.
Parts of Upstate New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and western Maine may see at least 6 inches of snow Tuesday into Wednesday. Lighter accumulations are expected over the rest of Maine.

Winter Storm Jupiter Snowfall Forecast

Storm Recap

Sunday Reports (Jan. 15)
Up to 1 inch of ice accumulation was observed in parts of the High Plains by January 15, including Beaver, Oklahoma, and Dodge City, Kansas.
Woodward, Oklahoma, estimated 0.60 to 0.70 inches of ice accretion on trees and powerlines.
Up to a half-inch of ice was observed in Canadian, Texas, while a quarter inch of ice accumulated on trees and other surfaces in Amarillo, Texas.
Saturday Reports (Jan. 14)
Three-quarters of an inch of ice was reported in Waynesville, Missouri Saturday morning. Some small tree branches were reported to be broken down.
By evening, freezing rain waned in the Ohio River Valley, but accumulations of one-quarter to one-half inch were becoming common in the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma.
Friday Reports (Jan. 13)
During the day on Friday, over 100 reports of freezing rain and ice accumulations had come in from Oklahoma to western Kentucky and southwest Indiana.
Trees were downed and power outages reported in Springfield, Missouri, where about one-quarter inch of ice accumulation was observed by midday Friday. Not far from Springfield, more than half of an inch of ice had accumulated in Aldrich, Missouri.
Ice also accumulated on some surfaces in Carbondale, Illinois, Joplin, Missouri, and Tulsa, Oklahoma, among other locations. Tree damage was observed as far east as Carterville, Illinois.
Tree damage from accumulated ice in Carterville, Illinois, on January 13, 2017, during Winter Storm Jupiter.
(John Chaney)
Some cloud-to-ground lightning strikes were detected along the Interstate 44 corridor of far northeast Oklahoma and southern Missouri early Friday.
Monday - Thursday Reports (Jan. 9-12)
Jupiter's first phase brought major snow accumulations to the West, including lower elevations of the Pacific Northwest.
Up to 15.5 inches of snow was measured in the Portland, Oregon, metro area, beginning Tuesday night into Wednesday, accompanied by thundersnow with rates of up to 4 inches per hour.
According to the National Weather Service, Jupiter was the single biggest snowstorm for many in the metro area in almost 22 years, since a 12-inch snowstorm hammered the city two days before Valentine's Day, 1995.
The weight of this snow downed trees, and numerous vehicles were abandoned on metro streets and freeways.
(NEWS: Thousands Without Power, Hundreds of Cars Abandoned in Oregon)
Since the morning of Jan. 9, parts of the Sierra Nevada picked up almost 80 inches of snow. In Kingvale, California, almost 5 feet of snow fell in 24 hours ending 7 a.m. PST Wednesday.
(LATEST NEWS: Sierra Buried By Feet of Snow)
The combination of this dumping of snow and strong winds Tuesday prompted closure of stretches of Interstate 80, U.S. 50 and California Highway 88 over the Sierra. According to the NWS in Sacramento, the last closure of this magnitude on Interstate 80 over Donner Summit was in March 2011.
In fact, going back over a seven-day period, parts of the Sierra have picked up an almost unfathomable 12 feet of snow, during what the NWS in Reno is calling the biggest Sierra snowstorm in six years.
(MORE: Too Much Snow Shut Down Some Resorts)
The pure volume of snow lead to several avalanches, including a controlled avalanche impacting about a dozen homes in Alpine Meadows, California. Residents of Crystal Bay and Incline Village were asked to shelter in place due to the avalanche threat.
A small avalanche prompting closure of the only plowed road to Crater Lake National Park in southwest Oregon.
Another avalanche also impacted a dozen homes Tuesday in the Greater Lake Tahoe area.
Additionally, heavy snow pounded parts of the Great Basin and Rockies.
The town of Hill City, Idaho, picked up at least 26 inches of snow in 24 hours, with snow so deep, ski lift chairs were said to be dragging in the snow, according to a local media report to the NWS in Boise early Wednesday.
If that all wasn't impressive enough, an EF0 tornado touched down around midnight Wednesday morning near Arco Arena in Sacramento, downing trees and fences and twisting metal awnings.      

Snow and Ice Reports

Here are some selected ice reports from Winter Storm Jupiter, as of late Sunday evening.
Colorado: 0.12 inches in Wray
Illinois: 0.37 inches of sleet and freezing rain near Maeystown; 0.25 inches in Steeleville, O'Fallon, Hoyleton and Waterloo
Kansas: 0.50-0.60 inches in Columbus; 0.50 inches near Dodge City; 0.20 inches in Emporia, Concordia and Salina
Kentucky: 0.10 inches in Sturgis
Maryland: 0.12 inches in Eckhart Mines
Missouri: 0.75 inches near Waynesville and Aldrich; 0.20 inches near St. Louis
Ohio: 0.06 inches in Hamilton
Oklahoma: 1 inch in Beaver;  0.60-0.70 inches Woodward
Pennsylvania: 0.10 inches in Little Baltimore
Texas: 0.50 inches in Canadian with broken tree limbs; 0.50 inches in Gruver; 0.50 inches in Darrouzett with trees limbs down; 0.25 inches near Amarillo
Here are some selected snowfall reports from Winter Storm Jupiter, as of late Sunday evening.
California: 79 inches at Soda Springs and Kingvale
Colorado: 26 inches at Molas Pass
Idaho: Estimated 71.4 inches at the Galena Summit Snotel station; Ski lift chairs were dragging in the snow at the Soldier Mountain Ski Area.
Montana: 10 inches near Cooke City
Nevada: 54 inches in 48 hours at Diamond Peak Ski near Incline Village
New Mexico: 9 inches near Mogollon at the Silver Creek Divide Snotel; 3 inches near Santa Fe
Oregon: 20 inches near La Pine; 15.5 inches just west of downtown Portland; 13 inches in downtown Portland
Washington: 14 inches near Yacolt
Wyoming: 94.5 inches near Encampment at the Old Battle Snotel (total from Sunday morning to Thursday morning)
Check weather.com frequently for the latest updates on this system.
MORE: Winter Storm Jupiter, January 2017 (PHOTOS)

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