There is cold air coming into Michigan by Friday and Saturday. Data shows it’s going to be cold enough for a few areas to see the first wet snowflakes of the season.
First off, this won’t be any snow that would accumulate more than just briefly on an elevated surface.
Cold air is slow to blow over Michigan at this time of year. Lake Superior and Lake Michigan waters are still in the 50s and 60s and warm the cold air coming from Canada.
That’s what makes the cold late this week so impressive. Even with all the warm water, inland spots could get cold enough to have wet snow briefly.
Here’s why.
First off we look at the temperatures aloft to see if they are cold enough to make snowflakes up in the atmosphere.
Temperatures (in Celsius) at around 5,000 feet up in the atmosphere.
The temperatures on the map above are in Celsius and around 5,000 feet up on Saturday morning. It will take a temperature around -4 degrees C, which is 25 degrees F, to make snow at this time of year. There is plenty of area colder than -4 degrees C. About the northern third of Lower Michigan and all of the U.P. meets that criteria.
Surface temperatures around 8 a.m. Saturday, October 1, 2020
Surface temperatures will be near freezing at inland areas and higher elevations in northern Lower Michigan and the Upper Peninsula.
So I put both of those temperature parameters together on the same map below.
Composite map showing temperatures aloft and areas where surface temperatures are cold enough(in purple)
The purple enclosed areas north of the yellow line will be cold enough for glimpses of snow.
Some weather computer models even forecast a light accumulation, like in the forecast below. Again, the ground is so warm snow would melt immediately.
The areas that could see a few snowflakes are the higher elevations near Marquette and the high areas near Wolverine, Gaylord and Mancelona.
This reminds me of when I moved to Michigan in early October almost 30 years ago. We unloaded the moving truck, tracking in four inches of new, wet snow. My mind said this is going to be fun, and it has been!
Snowfall total forecast by Saturday morning, October 1, 2020
Heading north this weekend is a good idea to see rapidly developing fall colors. In the U.P. there will be some areas of peak color. Heading north may also get you a view of something you may or may not want to see - snow.
"later" - Google News
September 29, 2020 at 02:35AM
https://ift.tt/3jbxWHx
First snowflakes possible in northern Michigan later this week - mlive.com
"later" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2KR2wq4
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "First snowflakes possible in northern Michigan later this week - mlive.com"
Post a Comment