Storm watch threatens ice, no snow
The Winter of 2008-09 continues to disappoint snow lovers in Central Maryland. The forecasters out in Sterling are warning of sleet and freezing rain during the next two days, but none of the sort of snowy winter weather (below, in 2003) that delights school kids (and some teachers), but which has eluded us so far this winter.
There is a Winter Storm Watch posted north and west of the I-95 corridor, including Baltimore but not Washington, beginning early Tuesday morning and continuing through Wednesday morning. Here's the setup:
There's a low-pressure system - a storm - brewing across the Tennessee Valley that's predicted to move north into the Great Lakes tonight. The counter-clockwise flow around the low will draw a lot of wet air north from the Gulf into our region. Here, it will overrun a layer of cold air near the surface. Depending on how cold that surface layer is, and how thick, the rain falling through that colder air will either freeze as it falls, landing as sleet; or, it will freeze on contact with the surface, which we call freezing rain.
Forecasters aren't sure yet how much of which form of precipitation we'll see, or who will get what. But there is at least a potential for as much as a quarter-inch of ice forming on surfaces such as tree branches, utility lines, windshields, railings and sidewalks. "Preparations should be made now for a potentially high-impact winter weather event Tuesday afternoon through Wednesday morning," the folks in Sterling said.
South and east of I-95, we're likely to see mostly rain or all rain.
However it falls, the moisture will apparently be abundant, with the equivalent of up to an inch of rain possible.
By Wednesday night, forecasters expect we'll be overrun by the next cold front out of the Great Lakes. That will mean clearing skies by Thursday, but it comes with colder temperatures and blustery winds. Thursday night will be the coldest of the week, with lows in the mid-20s.
The next storm system doesn't offer snow lovers much more hope. It's expected to deliver something by Saturday afternoon into Sunday, and the best guessers for the moment are calling it a rain-snow mix.
Sorry, kids.
