On today's print weather page, reader and frequent question-submitter Jeff Brauner asks why he hears the term "occluded front" so seldom these days:

"What is an 'occluded front'? Is that sort of an old-fashioned term that modern meteorologists don't use much anymore?" Occluded fronts occur when cold fronts sweep counterclockwise around a low-pressure center and overtake slower warm fronts on the other side, lifting the warmer air. Meteorologists do use it. Maybe they skip it in forecasts to avoid explaining it."

As luck would have it, there is a low-pressure system drifting our way today and, lo and behold, it has an occluded front extending southward from the center. It's the purple line in the weather map below. So as the showers arrive later today, you can amaze your friends by saying, "Hmmm, seems like rain associated with an occluded front."  And please report any instances of weather broadcasters actually using the term.

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