A "TIMELY" REMINDER - Before you forget, did you set your clocks forward one hour (to include those on your computers) if you live in a locale that observes Daylight Saving Time? As of yesterday morning, most of the country changed from Standard Time to Daylight Saving Time. Excerpts from last Friday's summary discussing Daylight Saving Time are included in Monday's optional electronic Supplemental Information.
WEATHER OVER THE WEEKEND -- Several persisting themes could be used to describe the nation's weather over the Easter-Passover weekend:
High pressure situated over the Southeastern States was responsible for relatively warm and reasonably tranquil weather over the Midwest and South on Friday and Saturday. Record high temperatures were tied or set on Friday at Muskegon, MI (76 degrees), New Orleans/Aububon Park, LA (85 degrees) and Columbus, GA (86 degrees). On Saturday record high temperatures were either tied or set across the Great Lakes States, from Michigan where Grand Rapids set a record with 80 degrees eastward through northern Ohio and Pennsylvania to Buffalo in western New York State (76 degrees) and southward in West Virginia, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia and Florida, where Tampa had a record high of 90 degrees. By Sunday, the highest temperatures moved eastward as the influence of the high pressure system shifted toward the East Coast.. High temperatures across the Southeast and the Middle Atlantic States on Sunday were as much as 20 degrees above the long-term average high temperatures for this time of year. On Sunday afternoon, record high temperatures were either tied or set at Atlantic City, NJ (State Marina, 77 degrees and International Airport 76 degrees), Roanoke, VA (85 degrees); Harrisburg, PA (82 degrees); Florence, SC (93 degrees) and in North Carolina at Asheville (83 degrees), Charlotte (86 degrees) and Raleigh-Durham (87 degrees).
On the other hand, a cold pool of air remained over the West through the weekend. Many locations had temperatures that consistently ran between 10 and 20 degrees below the averages for this time of year. Record low temperatures were either tied or set on Friday morning at Pendleton, OR (26 degrees) and in California at Eureka (34 degrees), Bakersfield (35 degrees), Moffett Airfield (38 degrees), Santa Barbara (39 degrees) and Los Angeles International (43 degrees). In Arizona, the high temperature of 53 degrees recorded on Friday at Tucson was a record low maximum temperature for the date, as was the 59 degrees at Phoenix. In addition, four inches of snow on Friday canceled the second round of the Tradition seniors PGA golf tournament at Desert Mountain (elevation 3200 feet) in Scottsdale, AZ. Friday's exhibition baseball game between the Boston Red Sox and the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field in Denver was also canceled because of several inches of snow. As of late Friday afternoon, 48 inches of snow had fallen at Wolf Creek Pass in the San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado. Heavy snow also fell across the mountains of southern California along the Mexican border, where nine Mexicans attempting to cross the border died because of exposure to the cold. On Sunday, 18 additional inches of snow had fallen within 24 hours at Wolf Creek Pass.
Record low temperatures were set once again on Sunday morning in California at Fresno (33 degrees) and Bakersfield (35 degrees) in the central Valley, and Chatsworth (36 degrees), San Luis Obispo (32 degrees) and Mt. Wilson (21 degrees) in the south. High temperatures across the Southwest on Sunday were once again well below average, with some locations in southern Arizona nearly 30 degrees below the climatological average high for the date. The high temperature at Phoenix on Sunday was 58 degrees, a record low maximum temperature for the date. In Flagstaff, where 16 inches of new snow had fallen, Sunday's high was only 27 degrees, also a record low high for the date.
A storm system and trailing cold front moved through California on Saturday. In the central valley of California, an infant was killed in Salinas as wind knocked a tree onto an automobile. An unconfirmed report of a tornado was made from near Napa.
A sinuous frontal system that stretched from New England to the Great Lakes and then to the southern Plains separated the warm air in the East from the cold air in the West. Waves of low pressure formed and moved along this front. Thunderstorms also developed along this front. Some of these thunderstorms turned severe.
On Friday severe thunderstorms spawned two tornadoes, produced wind damage and large hail from west Texas to northeast Iowa. Many of the 11 reports of wind gusts exceeding 54 mph and the 35 reports of large hail were made from Oklahoma and Kansas. On Saturday five tornadoes were reported Saturday, along with 56 reports of large hail and 47 reports of wind damage were made from near Dallas-Ft. Worth in north Texas northeastward to east central Wisconsin. At least six people were killed by a tornado in Benton a community in northwest Louisiana to the north of Shreveport. The tornado was reported to have been 300 yards wide. At the resort community of Branson, in southern Missouri, 80 mph thunderstorm gusts damaged 2 hotels, 50 autos and a mobile home. Heavy rains caused flooding in several Texas communities. A 24 hour precipitation record of 3.40 inches of rain fell at Paducah, KY on Saturday.
Severe thunderstorms with large hail and damaging winds were found across east Texas, southern Oklahoma and Louisiana on Sunday morning.
WEATHER FOR STARTING THE NEW WEEK -- Much of the weather action across the nation on late Sunday was associated with a storm system that had moved across the Southern Rockies into the Texas Panhandle. This system had one weakening low pressure center over the Four Corners of Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Utah, while the dominant low pressure center was situated over the Texas Panhandle near Lubbock. A warm front extended eastward from this latter low pressure center along the Red River Valley into southern Arkansas, while a cold front extended southward from the low into Mexico. This system is expected to move to the northeast, reaching the Oklahoma Panhandle by early Monday morning.
Several regions of severe thunderstorms were associated with this storm system. The air in the "warm sector" bounded by the warm and cold fronts in the region to the southeast of the low pressure center contained humid air, with dewpoints exceeding 70 degrees Fahrenheit in many locations. One area of severe thunderstorms continued across northern Louisiana and most of Arkansas. Earlier in the evening thunderstorms produced high winds and large hail across Arkansas, east Texas and Louisiana. At least two possible tornadoes were reported near Tyler in east Texas. Heavy thunderstorm rains also produced flooding conditions across east Texas and Louisiana. As much as 3 inches of rain fell in 3 hours in the vicinity of Shreveport, LA on Sunday night. By late evening, 5.13 inches fell at the National Weather Service office in Shreveport, setting a daily record total.
Farther west, a line of severe thunderstorms developed late Sunday night over the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles. A moderate risk of severe thunderstorms through Monday morning should continue over an area of southwestern Oklahoma and portions of north Texas. On Monday a slight risk of severe thunderstorms expands across the Mississippi Valley from northeast Texas to southern Wisconsin. Wide spread precipitation is also expected over the Plains States by Monday morning.
In the cold air to the north and west of the storm system, snow fell over the high elevations in the vicinity of the Four Corners. Snow also fell near Tucson, AZ. A variety of snow advisories and winter storm warnings were in effect for the San Juan and Sangre de Cristo Mountains of southern Colorado and northern New Mexico for Sunday night. Between 3 and 6 inches were expected. High wind warnings were also posted for the Guadalupe and Davis Mountains of west Texas as gusts to 60 mph were expected.
Another storm complex located over Virginia produced precipitation across the Middle Atlantic States, extending northwestward from the Virginia Capes to lower Michigan. A cold front traveled southwestward across the Tennessee and Mississippi Valleys, before connecting with a warm front associated with the storm system the Texas/Oklahoma Panhandle. Severe thunderstorms with hail, strong winds and heavy rains associated with this system moved through the area late Sunday afternoon. This system is expected to move eastward out over the North Atlantic before sunrise on Monday. Most of the precipitation associated this system should also diminish or move out to sea.
A storm system was approaching the Pacific Northwest. The low pressure center, with a central pressure of approximately 986 mb, was located several hundred miles to the west of Vancouver Island. A cold front accompanying this storm system lay along the coast, together with a frontal band of precipitation that stretched from the Olympic Peninsula of western Washington State. This system is expected to continue moving slowly eastward toward the coast. As of dawn on Monday the precipitation shield should have spread inland across the Cascades and into much of central Oregon and northern California. Snow advisories were posted for the Oregon Coast Range and southward into northern California. Ocean swells with heights reaching 17 feet prompted the issuance of heavy surf advisories for along the California coast from Point Arena to Point Piedras Blancas through Sunday night.
Since a cool, dry air mass is expected to move across northern California, a frost advisory was posted for the San Joaquin Valley.
UPPER AIR -- The 300 mb chart for 00 Z Monday shows a continuation of the atmospheric flow pattern from late last week. A trough of lower heights of the 300 mb constant pressure is found associated with the cold air over the West. The axis of the trough extends from Montana south to the Four Corners. In the East, a ridge of high heights in the contours reflects the intrusion of warm air over that portion of the country. A ridge axis runs from eastern Ontario to the Carolinas. A strong band of winds, with speeds exceeding 50 knots, enters the continent, then travels southward around the western trough, before becoming strong southwesterly winds across the Plains into the Mississippi Valley. Note the region of winds reaching speeds of 100 knots over southwest Kansas on the east limb of the trough. This strong wind maximum is in a region favorable to the maintenance and the guidance of the surface low pressure feature in the Texas Panhandle.
The 500 mb chart for 00Z Monday also has a pattern very similar to the 300 mb chart. A trough is located over the Intermountain West and a ridge on the East Coast. Strong winds, exceeding 50 knots were found along the east limb of the trough.
TEMPERATURE EXTREMES IN THE COTERMINOUS U.S. -- The lowest temperature on Sunday was 2 degrees at Douglas, WY while Sunday's highest temperature was 93 degrees at Lajitas, Laredo and McAllen, TX and Florence, SC.
ALASKAN WEATHER -- A large storm system moved northeastward across the Bering Sea on Sunday afternoon spreading clouds across the Aleutians and much of western Alaska from the Kodiak Islands and the Alaska Peninsula north to the Seward Peninsula and northwest Alaska. Snow fell at Kivalina, Kotzebue, Nome, Saint Paul, Kodiak and King Salmon, while rain was reported at Cold Bay. Strong northeasterly winds were found on the north side of the low, with Gambell having winds gusting to 38 mph. Earlier on Sunday morning, blizzard warnings were in effect for the Pribilofs. On the south side of the storm and closer to the front, Dutch Harbor had gusts to 62 mph, Cold Bay to 51 mph, Saint Paul to 48 mph and King Salmon to 48 mph. Another low pressure system located in the eastern North Pacific south of the Alexander Archipelago produced cloudy skies over southern portions of the Panhandle. A ridge of high pressure centered over the Canadian Archipelago produced relatively cloud-free skies across the eastern half of Alaska.
The lowest overnight temperature registered in the state on Sunday was 25 degrees below zero at Barter Island. The state's highest midafternoon temperature was 47 degrees at Skagway.
HAWAIIAN WEATHER -- A fairly intense and compact low pressure system developed on Saturday to the northwest of the islands and moved southwestward across the central Pacific Ocean, disrupting the usual trade wind regime across the islands. On Sunday this low was approximately 800 miles to the northwest of Kauai and showed signs of weakening. Light southeasterly winds were found across the northern islands, while easterly to northeasterly trade winds were found over the Big Island. Increased humidity produced clouds and locally heavy showers across the islands. As the low pulls away from the islands and a high pressure cell strengthens to the northeast of the islands, the winds should gradually return to a more typical trade direction, with drier weather and less clouds. Surf reaching heights of 15 feet where generated by the western low, resulting in high surf advisories for the north and west shores of the islands.
BECOMING AWARE -- During this coming week of 4 -10 April, New Mexico and Montana will conduct their Severe/Hazardous Weather Awareness Week. These weeks are usually scheduled before the onset of the severe weather season in that particular state. If you live in any of these states, you should take time to become familiar with the various public affairs announcements issued by your local National Weather Service Office. In upcoming weeks, other states will observe Severe Weather Awareness weeks.
From the files of the Aviation Weather Center, Kansas City, MO and Intellicast
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Prepared by Edward J. Hopkins, Ph.D., email hopkins@meteor.wisc.edu
© Copyright, 1999, The American Meteorological Society.