Friday morning...
Last little pulse on the slow-moving southern storm proved, to be the strongest, on both ends. On the northern side, the 1-2" snow line (with a few spots approaching 3") pushed north as far as southern Jefferson County. Most of metro Louisville stayed in the 1/2"-1" range with smaller totals north of the river. (On the southern side, however, it was much worse - an early morning (3-4 A.M.) outbreak of severe storms/tornadoes ripped through central Florida north of Orlando. There's been a massive amount of damage along with numerous injuries and some fatalities)
It now looks like we'll break into sunny/partly skies for awhile this afternoon, especially west of I-65, so we should see a lot of snow melting away.
We now turn our attention to the cold air approaching. Forecast models have started singing a different tune with this massive cold outbreak. They are moving it out 24-48 hours sooner than pervious model runs. Also, the potentially "big" Alberta Clipper for Sunday night has been (temporarily?) lost with a weaker Clipper now a possible snow(or rain-maker Monday night into Tuesday. Due to the nature of forecast models, trying to speculate on the weather in a northwesterly jet stream flow is next to impossible beyond 36-48 hours. The northwesterly jet is notoriously difficult to "resolve" in timing, speed and intensity of vorticity maxes racing down the western side of the trough. With this kind of system, forecasters can speculate on a Friday what Monday's weather will look like - and they'll probably be wrong, sometimes by a big margin. So, I'll stop there.
As the cold air rushes in tomorrow, we could see a brief snow shower or two, espeically from Louisville northward. Several hours of strong, gusty winds will be likely around midday tomorrow as the front passes. Winds should gust to 30 mph and maybe higher. Super Bowl Sunday looks Partly cloudy with a passing flurry possible, highs in low 20's.
Groundhog Day results...
Punxatawney Phil did NOT see his shadow this morning - he's expecting an early spring!
The following contains FAR more than you've probably ever wished to know about the groundhog legend...
Groundhog Day can be traced back to ancient Greek mythology of the “Cult of the Bear.” It was believed that bears spent their hibernation time fighting the evil of the “underworld.” A shadow was believed to one’s “soul.” If the bear emerged from hibernation without his shadow, it meant he had lost his soul to the underworld and could not return to fight. Thus, an early spring was needed to enable the bear obtain food. However, if the bear still had his shadow, he could return to his battles with the underworld for a few more weeks until spring emerged.
Eventually, the myth drifted into northern Europe where the Germans attached it to the badger (safer than a bear, I guess). Eventually it was merged into the Celtic/Irish legends of "midwinter's day." Centuries ago, Feb. 2 was the exact mid-point between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox (the calendar slowly shifts, so that Feb. 2 is no longer the mid-point). An old Celtic/Wiccan poem goes something like...
If Midwinter's Day be bright and clear,
A second winter will soon appear.
The legend was brought to America by the Germans who (mostly) settled in eastern Pennsylvania and became known as the Pennsylvania Dutch (a slurring of the German word Deutsch, which means "German"). Badgers were not common there, so they switched to another hibernating animal, the groundhog. The legend was mostly fading away until the town of Punxatawny PA started a "club" for a little midwinter fun in the late 1800's. They had a private ceremony each year and announced the verdict every Feb.2. In 1966 they switched to a public event at daybreak. Since then it has grown into a very large (for Punxatawny) media event. Per capita, the event probably brings in more $$$$ than Derby Week does for Louisville.
(Also, there is no way anybody/anything can "see" a shadow at the exact moment of sunrise. However, the poor groundhog is pulled out of his hole and held up in front of hundreds of media lights/flash cameras - of course he "sees" his shadow- usually!)
By the way, Punxatawany is an Indian word that translates roughly as a “town near a pond full of mosquitoes.”
Have a nice weekend - don't forget, Monday is National Weatherman's Day!
Happy GroundHog's Day to you, too.
I'm glad you got around to starting your own blog. I look forward to reading what you have to say. I know the people of Louisville have enjoyed you sticking around for so long. Keep up the good work!
Posted by: al | February 02, 2007 at 11:52 AM