Current Official Hourly Observation (taken at :53 on the hour)
Current Radar Loop
It’s been a brutal winter across the eastern half of the USA, but the rest of the globe? Not half bad!
According to NOAA (National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration), January 2014 was the 4th warmest on record and the warmest since 2007 globally. The map below shows above normal (red), below normal (blue). If you would like to see the full report here is the link.
Notice Alaska: they’ve had a mild winter. To oversimplify: all the cold winter air normally in Alaska was evicted, and sent to the eastern half of the US. Thanks alot, Alaska!
Temps Next 36 Hours (auto-updating)
Thursday Night – Decreasing Clouds
The system causing clouds and rain to our south will swing eastward, leaving nothing but sunshine behind!
Friday – Sunny – Morning Low 33 / Afternoon High 59
Saturday – Mostly Cloudy – Morning Low 39 / Afternoon High 64
We’ll slowly cloud up. A weak cold front will arrive late Saturday night, but it won’t have a lot a moisture to work with. So, maybe a light shower late. No worries.
Don’t forget before you go to sleep!
Official Extended NWS Forecast:
The Climate Prediction Center still expects below average temps for the middle to end of next week (March 12-16) …
… and, equal chances for above or below average precip (March 12-16):
Looking even further out in time (March 14-20), you’ll see even more cooler temps …
… with below-average rainfall (March 14-20):
Y’all hear about that El Niño Watch posted today by Climate Prediction Center/NCEP/NWS and the International Research Institute for Climate and Society? That was a mouthful…
(Editor’s Note: If you heard about it, what is wrong with you? Live! Live your life!)
What does El Niño mean?
Literally, “El Nino” means a lot of things, but in this context, it means “The Little One.”
El Nino means water in the Pacific Ocean near the equator will be warmer. Right now, Pacific Ocean waters around the equator are near average.
Uhhh, So What?
Not all El Niños are created equally. Truthfully, we still don’t fully understand it.
Here’s what we know it means:
Fewer, weaker, hurricanes, and tropical systems in the Atlantic basin. However, Hurricane Andrew in 1992 that hit Miami (and the 4 hurricanes that that struck Florida in 2004) all occurred in an El Niño year. 2004 was during a weaker El Niño.
Here in Middle Tennessee, it could mean a more active wetter weather pattern.
So, yeah. El Nino, everybody!
Additional information can be found on Twitter @NashSevereWx.
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