Weather Observations 2/28

High level clouds this morning (stratocumulus).  Winds out of the East this morning, at about 10AM.  Shifting from to the South at midday into the afternoon hours.  Satellite images show cloud cover and high reflectivity in the clouds to the south and west of Eau Claire in states like the Dakotas, Iowa, and parts of Minnesota.  Here is a current conditions map from wunderground.com that I was able to capture using Hypersnap6.8. Temperature 33F at 1PM.

Serious low pressure is hovering over Colorado and Nebraska currently.  The warm front that can be seen moving northward through Oklahoma and Kansas is bring warmer, moister air from the Gulf and it is being sucked into this big low pressure system.  When this warm moist air and the cold air mix, precipitation generally occurs and at times it can be heavy if the right conditions exist. 

Also here is a upper air sounding from the Chanhassen Weather Station near Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN at 6am this morning.  This reading shows a fairly stable atmosphere with a surface temperature inversion.

Observed at 926 Menomonie Street Eau Claire, 54703
Sources : Wunderground , Unisys Weather

Weekend Weather 2/24-2/25

Weekend Weather Report

Friday - Really overcast today; stratus clouds observed.  Some small snowflakes falling this afternoon.  Temperature only reached 30F in the morning and stayed steady throughout the day.  Moderate winds W-NW 10 to 12MPH (winds shifted from north to west at around midday).  Cool winds from the west and north are being drawn towards the low pressure systems moving over the Great Lakes right now.

Saturday -  Cold this morning. Must have been 15F or lower, but temperatures rose over the course of the day.  Winds from the NW-W at about 5 to 10 at midday.  Really windy and while I was the bars I noticed the wind completely shift and became an East wind.  I thought that was kind of weird but being that I was intoxicated and going to the bar I had no clue what was going on.

Observed 926 Menomonie Street Eau Claire, Wi 54703

Surface Weather 2/20

Looks like a mid-latitude cyclone is making its way towards our location in the next day.  You can see its development in the image below.

Parts of Minnesota and the Dakotas are experiencing moderate snow right now.  We should expect to have these conditions here and with us by tonight depending on how quickly this system is moving. 

I saw this image on the "Current Conditions" maps that Wunderground.com offers.

Today's weather has been great so far but a lower level cloud deck has moved in.  The sun is still shining through which tells me that it cannot be too thick yet.

I expect windy conditions and some snow by the evening hours later today.

2/21 Weather Observations

The snow finally came overnight.  Started snowing around 7:30/8PM CST.  Winds really picked up this afternoon out of the S-SE at 10-15MPH.  Just about 2 inches on the ground right now at this early hour in the morning.  Really good packing snow which makes sense because the air is fairly warm and moist.  Temperature is supposed to reach 36F as a high today with continued winds as the center of the low pressure begins to pass through the area.  Cloud cover is 100% right now and the light snow continues to fall.   The current conditions map I have included above came from the NOAA's website (NWS & NOAA).  Here it shows an occluded front in the mid-west dropping off some precipitation in the form of snow and rain.  Most of this precipation has come as snow overnight but as we move into the daytime hours I would not be surprised if it changes to a rain/snow mix.  Expect it to be mighty windy today as two low pressure systems are bordering Eau Claire, WI just to the south and west.

Observed at 926 Menomonie Street, Eau Claire, WI 54701
Sources: NWS

Weather Observations for 2/18 -2/19

High pressure dominated the area for most of this weekend.  Clear skies on Saturday and Sunday allowed for plentiful sunshine and most of the snow to melt off the roads and sidewalks.  Temperatures were very mild and warm during these two days too.  Saturday's high temp reached 40 degrees, and winds were light and variable throughout the day.  Winds shifted from N to S at mid day and remained at 5mph more or less for the rest of the evening.  Wisphy cirrus clouds were the only thing I could identify off in the distance to the west as the sun was setting today. 

Sunday was almost an exact replication of Saturday's weather.  Same clear skies and sunny weather.  Mid 30's (F) by afternoon.  South winds were light and variable (between 0 and 5 mph).  0% Cloud Cover. 

Observations taken at 911 Lakeside Avenue & 926 Menomonie Street Eau Claire, WI 54703
Sources: WeatherUnderground

Weather Observation 2/17

9AM - Walking to school this morning I saw mostly cumulus clouds.  Must have been around mid-level or so.  Partly cloudy conditions, sun shining in and out.  Cloud cover 60%. Winds 0 to 5 mph out of the East.  Temperature near 31F. 

2PM - After class much cloudier conditions were observed.  Most of the clouds were altostratus with an undulating and puffy rowed effect.  It was much more overcast and temperature at 36F!  Barometric pressure is steady although it did drop in the early morning hours (from 31.5 to 31.0 inches in Hg; Weather Underground ).  Surface maps show a cold front pushing through in the next 24 hours accompanied with some rain/snow.

 


So enjoy the good weather while it lasts.  At least all the jumbo half-block long puddles on the sidewalks off-campus might finally disappear haha. Normal February Weather looks to be coming back by late Saturday and Sunday.

Cloud conditions observed to and from class today.
Other weather conditions and data gathered at 911 Lakeside Avenue, Eau Claire, Wi 54703
Weather Sources : www.wunderground.com

Weather Observations 2/15

Overcast conditions yesterday improved somewhat today.  Large stratocumulus clouds observed at 6PM; Cloud cover at 50 to 60% this afternoon on the UWEC campus.  Very mild weather, some people even walking around in just sweatshirts and no jackets today.  Temperature as of 6PM is 38.5F. 

Here is a current surface weather map showing the continental United States.  As you can see there are quite a few disturbances in the southern states and alot of precipitation to the north and east of these fronts.  Barometric pressure has remained steady during the day (29.94 inches in Hg). 

Here is the current Infrared Satellite view from about 5:40 CST on the Weather Channel's website.  It shows there is slight cloud cover in Eau Claire.  Cloudier conditions are found nearer to Chicago and southern Great Lakes states.   

Observed 5:30pm TO 6pm, Phillips Hall - UWEC