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First snow of the season for the DMV today!

 I have some great news. Parts of the DMV got flurries today morning. Which means that we have recieved the first snow this year!

There is a chance for snow showers in the DMV...?

 As you all know, we are getting a lot of rain from Hurricane Zeta these past days. Well, we could actually see our first snowflakes from tonight to early Monday morning! We could see snow showers or a squall. The reason is that a cold front will pass through the DMV today, and temps will drop to the 30's/40's(20's in mountains). When that has happened, there is a chance for precipitation to come in our area; a stray (snow) shower from north, and since the temps are cold enough, there could be some snow! There's a pretty ok chance for it to happen. The air aloft is cold enough support the snow, so ground temps won't really stop the snow(basically the snow can fall without melting mid-air). Like 90% of snow events, it will be more likelier to see snow if you live north and west(I'm pretty sure mountains have and will see snow if they haven't already). Models and weather apps don't really show any snow at all, but that's because they usually don't see any stray precipitation coming for us.

It's still a chance though. So don't get too excited. It could also be a squall, which is some light rain.

It's pretty cold outside...

 It's cold outside. It's 32 (the lowest we got was down to 30) degrees outside where I live. I don't know if we have hit 32 degrees before this month or September, but I don't think we really have(in Gaithersburg at least). Anyways, if you have been following the weather lately, you know that there's a hurricane happening right now: Zeta. Although what happened in Texas, Oklahoma, Arizona, and a little part of some other states are what you WOULDN'T expect. You would expect to get hit with rain... but instead, they got hit with snow, an ice storm, sleet; just winter weather. A lot of places were under a winter storm warning for 5+ inches of snow, others were in an advisory, some were in an ice storm warning to dump .3-1 inches of ice. That kind of hurt because they got this snow(not the ice storm though I don't like ice storms) IN OCTOBER. Plus, its happening in Texas. Well, the same thing happened during Hurricane Sandy in 2012. While most of the northeast that were affected by Hurricane Sandy got rain, WV(and the mountains in MD and the southern part of PA) got POUNDED with a snowstorm that brought over 24 inches of snow! Some people reported up to 3 feet, which is close to Winter Storm Jonas! And it happened on October too. So don't feel bad that they are getting winter weather this early, its because of the hurricane.

Also I am waiting for more winter forecasts to come out, so I can make a good post. Sorry I haven't been posting much lately.

Where have I been?

 I haven't posted an actual post in a long time. Like, in 2 months. What happened? Not much really. I just didn't have the motivation to post daily in the summer, and I am also getting more homework and quizzes than I did the past 2 years. However, expect more posts as the fall goes on. The 2020-2021 winter seems like an Lá Niña, which is not favored for an above-average snowfall. More winter forecasts will be coming out throughout October and November, and expect me to make posts about them. When we start getting snow threats, I will start posting a lot. However, I doubt that even if we reopen schools by Feb, we will have any snow days. I think that there will be NO snow days for the 2020-2021 school year, because everyone will be ready to do virtual learning. Unless we get a blizzard like Snowmeggadon(2010) or Snowzilla(2016), there's almost no chance that we will get snow days. I probably will post about the Farmer's Almanac winter forecast in the next 1-4 weeks. Stay tuned for that.

TORNADO WARNING FOR SOUTHERN MOCO

THERE'S A TORNADO WARNING IN EFFECT! GET DOWN TO THE LOWEST PLACE IN THE BUILDING YOU ARE IN RIGHT NOW!!!!

Update: The tornado has passed for me,  but there is still a watch in effect. You should still need to be careful.

**IMPORTANT** Why MCPS will STILL have snow days!

Hello, I haven't posted in a long time. It's been about 2-3 months since my last post. Sorry about that. Anyways, MCPS has announced that the first 2 quarters will be distant learning; which means that we will have distant learning UNTIL Jan 20. A lot of people have said that we will never have snow days again after the pandemic because of the introduction to virtual instruction, and instead have virtual learning days when conditions are too unsafe to physically come to school. But I will be telling you why I think we will still have snow days!


The main reason lies inaccessibility to technology. It comes down to Chromebook distribution. Many students in MCPS do not have access to Chromebooks. In March 2020, MCPS said that when this is all over, students will be returning their Chromebooks to the schools. Without the Chromebooks, learning in physical school would be abrupted, since a lot of schools today are dependent on technology such as the Chromebook. And if MCPS even decided that students would keep their Chromebooks, that would be too risky. A lot of Chromebooks would fall and break. MCPS wouldn't have enough money and time to buy and fix Chromebooks. And the second reason is if there is a blizzard or an ice storm, the power could go out completely, and NO ONE would be able to do distance learning. And, Chromebook distribution would be too dangerous, especially with more than .25 inches of ice and 12+ inches of snow, and would take too long anyway. It took about 1-2 weeks for MCPS to distribute Chromebooks to the students back in late March/April. The longest I can remember MCPS closing was for a week, in 2016, when a huge blizzard hit the DMV, and dumped 18-36 inches across the DMV, and even 42 inches in some areas! And even if that happened again, no one would even be able to get out in the first place.


People are also saying that 2021 will have mostly no snow days. That is somewhat true. December-March is winter. There are 4 months. December and January(most of it) will be complete distant learning. We still have February and March, and as a lot of us know, we can get a lot of snow during those months. However, that is hoping that everything will be better by then. We really don't know how this pandemic will go, but if everything goes well, we can still have snow days! Thank you for reading.

THERE IS A CHANCE FOR SNOW TODAY/TOMORROW!!!! AND THE REST OF MAY AS WELL!!!!!

There is actually a chance for snowflakes today night/Saturday!! If this happened, this would make records. The polar vortex is back, and with a vengeance! Temps throughout the northeast are going to drop, drop, drop! It's going to break records, in the DMV, and the rest of the Northeast! Saturday might become the coldest May day in history! Friday and Saturday has high potential to break records, especially Saturday! We have all we need for some snow!!! Because of this cold air, we have a chance for getting some snow! Okay, I shouldn't be as excited as I am, as the possibility of snow, in MAY, is a joke. I doubt snow will stick because it would have to be insanely cold(below 26F) and snow really hard. It would still be amazing if we did get some snowflakes. A low-pressure system that will pass us has the potential to become snow as temps drop. There is a freeze watch for Southern MoCo, and a freeze warning for Northern MoCo. Temps will be very close to 32F, and in some places, it may be 32 or BELOW. That could bring us some snowflakes. Will we see snow in May? The models are saying its possible. 

The sad part is that the snow won't have any impact on schools, but I doubt it would even if schools were running normally. Winter may have been tricking us this whole winter, and will strike in May? Who knows? It is possible but unlikely. I am sorry for not posting lately. I will try to post more. Thank you.

TORNADO WATCH FOR MOCO AND MOST OF MARYLAND AND SOME OF VIRGINIA

2:27 PM
The thunderstorm has ended, and now it is sunny outside! At least for now...
2:10PM
The thunderstorm has arrived! The sky went from mostly cloudy to dark and cloudy in just seconds. Inside my house, my lights are flickering. There was thunder, and you better believe it was loud! There was also lightning, but mainly thunder. There was thunder before the rain. Torrential downpours are falling outside my house, and I can hear the winds howling as they gust.
2:01 PM
The severe thunderstorm warning has been extended to 2:45 PM.
1:28 PM
There is a severe thunderstorm warning for 55% of MoCo(the northern half) that includes Gaithersburg, Clarksburg, Damascus, and Olney. Most of Fredrick County, some parts of Loudoun County, and Caroll county are in the warning as well. It ends at 2:00 PM. There is also an Areal Flood Warning for NW Washington and Southern and Central MoCo. The tornado watch and wind advisory are still here.

11:43 AM
There is a tornado watch for most of Maryland, including MoCo and D.C., and parts of Virginia(eastern VA). Those watches may turn into warnings. There is sleet like hail and torrential downpours outside my house(including minor flooding). 

Severe Weather Sunday Night- Monday

There is severe weather likely for parts of the Southeast, and that includes the DMV. There is a wind advisory for MoCo, and other parts of Maryland, including most of Virginia, and everyone else(except for D.C, who is in a wind advisory) is in a high wind warning. Tonight and tomorrow, there will be thunderstorms and rain, severe possible, with lots of winds, some damaging. There could also be hail and even tornadoes. However, the main concern for tornadoes is far south, but it could still happen here. There could even be flooding. It says this all in the hazardous weather outlook(note: this is for the NWS station for DC/Baltimore):  "A Wind Advisory is in effect for much of the area beginning at 4 AM EDT tonight. Showers and isolated thunderstorms are expected late tonight. Heavier showers and thunderstorms may contain locally damaging wind gusts after midnight. There is also a threat for localized flooding after midnight. A High Wind Warning is in effect for the Appalachians and Blue Ridge Mountains and adjacent areas from 6 AM to 6 PM Monday. A Wind Advisory is in effect elsewhere until 6 PM EDT Monday. Severe thunderstorms are possible Monday, especially during the mid-morning and afternoon hours. Damaging winds, large hail, and an increased threat for tornadoes exists. Localized flooding is also possible on Monday."

This outlook says it all. There could be power outages and downed trees, especially in areas who are under a high wind warning. Since everyone is staying home, the best advice I can give you is to be prepared for severe weather and be ready in the event of a tornado warning. You can do that by turning on your emergency alerts, check the radio/news, etc., and in case of a tornado, go down to your basement(your lowest floor) and/or go to a room with no windows(or the least amount in your house).

Weather Risks Mon-Sat. Index on the far left. 

American Model shows Snow Threat on April 17

Ok fine, I'm gonna admit that I haven't really been checking much weather lately; what not all with this pandemic going on. But, I decided to check, and I found a snow threat that the American Model showed on April 17. Personally, I think that it isn't going to happen. But if it does, and snow falls, I think that could be a record here. First of all, the April sun angle will DEFINITELY melt snow that falls lightly or moderately, the snow has to fall heavily for any stickage at all; most of the snow would probably melt in the air because of the April sun angle. However, there is a "solution" to this problem, and that solution would be snow falling in the night. However, the temps would HAVE to be below 32 degrees, and snow would have to be falling at least moderately for maybe some accumulation. If temps are not below 32, snow rates would have to be at least 2-3+ inches of snow per hour, which is insane, and the only times I can recall that ever happening was in the blizzard of January 22-23 2016, or the blizzard of February 5-6 2010, which were BLIZZARDS. And even if that happens, surface temps will be well above freezing, so snow will have to fall heavily, but if temps are below 32, sooner or later, that issue will be solved. And for the biggest problem why: THIS STORM IS MORE THAN A WEEK AWAY AND WILL CHANGE!!!! But however, I have some great news for you snow lovers! The weather for the second half of next week looks to be chilly for mid-April standards. The pattern for this month looks to be favorable for cold weather and snow. If this happened in January, February, March, I could have confidently have predicted snow. But since it is April... I wouldn't exactly count on it, but there is hope. We have all the ingredients for snow, but what we need for snow is for the ingredients to line up a little more right. I am not saying that the chance is high for snow, but I am just saying, it is actually plausible. In summary, I am basically trying to say that the weather is going to become chillier, and there could be a chance for some snow as we go on, but I wouldn't count on it.

The American and European Model at 1AM EDT(Blue= Snow Green = Rain Purple= Very Heavy Snow)