Category: Freezing Rain

Jan 01

Prolonged Bitterly Cold Pattern Rolls Along…

Highlights:

  • Dangerously cold pattern
  • Midweek snow showers
  • Messy weekend

Take The Cold Seriously…Dangerously cold conditions will continue this week.  With clear skies and a fresh snowpack, temperatures will quickly tumble tonight into double-digit below zero territory across most of central Indiana.  Add in even the slightest wind and wind chill values will plummet to 20 to 30 degrees below zero.  Limit time outside, check on your neighbors, and ensure your pets are cozy indoors, as well.

Next up on the agenda will be upper level energy moving southeast across the region Wednesday.  This will spark an area of snow showers with light accumulations for our hump day followed by reinforcing bitter cold to close out the week.  Additional upper level energy and some lake moisture will provide the chance of snow showers Friday in spots, as well.

A more widespread and significant storm system will arrive over the weekend.  Clouds will increase Saturday night into Sunday morning and a messy mixture of snow, sleet, and freezing rain will invade Sunday afternoon and evening.  Renewed bitterly cold, arctic air will plunge southeast early next week.  Additional sub-zero days are likely just beyond the forecast period…

Upcoming 7-Day Precipitation Forecast:

  • Snowfall: 1″ to 3″
  • Rainfall: 0.10″

Permanent link to this article: https://indywx.com/prolonged-bitterly-cold-pattern-rolls-along/

Jan 14

Saturday Morning Freezing Rain Update…

More widespread precipitation is spreading across central Indiana this morning.  Most of this precipitation is falling as freezing rain.

Radar at 7:19a.

Radar at 7:19a.

Modeled forecast radar continues to show moisture streaming across the region through around the lunchtime hour before diminishing.

9a forecast radar

9a forecast radar

12p forecast radar

12p forecast radar

Temperatures will remain around 30-32 degrees along and north of the I-70 corridor as this rain falls so it’ll freeze on contact.  Allow extra time if you must travel and slow down.  Due to our phenomenal road crews and marginally cold temperatures, we don’t expect major travel issues this morning, but do use caution if traveling.  A light glaze of ice (around 0.10″) is possible on elevated surfaces, including tree limbs and power lines.

Temperatures will go above freezing this afternoon across most of central Indiana and precipitation will end.  Highs both today and Sunday should top out in the middle 30s across the region.

5p forecast radar

5p forecast radar

Lows tonight will settle back down into the middle to upper 20s, but dry conditions should remain for most of the night.

10p forecast radar

10p forecast radar

Our next round of precipitation looks slated for a Sunday morning arrival and, similar to this morning, this precipitation will likely fall as a mixture of light rain and light freezing rain.

Updated 7-day out later!  Have a great Saturday!

Permanent link to this article: https://indywx.com/saturday-morning-freezing-rain-update/

Jan 13

Surge Of More Widespread Precipitation Saturday Morning…

Light freezing rain and drizzle has been falling across central Indiana this evening, mainly from the city, itself, and points south. A light glaze of ice has been reported into the forecast office in Monrovia and Plainfield. 

For the next several hours, patchy light freezing rain and drizzle will continue, but nothing in a widespread, “uniform” fashion (great news for those night owls out and about).

However, we do note some of the higher resolution forecast models suggesting a waive of more widespread precipitation arriving into central Indiana Saturday morning. This most likely pushes in sometime between the hours of 7a-9a and encompasses the heart of the state, including Indianapolis. 

This “slug” of moisture will continue to fall across central Indiana through the morning hours before tapering off and diminishing around lunchtime. The afternoon and evening should be void of any widespread precipitation of significance. 

While this won’t be a crippling event by any stretch of the imagination, be careful for slick spots Saturday morning and allow road crews room for salting. In general 0.05″-0.10″ of glaze still seems like a good bet for most central Indiana neighborhoods by lunchtime Saturday. 

More in the morning! Have a great night!

Permanent link to this article: https://indywx.com/surge-of-more-widespread-precipitation-saturday-morning/

Jan 13

Quick Friday Evening Notes…

1.)  While we’re still expecting freezing rain across central Indiana tonight into the early morning hours Saturday, dry air will really limit totals.  Instead of the 0.10″-0.20″ of glaze per…

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Permanent link to this article: https://indywx.com/quick-friday-evening-notes/

Jan 12

Weekend Ice And Heavy Rain Next Week…

Screen Shot 2017-01-12 at 7.08.19 AM

Highlights:

  • Turning colder
  • Freezing rain develops Friday night
  • Wet times continue

Active Times; Excessive Rainfall Risk Next Week…The overall weather pattern remains very active AND very wet.  By the time all is said and done, an additional 3″ of rain is possible for a widespread portion of the region by the middle of next week, with locally heavier amounts.  Lets time it out.

The focus in the shorter-term is for colder air to build in.  Temperatures today will fall (after a spring-like feel during the wee morning hours).  We’ll be in the 30s by mid to late afternoon and below freezing later this evening.  Arctic high pressure will continue to force cold, dry air south across central IN as we wrap up the work week.  At the same time, warm, moist air aloft will ride over the cold air trapped at the surface and trouble looms by Friday night.  We expect light freezing rain to develop after dark and continue into Saturday morning.  As disturbances move along the arctic boundary, additional precipitation (mostly light) will overspread central Indiana from time to time over the weekend.  We want to continue to reiterate that a 1-2 degree temperature difference will mean a tremendous difference between additional ice accumulation and plain ole cold rain.  Thinking is that the freeze line will shift north of the I-70 corridor Saturday afternoon before settling south towards I-70 again Saturday night and Sunday morning.  We still have time to fine tune things, but as of now it seems likely that anywhere from 0.10″ to 0.20″ of glaze (freezing rain) will be possible across most central IN communities Friday night into Saturday.

We’ll get rid of the freezing rain early next week and bust back into a warm southwesterly air flow.  Models are struggling with the precise details of how things evolve in the early-mid week period, but confidence remains very high on continued wet times.  In fact, the GFS pulls a slug of 1.5″ precipitable water values (PWATs) north into the state the middle of next week and suggest the heavy rain threat remains Tuesday and Wednesday.  By the middle of next week, we have to start becoming concerned for flood potential across the region.

Hang in there, we’ll see the sunshine return…some day.

Upcoming 7-Day Precipitation Forecast:

  • Snowfall: 0.00″
  • Rainfall:  2.50″ – 3.00″ 

Permanent link to this article: https://indywx.com/weekend-ice-and-heavy-rain-next-week/