Thursday, March 24, 2005
Dreary afternoon update
Steve Scolnik @ 5:45 PM
Currently
As yesterday's storm moves away from New England, but low-level moisture persists, the Washington metro area remains cloudy and cool under northwesterly winds. The winds are weaker than after similar previous storms because the low is moving away more quickly, and the high pressure area centered over Ohio and West Virginia late this afternoon is weaker. This means that there is less of a pressure gradient, or rate of change of pressure with distance. Temperatures struggled to make it past the upper 40's throughout the area; most locations were no higher than 48 degrees.
Tonight, under mostly cloudy skies, the temperature should drop to about 40. Tomorrow should see a return to rain by mid-day, with highs around 50, as the next storm, which is moving out of the central Rockies through central Kansas and Oklahoma late this afternoon, continues eastward. Rainfall amounts should be up to half an inch. The next chance for significant rain is on Sunday. As Josh explains below, a series of storms should keep us mainly cool and wet for the next 10 days.
Record rains
Thanks to Jimmy C for pointing out that both National in DC and BWI set new record rainfall amounts for the date yesterday, with 1.85 and 2.56 inches, respectively. Baltimore city had an unofficial report as high as 2.76. A scan of the Baltimore records shows that the BWI reading exceeded the all-time daily record for March of 2.48" on March 2, 1994.
As yesterday's storm moves away from New England, but low-level moisture persists, the Washington metro area remains cloudy and cool under northwesterly winds. The winds are weaker than after similar previous storms because the low is moving away more quickly, and the high pressure area centered over Ohio and West Virginia late this afternoon is weaker. This means that there is less of a pressure gradient, or rate of change of pressure with distance. Temperatures struggled to make it past the upper 40's throughout the area; most locations were no higher than 48 degrees.
Tonight, under mostly cloudy skies, the temperature should drop to about 40. Tomorrow should see a return to rain by mid-day, with highs around 50, as the next storm, which is moving out of the central Rockies through central Kansas and Oklahoma late this afternoon, continues eastward. Rainfall amounts should be up to half an inch. The next chance for significant rain is on Sunday. As Josh explains below, a series of storms should keep us mainly cool and wet for the next 10 days.
Record rains
Thanks to Jimmy C for pointing out that both National in DC and BWI set new record rainfall amounts for the date yesterday, with 1.85 and 2.56 inches, respectively. Baltimore city had an unofficial report as high as 2.76. A scan of the Baltimore records shows that the BWI reading exceeded the all-time daily record for March of 2.48" on March 2, 1994.
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