This warm air mass is a much stronger block than you would normally expect in the Pacific in January and February, Tardy explained. And April tends to be the windiest month because of a transition to summer weather patterns, says state climatologist Nancy Selover. Winds also lift over and through crenulated ridgelines and careen downhill, accelerating with gravity on the lee sides of mountains, which is the side facing the ocean and densely populated coastal Southern California. Springfield city councilor Jesse Lederman kicks off, Springfield art museum to display art of Nelson Stevens, Registration for Hooplandia now available, Hampden DA investigating officer-involved shooting, Chicopee students learn about criminal justice system, Download the 22News Storm Team Weather App, Kevin Durant scores 23 points in Charlotte in Suns, Baylor women showing they can win, even without Big, Kentucky women beat Florida in game marred by scuffle, Defensive players again rising to top of NFLs draft, Smith College womens basketball team ranked No. The months second wind advisory was issued, and winds gusted to around 50 mph. It has been called Dr. Seuss Day because of this. Because of the season, it couldnt be as strong as it is during the summer. High winds have been pestering and persistent over the last few weeks. High pressure at the surface forms when cold air aloft converges and sinks. (WWLP) It may be the end April but it has been feeling more like March. March is our windiest month, but wind statistics dont vary a whole lot from January through April. It's as though we are the new Windy City. Keith Mithcell has been playing some impressive It has been windier because there has been a very tight pressure gradient with good directional hookup between surface winds and a fast jet stream a lot of the time. In the case of this spring's weather, most of the winds blewCanadian air from the northwest, which tends to be colder air, Donavon said. But if we zoom in, this April was in the top four or five years of the last 20 years in terms of wind speed.. While Scotland has so far had 59% (83.5mm) of its average February rainfall, the south of England has had just 6% (3.8mm). If you use a windshield cover, you can at least forget about scrapping the ice off your windshield to save some time and hassle. The Indiana Contractors website has advice for contractors who work in high winds, including if they are at elevated levels or on the ground. Birds that can live at 14,000 feet and also breed at sea level might have evolved more quickly than previously thought. Along with the wind, the Front Range is in a moderate to severe drought, which is keeping fire danger high. Although the wind has made us all anxious this spring, if it piques people's curiosity about wind and makes them want to understand and proactively prepare for it a little bit more, that could be a good thing., Faculty-Staff Email Archive Student Email Archive Graduate Student Email Archive New Buffs Email Archive Senior Class Student Email Archive CommunityEmail Archive COVID-19 Digest Archive. Our weather pattern in the Mid-South has included enough of a pressure gradient to cause the south winds. The jet stream will be further north and any storms should be further away from the UK. Track SoCal rain with LIVE Megadoppler 7000 HD. Winds are very sensitive to subtle characteristics of the atmosphere, like temperature differences between atmospheric layers, soil moisture and topography. The La Nina weather pattern in the Pacific Ocean tends to make it a bit stormier and windier in the Northern Plains, but a La Nina was in place during 2021 also. #KCRGWX. The big blocking high may have given Angelenos a chance to rock some exceptionally warm weather for out-of-town visitors during Super Bowl week, but it also unfortunately is tailor-made for continuation of the Wests record drought. WebWhy has it been so windy lately? This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Its no The answer has two parts. The Great Basins valleys range in elevation from 2,000 to 6,000 feet. Wheeler lived in Wisconsin and Iowa as a teenager. It should surprise nobody that Iowa is windy in the spring, since it is "one of the windiest times of the year,"NWS meteorologist Rod Donavon said. "What we found is that the occurrence of the Great Basin high [pressure system] during El Nio events was less frequent," said Raphael, who points out that the phenomenon doesn't appear to have as significant an impact early in the Santa Ana wind season. Wind turbines can produce power with wind speeds of about 6 mph. 11 had been issued in 2013 and then 10 in 2014, 2016 and 2020. Why is it so windy lately? As of Wednesday, May 11, Denver has tied the record for the most fire weather warnings year-to-date with 23 having already been issued in 2022. But it has, in fact, been an exceptionally windy April.. While there is dust in the wind blowing across the street or across a backyard, there are particles blowing around the atmosphere that scientists believe are affecting the climate. The cold air circulates clockwise and, because the atmosphere is always seeking to restore equilibrium, diverges and flows toward lower pressure. It is also considered to be the third windiest capital city in the world. On windy days, researchers suggest checking the weather forecast in your area and planning accordingly. The pressure gradient is defined as the change in pressure over Theres a jet streak near New England, which is a portion of the jet stream where the winds are stronger compared to other areas of the jet stream. Later in the season late fall and winter the jet stream comes farther down out of Canada and feeds much colder Arctic air into the interior West. This year, the winds have been virtually back-to-back events. This sets us a big temperature gradient (change) between the snow-covered ground and the bare ground. There is also cold air in the upper levels of the atmosphere and when we get the heating of the day, it causes the air to mix and the winds get even stronger. The most recent U.S. Drought Monitor data show most of California in severe drought. Winds are generated by differences in atmospheric pressure. The wind speed at Eau Claire also has trended slower since 1960s. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. Winds across the world are driven by the temperature difference between the equator and the poles, and this difference is strongest in wintertime for the northern hemisphere. One expert believes the answer might lie in the fact that we're not in an El Nio weather pattern right now. Annually, Washington should expect five days with gusts of 50 mph or more. This spinning motion takes the atmosphere along with it, so our pile of cold air, or goo, is spinning around. WebTony opens the show by talking about the Nats, and then he talks to Jason Samenow from the Capital Weather Gang at the Washington Post about why it has been so windy lately. With your back to the wind, a lower pressure is to For England it has been the driest 1 st to 20 th Des Moines has an average or. The official stats are in: January and February were the driest first two months of the year on record across much of California. It's going to be windy this week, so we are playing Spieth. complikaity 7 mo. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. A massive area of high pressure over the northeastern Pacific has been pushing the storm track inland this winter. I wonder if it has to do with all of the new high rises being In this pattern, cold air high in the troposphere, on the west side of the trough, converges and sinks. Wheeler worked about a year at WOI-TV in central Iowa before moving to Fargo and WDAY.. We see that you have javascript disabled. When isobars lines of constant pressure are packed tightly together, and move into the D.C. region rapidly, this leads to a strong pressure surge, generating powerful wind gusts. Why the ever-present wind (almost) never stops blowing in Des Moines, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. There's currently a strong low pressure system in northwestern Minnesota that's bringing high winds to our region, according to the NWS. The pressure gradient, or difference, between the high pressure air in the Great Basin and the lower pressure air at the coast creates the Santa Ana winds. In Southern California, the warm readings were repeatedly accompanied by Santa Ana winds. Scientists measured the levels of dust in suspension from a small field containing sandy lamp soil after eight different dust storm events. If we calculate an average wind speed over each month for the entire time period of 1948-2022, we find that the month of April is the windiest with an average wind speed of 11.4 mph. Skies will be mostly clear Thursday night and it will be another chilly night with lows in the upper 20 and lower 30s. See more of KCRG-TV9 on Facebook. are looking to buy homes, MA man pled guilty to $30k in state benefits fraud, 3 teens charged after guns and drugs found in Chicopee, Technology in Massachusetts reduces wrong-way crashes, Lotterys January profits soar $40M above 2022, New ride coming to Six Flags New England in 2023, Nighttime bridge repairs on MassPike Wednesday, Governor Healey releases budget proposal for next, Senate lifts eight-year limit on presidents term, Holyoke Police Sergeant suspended after investigation, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. For example, a wind event that lasts several days as opposed to just one or two days. In February, at least a portion of SoCal was under a wind warning or wind advisory for all but three days, officials say. Broomfield and Boulder both spent about 90 hours last month with winds over 20 miles per hour, mostly in the afternoon. But, much of the snow has been deposited in central Minnesota and north while much of South Dakota has been dry. The system stretches from Minnesota through parts of Michigan and Canada, according to satellite imagery shared by the NWS. Through April 24, the city had an average high of 56.6 degrees. For March, we might expect 11.6 days featuring gusts of 30 mph or more, 3.6 days with gusts of 40 mph or more, and 0.8 days with gusts of 50 mph or more. Forecast: When will the flurries arrive today? The amount of time in April during which strong winds occurred was also higher than normal, according to Winters. Scientists pay attention to the wind and the stuff that blows around in it. What sets this year apart from others is the strong La Nia thats in place. FARGO It has been windy. The average wind speed at 33 feet above sea level in South Dakota is 12.8 mph. As upper troughs pass, theyre followed by high pressure building at the surface. 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