Proverbial March Lion

As I sit here early this Saturday morning sifting through reports of wind and snow reports, the howling sounds of March continue outside indicating the winds remain to buffet our humble abode.  Friday afternoon, the winds were literally roaring in a much heralded lion-like fashion as KMDT reported a wind gust to 60 mph during the mid-afternoon!  Power was never lost for any length of time;however, the constant reminder of surges suggested we were but one limb or tree from complete power loss.  Thankfully, that did not occur.  Whole gales were common all throughout eastern PA and hurricane force winds were measured just off the coast of both NJ and DE.  And...oh yeah, ample snow fell in most of eastern PA to boot!  How about a 23.6" trained spotter report just outside of Tobyhanna and blizzard warnings for northeast PA! Yes, this was one March nor'easter once again for the books!  Here's how she appears this morning from ~22,000 miles up noting the water vapor in the mid-levels of this well mixed atmosphere...

The winds today will GRADUALLY subside, but gusts well over 30 mph will still be common during the daylight hours.  Here is the Euro's depiction of max wind gusts later today.  Note how the ridges show very nicely all though the central Appalachians...very cool!

But a large arctic high will nose its way SE into the eastern US by Sunday finally clearing our skies but still with a rather significant pressure gradient, the lion-like roar of winds will only be slightly tempered to a rather powerful purr reminding us it's early March; March 4th to be exact..."National Military Day" so to speak!  Take a look...

As for the upcoming week, the 500 mb pattern is one filled with potential, but I believe the atmosphere just depleted its thermodynamic energy in one fell swoop with this very powerful nor'easter as pressures tanked rapidly Friday supporting this impressive and dynamic cyclone.  But, be advised, this mid-level blocking pattern bears watching to be sure.  The graphic below is a 5 day average of the mid-levels indicating lower than heights (temps) under higher than normal heights over eastern O Canada...often a stormy signature for late winter...

But both the Euro and the GFS don't show much storminess this week...here is the Euro's weakening storm to the lakes trying to spin up another coastal but the upper air support is seemingly absent this time around...but do be wary...

There will be a smidgen of cursory snowfall in PA, but the precipitation totals are quite manageable, especially with this upper air pattern!  We can sure use this period to dry out a bit in these parts.  The graphic below is a 10 day total precip as per the Euro...(note the lake effect showing up downwind from Lake Erie...!)

Here is the February precip totals for Philly...quite wet to be sure!  Pittsburgh had its wettest February on record; time for a precip respite I would hope...

After a late Saturday crest, the mighty Susky will fall quickly this week as PA streams restore themselves back towards normal levels for this time of year...

OK...enough.  You all know me, I could go on and on, but I need another coffee for further study of our amazing and wondrous atmosphere!  So, I'll leave y'all with this 40 year old song!  I can't believe that..."wind blows around in her hair and the flags on the poles..."  and ..."He's a crazy lion..."  ENJOY!

Smitty

AA:  Weather to calm down by Sunday and generally cooler and drier than normal this upcoming week, but the upper air pattern suggests to be cautious with this benign outlook!

PS:  It is truly with a heavy heart that one of my loyal readers passed from this world earlier in the week.  Deb B would often email a brief comment back to me concerning my synopsis; the most recent being something like..."I don't care if it snows in PA as I'm basking here in Florida!"  Now may Deb bask (and peacefully rest) in her divine abode.