Not a cloud in sight

I don't believe I saw a single cloud today as  I walked to and from class or around campus this afternoon. The weather, minus the snow and semi-chilly temperatures was wonderful. Today's high was 40 degrees with slow 5 mph winds from the East. As I mentioned before cloud cover was non-existant today as the sun was out in full force trying its hardest to melt away the remainder of that snow.
Those cloudless skies will go away tomorrow for a bit as that dome of high pressure that's been looming over Wisconsin finally makes its way East ushering in a smaller cold front that could have us seeing some slight rain showers tomorrow after noon. I expect with this rain and the exchange of fronts we will see a bit more cloud cover tomorrow which will mean warmer temps for the end of the week!

Okay snow, you can leave anytime now

A chilly start to this morning just as I expected as that large area of high pressure looms around the midwest. Which actually might be helping us avoid some crappier weather thats riding along that low pressure area to our south west. That high pressure is also to thank for the chilly temperatures coming from Canada. The jet stream is taking a dip right over Wisconsin right now which is bringing us those 30 degree temperatures, meaning the snow is here to stay for a bit longer. Temps at the noon hour are just hovering above 30 degrees with winds coming at about 2 miles per hour from the west. Som patchy areas of cirrus clouds are in the sty today, associated with that area of high pressure. Those should stick around into tonight which should make for yet another chilly night with relatively clear skies. Tomorrow should warm up a bit as that area of high pressure starts to move out which should warm things up a bit as I expect the sun should be out in full force for yet another day. But as that high pressure dome moves out we may be in store for some unpleasant weather later in the week.

Spring broke

So much for having warm temperatures in Wisconsin over spring break, but the good news is it looks like the warmer temperatures are just around the corner and hopefully this time they're here to stay! Today was a bright sunny day with some cumulus clouds at about 30% cloud cover this after noon temps were around 38% but the sun made it feel a whole lot warmer. A big area of high pressure should keep those nice days around for another day or two which should make getting back into the swing of classes a bit more bearable. Tonight I expect temps to cool down significantly as cloud cover is sparse, which means that tomorrow should be a pretty chilly start I expect that winds will be mild most likely coming from the east for most of the day and cloud cover should be similar to today.

Winters on its death bed

Just as I predicted the weather outside is hazy but warm! Temperatures are at 43 degrees with winds coming from the west at 5 miles per hour. Later on in the afternoon I anticipate the showers to make there way through the area..as we get our first real taste of spring. I expect the cloud cover to hang around overnight brining us warmer temperatures overnight. For tomorrow I expect that warmth to stick around making the morning pretty warm outside. Although the beginning of the day will start off cloudy tomorrow I expect the clouds to disapate as an area of high pressure makes its way toward us which should bring some warmer temps for the start of spring break.

spring in full bloom

Finally starting to see the spring time peaking out from underneath all of the snowpack. Today temps were at 51 outside with the sunshining through I felt that it was much warmer than that. Cloud cover was sparce I would say 25% Stratocumulus cloud cover and a wind from the south at around 5 miles per hour. For tomorrow and later tonight I expect rain to move in as a band of precipitation makes its way toward us. I expect there to be a pretty large amount of cloud cover as that precipitation makes its way toward us probably cloud conditions will be hazy cloud cover at 100% or a little less.

chance of rain

Its a bright sunny day right now at noon, but later in the day I expect that that small system of low pressure off to our west will bring us some light showers in the evening. As I predicted, there is about a 60% stratocumulus cloud cover in the sky and the wind is coming from the Southwest at 10 miles per hour. For tomorrow, I expect the weather to be darn near shorts and tank top weather! Most likely temps will be in the low 50's with pretty minimal cloud cover due to the ridge of high pressure.
In other news. here are some photos I came across of the earthquake and tsunami arial photos of before and after the disaster, the images from there are almost unbelievable.

Sendai, Japan Airport before the earthquake and tsunami

The airport after the earth quake and tsunami

Warmin up!

A ridge of high pressure ushered in some nice temps for us today. Around 2 temperatures were around 42 degrees with the wind coming from the South-southeast at 7 miles per hour. Some upper level clouds were in the air, one of which i thought looked to be a cirrus unicus cloud. Looking at the surface pattern chart for the United states, It looks like we have a small band of low pressure coming off of Canada that could hit us tomorrow, which would bring us some precipitation later in the afternoon. Besides the precipitation I expect temperatures to remain warm, most likely being somewhere in the higher 40's as I expect we will have more cloud cover tomorrow, most likely some cumulus clouds possibly stratocumulus cloud cover later when the precipitation comes.

sunny skies and good times

Today was absolutely gourgeous, for winter time! The sun was shining and at the noon hour the temp was 37 degrees with the winds coming from the northwest at 10 miles per hour. There is about a 20% cloud cover outside right now with some mid level cumulus clouds. Tommorrow I expect more of what we got today with warm temperatures and clear skies as a large area of high pressure passes through. Winds should switch gears later today and into tonight I expect winds to be coming more from the southeast tomorrow which should bring us some warmer air in combination with those clear skies.

Snowstorm...what snow storm?

Looking around outside right now you never would have guessed that forecasters were predicting a "big" snowstorm for last night and today. With temps sitting at a mild 34 degrees, the snow didn't say on the roads and sidewalks for long. The snow that did make it was super heavy snow, the kind that would make a really good snowfort, snow man or and epic snowball fight. Winds today were coming from the North at around 5 miles per hour which I predict will continue over night as that low passes through. That means temps will drop down low for tonight, but I expect warmer temperatures for tomorrow as a high pressure system makes its way toward us.

Prepare for the Ice Age, Just kidding

Like I said yesterday mother nature is gearing up to dump a hopefully a last load of snow on us tonight, but today seemed like the calm before the storm.  The temp outside at the noon hour was at 36 with about 20% strato cumulus cloud cover and winds coming from the Northeast. Tonight will drop down to just around freezing. I expect there will be a shift in our wind direction as the area of low pressure that is bringing us some snow tonight will bring winds from the East tonight and into the early hours of the morning tomorrow. Tonight I expect the track of the storm to bring that percipitation right into Eau Claire meaning that we are going to see a pretty significant amount of heavy wet snow tomorrow morning for the walk to class.

The Big Bang?

After getting a few light snow flurries late last night into the wee hours this morning, the sky is looking quite hazy as temperatures are sitting at a balmy 30 degrees. It looks like mother nature might be gearing up for one last big hurrah as water vapor charts show we might be looking at a pretty significant amount of snow later this week. For tonight though we will see some snow flurries again as a small band of precipitation makes its way through Eau Claire. Meanwhile, in the Eastern side of the country, lots of rain coming from the gulf will be hitting them through tonight into tomorrow. Below is the upper level water vapor chart I pulled from the NOAA website. The yellow arrows represent the track I predict the water vapor to take given the current conditions.

brief whiteout

Today started off as a bit of a white out but that snow tapered off around 12:30 today. The winds were coming from the south east at around 10 miles per hour, which i expect to continue thorugh the day. Temps are currently at 24 degrees. Tonight I expect we will be gettting more snow in the late afternoon and through the night. A low pressure system is making its way to us and should be here by tonight which will lead to a shift in wind direction, winds will start coming from the east and then shift to the north, meaning cooler temps for us tomorrow. I also expect some more snow showers periodically through out the day as that low pressure system passes by.

the north wind

Just like I predicted today is chillier than yesterday with winds coming from the north ad some high level cumulostratus clouds with some mid level cumulus clouds. This makes me think that their might be two different air masses in the atmosphere right now, which is true because a  low pressure system is moving eastward and a high pressure system is on its way. Current temps in Eau Claire are at 3 degrees and are expected to reach a high of 17. Later tonight it looks like temps should drop back down as the low pressure system moves back out we might see some light snow showers  in the early morning. For tomorrow I expect us to see a change in the wind direction most likely with winds coming from the east leading to warmer temps. On the radar it looks like we might be seeing some snow showers left over from the storm that rolled over Oregon earlier in the week.

Sunshine Again!

As I expected we have a few more clouds than we saw outside yesterday, but my predictions on cloud type were a bit off. Right now outside there are some high level cirrus clouds with about 60% cloud cover. It's currently 29 degrees outside with winds coming from the south west at about 5 miles per hour. I expect that temps should be on the rise as the clouds continue to form throughout the afternoon. Tonight should be cloudy with temps hovering around 1-2 degrees. Tomorrow should be a bit chillier as a cold front comes in off of Canada later today, which should bring winds from the north tomorrow. I expect their to be fewer clouds tomorrow probably higher level cirrus clouds.

The low pressure system coming in will bring us colder temps tomorrow, temps should warm up for Thursday and Friday.