SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT: Freezing Rain Threat Monday/Monday Night

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
WEST TENNESSEE WEATHER ONLINE JACKSON TN
1030 PM CST SAT DEC 13 2008

 

…POTENTIAL INCREASING FOR FREEZING RAIN LATE MONDAY AND MONDAY NIGHT…

WEATHER COMPUTER MODELS ARE COMING INTO CLOSER AGREEMENT THAT THERE IS AN INCREASING POTENTIAL FOR FREEZING RAIN TO DEVELOP OVER PORTIONS OF WEST TENNESSEE LATE MONDAY INTO MONDAY NIGHT. AN ARCTIC COLD FRONT WILL BE ARRIVING IN THE AREA AROUND DAYBREAK ON MONDAY. TEMPERATURES WILL BE DROPPING FROM THE 50S AT SUNRISE MONDAY INTO THE 30S BY THE AFTERNOON. MOISTURE IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE TO RIDE UP-AND-OVER THE COLD AIR NEAR THE SURFACE. TEMPERATURES JUST ABOVE THE SURFACE ARE EXPECTED REMAIN ABOVE FREEZING RESULTING IN THE MOISTURE THAT FALLS OUT OF THE CLOUDS WILL BE RAIN AND THEN STRIKE THE SURFACE WHICH COULD BE BELOW FREEZING IN SEVERAL AREAS.

COMPARING THE COMPUTER MODEL FORECAST DATA REVEALS THAT AREAS ALONG AND NORTH OF THE I-40 CORRIDOR WILL BE AT OR BELOW FREEZING BY MIDNIGHT MONDAY NIGHT. BETWEEN MIDNIGHT AND 6 AM TUESDAY PRECIPITATION COULD RANGE BETWEEN 0.10″ TO 0.50″ DEPENDING ON THE AMOUNTS COULD RESULT IN SIGNIFICANT ICING. TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TO WARM WELL ABOVE FREEZING ON TUESDAY BASED ON THE COMPUTER WEATHER MODELS.

THE CRITICAL TIME FOR TEMPERATURES AND MOISTURE WILL BE MONDAY AFTERNOON AND NIGHT. AREA RESIDENTS WILL NEED TO MONITOR THE LATEST FORECASTS FOR MONDAY AND MONDAY NIGHT. IF TEMPERATURES FALL BELOW FREEZING SOONER THAN EXPECTED ON MONDAY, IT COULD IMPACT THE AFTERNOON COMMUTE IN THE NORTHERN PORTIONS OF WEST TENNESSEE.

CONTINUE TO CHECK BACK FOR LATER POSTS ON THIS POTENTIAL WINTER WEATHER SITUATION.

HOLMES