Severe weather has been quite active throughout the United States recently, including two large outbreaks in two weeks for those in the deep south. This has led to reports of hundreds of tornadoes across the country throughout the month of March. We’ve seen 255 reported tornadoes for the month. If that seems high, it probably
Continue Reading
Wednesday afternoon, wildfires were ongoing throughout parts of Alabama and Georgia. That was out ahead of rain and thunderstorms that eventually swept through the deep south yesterday afternoon and last night. That rolled through and cleared out the smoke, but we still have wildfires ongoing there Thursday afternoon, so it wasn’t enough to completely quell
Continue Reading
Exactly one week ago this EF3 tornado tore through the south side of New Orleans, injuring two and killing one, and now, a week later, millions more people are at risk of seeing a tornado, 12 million people in fact are at risk of seeing a significant tornado, meaning an EF2 or greater. Currently, the
Continue Reading
Friday’s dull and grey weather may have you itching to travel, but we actually escaped the worst of this system; even as the low pressure system sat right overhead on Friday. We did have a low risk of severe storms on Friday, but fortunately managed to miss out completely. As the cold and warm air
Continue Reading
“It’s not a job, it’s a lifestyle.” Moniteau county farmer, Andy Clay, says while he loves his way of life, he understands that weather could put it in jeopardy. “So the drier it is, our grass isn’t growing, just like some people aren’t mowing their yards. Will it’s the same for the cattle mowing the pasture
Continue Reading
Always tracking, always alerting. That’s our mission for the Stormtrack Weather Team, and it’s why we have a planin place to give Mid-Missouri as much lead time as possible before severe weather threatens. Heat, flooding and tornadoes are among the most deadly types of weather each year. Statewide, there were 50 reported tornadoes in 2021,
Continue Reading
Last fall, the Stormtrack Weather Team was predicting a cold and snowy end to winter in anticipation of a moderate La Nina. The season entered and ended like lion with two severe weather outbreaks before Christmas, and most of our seasonal snowfall in February.
Continue Reading
Spring starts Sunday so it’s time to talk about preparing for severe weather season. First, let’s talk about tornado sirens and why they’re not reliable. Each community has different guidelines for when they can activate their tornado sirens. You may be surprised but sirens are sometimes activated for storms that are not considered severe. The
Continue Reading
This winter was drier than average for most of the Midwest and all of mid-Missouri. You may be wondering how that could be with all the snow we saw this last season. We didn’t see any snow in December but we started picking up the inches in January, almost 4 inches but a little over
Continue Reading
Severe weather can happen any time of the year. It’s important to know where to take shelter well before the storm starts bearing down on you.
Continue Reading
Thursday was the fourth in the last six weeks to bring measurable snowfall to mid-Missouri; an interesting fact, but maybe not as interesting as the role the sun played in our snow accumulation that day. As we get closer to spring, the sun gets higher in the sky as the northern hemisphere tilts closer to
Continue Reading
THURSDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE: Snowfall amounts with this morning’s last-minute data is coming in a little higher. The highest amounts will still be expected in our northwestern counties, but more of us look to end up closer to 2-4″. Most of our accumulation will come with the wave expected tonight. WEDNESDAY EVENING UPDATE: As the storm
Continue Reading
As the snow fell Thursday, accumulations were first noticeable on elevated and grassy surfaces. This is largely thanks to the heat that the ground holds. Even though our air temperatures have been below freezing for much of the day, ground temperatures and specifically pavement temperatures, may still be warmer. Pavement absorbs energy from the sun
Continue Reading
As we head into the warmer seasons with more time to get out and enjoy the sun, you’ll want to remember to check in on your furry friend. With sweltering days ahead, just think if you had an extra layer of fur on all summer long! That’s the experience for our pets each day, and
Continue Reading
This week’s snow storm will bring measurable snow to most if not all of mid-Missouri, but the largest snow totals will sit on the western half of our viewing area. This is due in part to something we call the low level jet. This region of relatively strong winds at low levels of the atmosphere,
Continue Reading
March first is the first day of meteorological spring. This marks the beginning of spring weather record keeping. Those very records can help to show what changes we can expect in the new month. Well, let’s first look at the last 30 years to see what we can reasonably expect in terms of wet weather. January and February
Continue Reading
If you were out late last night, you probably noticed one of two things. Either a little bit of light drizzle, or maybe even some snow, but there is one problem with this, much of it didn’t show up on radar. Here’s a look at a radar loop from last night. Some snow showing up to
Continue Reading
THURSDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE: Steady snow and sleet has now moved east of Mid-Missouri, taking the measurable precipitation with it. Low clouds will have just enough moisture to produce light freezing drizzle tonight into early Friday morning, creating a glaze of ice on untreated roads. Slick spots will be possible Friday morning as temperatures dip into
Continue Reading
To understand why we’ve come to expect these types of temperature swings each year, we have to start at the top. Each winter, the jet stream migrates south and can often be found roaring over the Central U.S. This time of the year. This often sends disturbances in our atmosphere right over our heads. These
Continue Reading
Your intuition probably tells you that it takes longer to stop on ice than it does dry pavement, but let’s break it down by numbers. It can take you an extra 200 feet to stop your vehicle on an ice surface compared to a clear roadway. That equates to about 10 more seconds, or 4
Continue Reading