The Picture Perfect Mid-Latitude Cyclone

Ok, Eau Claire residents, who out there is confused about this weather? What it is that we are experiencing right now is a mid-latitude cyclone. If you noticed yesterday, we were feeling winds from the east. As the saying goes, "When the wind comes from the east, tis not fit for man nor beast." The truth to this piece of folklore is that east winds are associated with mid-latitude cyclones. This winter storm is caused by an inverted trough. On radar maps, you can see a comma-shaped storm. This comma shape is indicative of a mid-latitude cyclone.

This image shows Winter Storm Walda in motion.

current area radar

This low pressure system swept a cold front across the country, dropping temperatures well below normal.

We are receiving a snow mix, but the southern United States is seeing some pretty wicked storms. This map shows the current lightning strikes.

The following water vapor map helps you to see how much moisture is in our area. The heaviest moisture areas depict the mid-latitude cyclone. You can also make out the inverted trough.

The wind shows you the shape and movement of this storm. The counterclockwise circling indicates low pressure, an indicator of bad weather.

The temperature has been dropping since this morning. The barometric pressure has been dropping as well, showing us that the low pressure air mass was afoot. Today's high temperature occurred early this morning, unfortunately.

In the following images, you can see how far today's temperatures are away from normal.

The danger with the precipitation we are receiving is the flooding threat. Since the trees are still leaf-less and not taking in excess water, there is far too much moisture on the ground. The water table is full, causing the various streams and rivers in our area to rise. We are looking at the potential for the river to flood worse than it did September 25, 2010. The water far surpassed the footpath a couple days ago already. On top of the precipitation we are receiving, upstream of us also got a lot of heavy snow. Flooding is coming.

Flooding will follow as this snow cover melts.