Merry Christmas Everyone!! Although many states and even regions didn't experience a White Christmas, many did! According to the National Weather Service, today 41.7% of the Continental United States is covered in snow with an average depth of 3.6 inches!

http://www.nohrsc.noaa.gov/nsa/

Even though we didn't experience a White Christmas, we certainly are experiencing the winter weather. This past cold front that moved through Sunday and Monday dropped the temperature over 35 degrees and the prevailing Canadian High Pressure System is allowing for clear skies and very cool temperatures.

Temperatures should remain cooler for the next few days before warming up again into the 50s this weekend but long term models are showing another decrease in temperature early next week! For now though, temperatures should stay in the 40s for the rest of this work week (even though many of you are on vacation) and lows will be in the upper 20s with cloud cover increasing up to the weekend. Winds should also stay fairly calm between 5-10 mph through Friday as well.

More updates soon to come! I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and got to spend some time with your families! Remember the real reason for this season! Happy Birthday Jesus Christ and Thank you for coming to this earth to die as a way for us to be with You for eternity! If you did wake up to a White Christmas, please enjoy some of that snow for us down here in the Southeast!

Temperatures have been unusually warm for this time of year in the Southern half of the United States but they should cool a bit as the Canadian High pressure system moves across the North, all of the southern states will experience a temperature drop. Here in RDU, we are forecasted to reach temperatures in the mid-high 70s on Sunday with temperatures dropping to a high in the mid-40s on Monday. Asheville-Boone region should experience a similar temperature shift with a high on Sunday in the low 60s and a high on Tuesday in the mid-upper 30s. Wilmington is expected to experience a high on Sunday in the mid 70s and a high on Tuesday in the mid 50s. Rain will follow on Wednesday night/Thursday as the low pressure system in front of the upper level trough moves through, but no snow will be seen in the Piedmont or Coastal regions of NC because of increased temperatures after Christmas.

Below is a temperature map which should update through the following days to show the lows and highs forecasted by our models. The purple/white and blue is the colder temperatures as a result of the Canadian High pressure system moving across the Northern Hemisphere.

The northern Midwest is currently witnessing what could turn into a rather disastrous winter storm system. There is not much precipitation being created from the storm but the mid-Mississippi River Basin could experience flooding from upper-basin precip. over the next couple of days.

Winter weather advisories, freezing rain advisories, flood watches, and even some lake effect snow advisories have been issued for counties across the Northern United States. We will see how these change over the next few days. 

For all those experiencing winter weather, here is a link provided by the National Weather Service explaining to citizens things to watch out for and how to react to different weather updates throughout the winter season: http://www.noaa.gov/features/03_protecting/winter.html.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season and that everyone is getting in the Christmas spirit!