4:47 pm ET
Pacific moisture arriving: A very wet rainstorm is heading towards the Pacific Northwest beginning tonight, peaking Tuesday night/Wednesday morning and lasting all the way until Thursday morning.
Below is satellite imagery where the white and orange colors are clouds. These clouds are holding some serious moisture.
When the satellite imagery animates you can see that the clouds are aimed at Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia. This water hose will be pointed at this region for an extended period.
The longevity of rainfall combined with a melting snow will lead to significant river flooding. Major and perhaps record flood stages may be set for various rivers throughout the region.
We'll have more on this developing story tomorrow and Wednesday.
4:04 pm ET
Warm up for some: After today's chill, temperatures will be on the rebound on Tuesday especially in the state of Texas and northern sections of the Gulf States. Check out the temperatures right now:
Now take a look at what we're forecast for Tuesday:
If you enjoy the warmer temperatures then this is a vast improvement; generally 15-25 degrees warmer in Texas, northern Louisiana, northern Mississippi, northern Alabama and parts of central and eastern Tennessee.
3:31 pm ET
Bonk cams and snow: With snow currently falling over Ogden, Utah (35 north of Salt Lake), the WeatherBonk cams are capturing snow-covered local streets. The city is currently under a winter weather advisory until 4 am MT Tuesday.
Ogden, Utah (31st and Wall Ave.)
Ogden, Utah
The same scenario is playing out in and around Provo, Utah however no advisories are in place at this time.
Provo, UT (University Pkwy)
Provo, UT (BYU)
2:35 pm ET
Ice worries: A few weather chess moves will take place during the next 24 to 36 hours to help produce an icy set-up on Tuesday and Wednesday for the area outlined below.
First, high pressure now situated over Illinois and Indiana will make a move eastward and set up shop over eastern Pennsylvania by late tonight.
The area of high pressure will capture the cold entrenched over New England and burrow it southward into northern and western Virginia, northeastern West Virgina and the panhandle of Maryland. It is here where a shallow air mass of subfreezing temperatures will exist.
Meanwhile, the area of rain from the South will ease its way northward on Tuesday and begin to fall over the outlined region. At the surface, temperatures are below 32 degrees so the rain that falls will begin to freeze onto exposed surfaces.
Accumulation of ice on tree limbs and power lines may be between 0.25 and 0.50 inches.
This set-up for ice accumulation will also be in place farther north into northeastern Pennsylvania, north Jersey, and the Hudson Valley.
1:53 pm ET
Rain building: One look at the radar map below and you can see that a significant amount of rain is building across the South. This is a sign of things to come for later tonight and throughout all of tomorrow. Here's the look at the radar picture on our interactive map.
A series of minor upper level disturbances are sweeping out of Texas and into the Tennessee Valley (and eventually into the Mid-Atlantic).
Combine this with a stalled front and you get a focus for heavy rain situated in this same fashion; from Texas to Mississippi to Tennessee to the Virginias.
During the next 48 hours, the rain may be so heavy that flood watches have been posted.
Last week we mentioned that the core of heaviest rain may set up over north Georgia and upstate South Carolina. Unfortunately, it's becoming evident that the heaviest rain will be situated farther to the west. That being said, these two parched areas should at least experience a decent rainfall.
11:25 am ET
Snowing in Spokane...Again: The very snow-weary residents of Spokane, Washington, dealt with yet another dumping of snow this morning. Seven inches of snow piled up this morning with a snow depth of of more than two feet on the ground.
Thankfully, the majority of the snow has moved off to the east with some light snow remaining over the city but that will end likely before lunchtime.
So the good news is that there is no immediate heavy snow in the future for Spokane after today's dumping. The bad news is that there is heavy rain in the forecast. Major flooding could be a very real issue by the end of the week. We'll have more on this story, which will impact all of the Pac Northwest, later today or tomorrow.
NCAA Football:
Fiesta Bowl: Ohio State vs. Texas,
University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Arizona. Kickoff 8:00pm ET
Basketball:
NBA
There are 5 games scheduled:
Golden State at Utah
Indiana at Denver
Toronto at Milwaukee
Sacramento at New Jersey
San Antonio at Miami
NCAA Top 25
There are 2 top 25 games tonight:
Maryland- Eastern Shore at #4 Oklahoma
#8 Georgetown at #10 Notre Dame
Hockey:
There are 2 NHL games scheduled:
Pittsburgh at NY Rangers
NY Islanders at Edmonton
10:17 am ET
North Texas Ice: Gulf moisture is currently overriding a nearly stationary cold front located near the Texas Gulf Coast. The moisture is located as far north as southern Oklahoma; moving into an air mass where at the surface temperatures are at or below freezing.
This is a fairly classic freezing rain set-up for north Texas and the central Plains. A freezing rain advisory is in place for north Texas and southeastern Oklahoma.
Thankfully, for many areas, temperatures will begin to slowly warm this morning at the surface allowing freezing rain to become just plain ol' rain.
Still, this morning, there will be plenty of tricky travel and road accidents may be common.
Freezing rain is currently falling at Dallas-Love Field, Dallas-Fort Worth, Waco, Killeen, Mineral Wells, and Abilene, Texas.
12:32 pm ET update: The freezing rain advisories for north Texas and southeastern Oklahoma has been extended into the afternoon and evening hours.
Click here for the winter alerts for both Texas and Oklahoma.
8:53 am ET
Southeast Record Warmth: With a cold front stalling along the spine of the Appalachians leading westward back to northern Alabama and southern Mississippi, it leaves portions of the Southeast in the warm sector.
Several cities in the Southeast will be flirting with record warmth. Here's a list of some selected cities who will climb into the 70s and 80s.
City: Record High
- Orlando: 84/1993
- Tampa: 85/1937
- Jacksonville: 81/2004
- Miami: 85/1908
- Savannah: 81/2004
- New Orleans: 78/1955
- Mobile: 77/2005
- Tallahassee: 82/1993
- Charleston, SC: 79/2004
- Alma, GA: 79/1950
- Gainesville, FL: 84/1937
- Melbourne, FL: 84/1972
- Brunswick, GA: 78/2004
- Daytona Beach: 83/1972
- Augusta, GA: 79/1955
Take note of the sharp contrast behind and in advance of the nearly stationary cold front; separating winter temperatures from spring-like temperatures.
8:36 am ET
Georgia crashes: Georgia State Patrol officials say wet roads were to blame for the 20 traffic deaths reported during the New Year's holiday period.
GSP and the Georgia Department of Transportation estimate there were 3,008 traffic crashes during the 102-hour period that began at 6 p.m. Dec. 31 and ended at midnight Monday. Seventeen of those crashes involved fatalities. There were 1,350 injuries reported.
There were 3,108 crashes during last year's holiday period, with 1,250 injuries and 22 deaths reported. Those were also blamed on wet roads. -- The Associated Press
8:18 am ET
Foggy South Carolina: Dense fog blanketed much of South Carolina, reducing visibility to less than a quarter mile in many areas.
The National Weather Service issued a dense fog advisory for the state until the mid to late morning hours.
Forecasters are urging motorists to slow down, use low-beam headlights and to leave most space between vehicles. -- The Associated Press
You can see from the map below that fog has also enveloped much of western North Carolina, south Georgia, lower Alabama and northern Florida.
To check out dense fog advisories for your particular region, click the map below then click on the appropriate state.
12:27 pm ET update: Fog, as usual, has dissipated in the Southeast as the morning wore on and temperatures rose.
7:41 am ET
Today is Monday, January 5, 2009
On this Date:
In 1896, a German newspaper reported German physicist Wilhelm Roentgen's discovery of X-rays.
In 1914, Henry Ford introduced the $5-a-day minimum wage.
In 1925, Nellie Tayloe Ross became the first woman governor of a state (Wyoming).
In 1972, President Nixon ordered the development of the space shuttle.
In 1993, ice-laden wires blown by winds up to 100 mph downed power lines on Maui's Mount Haleakala in Hawaii. It seems incredible for Hawaii, but up to 18 inches of ice accumulated on the summit.
In 2000, INS Commissioner Doris Meissner ruled that 6-year-old Elian Gonzalez must be returned to Cuba.
In 2006, at least 10 tornadoes hit MS, GA, SC, and NC, unusual for the first week in January. An F1 hit near Newnan in Coweta Co GA in late morning. That county was hit again on the evening of the 7th.
Today's Birthdays: Actor Robert Duvall is 78. Actress Diane Keaton is 63. Actor Ted Lange (The Love Boat) is 61. Actress Pamela Sue Martin (Dynasty) is 56. Rocker Marilyn Manson is 40. Actor Bradley Cooper (Alias) is 34.
