Weather Notes » Blog

New weather features added

John Briggs — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 18:39:21 +0000

I added a few new pages to the BathMaineWeather.com site. I hope these new features will enhance your visit to our site.

Contact page ⇒ This is a safe and secure contact form that may be used to contact me with site suggestions, problems with the site, or just a way of saying thanks.
Offshore Waters Forecast ⇒ Forecast for 25 nm off the coast into the Gulf of Maine. The link for the page may be found under “Coastal Waters” on the menu on the left of every page.
Space Weather ⇒ Forecasts from the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center.
Historical Data ⇒ Bath, Maine Weather Station Historical Data from WU. I have been sending my weather data to WU since February 2006. This script will pull my weather data from WU and allow the user to find weather conditions in Bath, Maine since 2006.

I hope these new features will benefit your visit to BathMaineWeather.com.

*Update*⇒ I also added a “Winter Weather” page which features the latest NWS expected snowfall forecast for Maine. Also included is an animated winter weather radar image centered on Maine.

More to come!

New Year Snowstorm for Maine

John Briggs — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 13:38:25 +0000

A major winter storm will affect Maine on Saturday January 2nd and Sunday January 3rd, 2010. A low pressure system east of the Gulf of Maine will intensify this weekend and back into the gulf tonight. The low pressure will advance westward into the gulf from a position just south of Nova Scotia. This is a rare occurrence for New England. Normally, a low pressure system that’s east of the gulf will continue in a north to northeast fashion and only brush Maine with light snowfall.

Expect snow to intensify throughout the day today and become very heavy overnight with near blizzard conditions. High winds, blowing and drifting snow and coastal flooding during high tides are expected. Travel will be nearly impossible overnight and tomorrow morning with snow-packed roadways and whiteout conditions. Power outages are possible as trees and limbs may be downed due to the high winds.

Snowfall accumulations will depend on the exact track of the low pressure system. This storm has been hard for forecasters to predict exactly where the storm will track.

The NAM forecast model seems to be the most consistent. Here is a graphic from the NAM model for total snowfall.

NAM snowfall total - Northeast US

Here is a graphic from the GFS forecast model for total snowfall.

GFS snowfall total - Northeast US

As you can see, there are some differences. Which model verifies is unknown at this time but both give Maine a substantial snowfall. Coupled with high winds and near blizzard conditions, the storm needs to be closely monitored.

My predictions for the storm are as follows. I used a blend of both the NAM and GFS models. (Warning! This is not an official forecast! For official forecasts, stay tuned with the NWS and your local TV station.) These snowfall accumulations are total from 12:00 a.m. Saturday January 2nd through 7:00 a.m. Monday January 4th, 2010.

Sagadahoc,Lincoln and Kennebec Counties: 10″ – 16″
Waldo and Knox Counties: 12″ – 18″
Cumberland and Androscoggin Counties: 8″ to 14″

Follow the storm at BathMaineWeather.com by following the links in the sidebar on the left side of this page. Live weather conditons, radar. weather cam, forecasts, tides and more.

For official forecasts and warnings, stayed tuned to your local TV stations and the NWS.

Blizzard or Flizzard?

John Briggs — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 01:08:01 +0000

The upcoming storm is a hard one for forecasters to predict what it is going to do this coming New Years weekend. Forecast models have been all over the place, with the European models being the most consistent. The storm looks to be long duration, with heavy snow, high winds and coastal flooding from Friday through Sunday. While some of the models clobber Maine with heavy snow, other models just give us a glancing blow.

The following graphic is from AccuWeather.com and depicts their forecast as of 2:00 p.m. today.

Blizzard for Maine? | From Accuweather.com

Forecasters may have a better handle on this winter storm when future forecast models come out later tonight and tomorrow morning. The following graphic depicts the 12z GFS 120 hour snow total for Maine and surrounding areas. Realize that this is not set in stone, it is just what one of the many forecast models is forecasting.

12z GFS 120 hour Snowtotal

This storm bears watching! Stay tuned to your local TV station and/or the NWS for further updates.

Snowstorm!

John Briggs — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 18:18:03 +0000

As of the time of this post, a major winter storm is affecting Maine. At 1:00 p.m., more than 6″ has fallen here at our weather station in Bath, Maine. Winds are gusting out of the east and northeast at 30 m.p.h., with higher winds expected this evening as the storm pulls off to the northeast.

The Maine Turnpike and Interstate 295 has speed restrictions posted at 45 m.p.h. According to the NWS, 8″ to 12″ of snow will fall along the mid coast of Maine, with higher amounts inland and lesser amounts on the immediate coast. Here is the NWS forecast for Bath, Maine:

This Afternoon

Snow. High near 33. Windy, with a east wind between 23 and 31 mph, with gusts as high as 48 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 8 to 12 inches possible.

Expect travel to be treacherous and power outages are possible with winds gusting as high as 55 m.p.h. this evening. Schools and business are closed throughout the state. Stay tuned to your local television stations for updates on this winter storm.

Snow, wind and rain

John Briggs — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 12:36:18 +0000

Forecasters are calling for a major winter storm to affect Maine on Wednesday and Wednesday night. All locations will see snow. Along the immediate coast, 2″ to 4″ of snow may fall before changing to rain. Locations just away from the coast may see 4″ to 8″ of snow before the changeover. The mountains of northern Maine may see 12″+. High winds will be a problem both Wednesday and Thursday. Bitter cold is expected to follow the storm into this weekend.

The NWS in Gray, Maine has an interesting discussion this morning. The thinking with the meteorologists is that the mid coast may stay all snow longer than other locations just inland from the coast. A High Wind Watch and a Winter Storm Watch has been issued for the mid coast including Sagadahoc County.

All in all, travel with be treacherous on Wednesday and Wednesday night. Stay tuned to your local TV stations and the NWS for breaking weather news. This will be a high impact storm for all of Maine.