Wet start to 2009

This afternoon I have been able to summarize the first 7 days of our new year of 2009. What has happened so far? Well one thing is our main story: rain. Although we must recognize this month is normally our wettest month of the year. Year-to-Date totals so far...WDAM-TV: 2.58", PIB Airport: 2.40", HBG Airport: 1.63", Jackson: 2.83", McComb: 1.57", Meridian: 2.45".

Besides the rainfall, another story deals with the weather forecast for next week. Here in the weathercenter we are studying a possibily very cold weather pattern for the mid-week. Although a lot could change between now and then, I believe we could easily see a strong push of Cold Polar air into the Central portion of the United States. And when I think Canada, I often look at the predicted temperature anomalies for the next 10 days within Canada. These numbers will help me determine the type of canadian air we will see. I find that temps will be slightly above standard deviation in Canada, but I also bet the ground over the Central Plains will be covered in snow. The cold air will definitely filter quickly over the snow and be able to drop into the South, but how far will the cold air come? I'm banking on cold temperatures, but right now I don't think we will set any major records. I also recognize the GFS is a main player in this prediction and this model usually overestimates the advancement of cold-air from 7-8 days out. Will all this said, you should stay tuned within the next few days as we will continue to fine tune this forecast. Thanks for reading and thanks for watching! We are here to serve all residents here in the Pine Belt so please feel free to send us your thoughts and comments. Take Care, Tanner Cade - tcade@wdam.com