State College, Pennsylvania to Des Moines, Iowa
Posted by Ryan
Hey, another back to back day with the road trips, and we are headed west, young man. Should be an interesting 2 days, covering 884 miles with some inclement weather a certain possibility. This will break down to a speed of 62.7mph, and the first day in the car will cover 501.9 miles. Lets get rolling.
DAY ONE
Let's get this out of the way... a good half of the trip is going to be nasty. We will be in good shape from State College to about Cleveland, but after that, we will encounter a warm front testing the boundary between freezing and not. This is generally a very bad situation, and I don't suspect tomorrow's drive will be any different. We will be under the threat for freezing rain from about Cleveland to LaPorte, Indiana. Of course, with a system set up like this, it's hard to pinpoint exactly how everything will turn out, and there is a chance that there will be regular old rain, some snow or even some sleet (probably the best chance). In any case, it will likely be the worst kind of driving until w eget to Laporte, the destination for Day 1.
DAY TWO
If there is any fortunate note to this trip it's that Sunday will be a much easier day to navigate through Chicago. The weather will have cleared out, and while temperatures will be below freezing, there won't be any precipitation. In fact, as we approach Des Moines, we will likely see temperatures back in the mid 30s. It will be quite the relief after the mess that Saturday will be.
Nice and toasty
Posted by Ryan
When you live in a town like Des Moines, you tend to value any day past August that warms up to the 70s. Consider, then, that temperatures hit the mid 80s, both days in the forecast period. I think that most residents of southern Iowa are pleased with how things went. The Weather Channel is home to many non-residents that are pleased with how things went, I am sure, as they had the top forecast in Des Moines.
Actuals: Tuesday- High 86, Low 51
Wednesday - High 86, Low 54
Grade: A
Des Moines, Iowa
Posted by Anthony
To kick off the workweek, we head off to the heart of Iowa! Figuratively of course, given I ran a marathon yesterday and takes me about an hour to walk to the kitchen, the internet is definitely the best way to travel today! The weather was beautiful over the Upper Midwest yesterday, will it continue?
At 3:54pm CDT, the temperature at Des Moines, IA was 80 degrees under fair skies. A large high pressure ridge has entrenched itself over the Central US and doesn't appear to be going anywhere soon. In fact, high pressure near Hudson Bay looks to build down in to the Great Lakes/MS River Valley region later on in the week. While a slow=-moving storm system moves out of the Northeast, and a pair of storms hit the Western US, most of the Central US will remain high and dry! Later on in the week, things could get a little blustery as southerly flow enhances ahead of a low pressure system getting going over the Northern Plains, but until then, sunshine and warm temps for Des Moines!
Tuesday: Sunny. High 82, Low 50.
Wednesday: Continued sunny, a few clouds perhaps. High 81, Low 55.
TWC: Tuesday: Sunny, High 85, Low 51.
Wednesday: Sunny. High 85, Low 57.
AW: Tuesday: Mostly sunny, a few clouds. High 78, Low 49.
Wednesday: Mostly sunny, nice and warm. High 80, Low 55.
NWS: Tuesday: Sunny. High 83, Low 49.
Wednesday: Sunny. High 82, Low 52.
WB: Tuesday: Sunny. High 82, Low 50.
Wednesday: Sunny. High 82, Low 52.
Most of the Plains are absent of clouds today, and looks to remain so through midweek. Perfect time to get in those last rounds of golf before the weather makes a permanent change for the cooler.
Miles above everyone else
Posted by Ryan
The question in Des Moines was whether or not clouds would accompany a strong southerly flow associated with a strong low in the Dakotas. The clouds didn't come, as it turned out, and only one provider foresaw a sunny day with temperatures in the 90s. As usual, that was the Weather Channel, who outclassed everyone by at least 10 degrees.
Actuals: Sunday - High 92, Low 67
Monday - High 90, Low 72
Grade: A
Des Moines, Iowa
Posted by Ryan
Oh boy, high pressure!
At 1154AM, CT, Des Moines was reporting a temperature of 84 degrees with clear skies. A very well defined ridge existed in the eastern United States, while at the back edge of the ridge, a slow moving boundary fed off the northerly flow created by the anticyclonic flow.
A deep trough over the west will try to push east towards the ridge, but it is expected to hold up to the pressure of the advancing trough. A stronger southerly flow will be induced by the pressure gradient between the two systems, so expect some blustery but warm days for Des Moines.
Tomorrow - Sunny and breezy, High 88, Low 63
Monday - Increasingly cloudy, High 86, Low 68
TWC: Tomorrow - Mainly sunny. Hot. High 91, Low 66
Monday - A few clouds. High 89, Low 71
AW - Tomorrow - Mostly sunny and breezy High 86, Low 63
Monday - Mostly sunny, breezy and humid High 88, Low 69
NWS: Tomorrow - Sunny High 88, Low 63
Monday - Mostly sunny High 89, Low 66
WB: Tomorrow - Sunny, Breezy, High 88, Low 63
Monday - Mostly sunny, High 89, Low 67
That's going to be tough on Monday. Will it cloud up, or will the warm advection dominate? It will be interesting to see.
