Breaking free
Posted by Ryan
After what was a crummy day for Springfield on Saturday, things made a decided improvement on Sunday. The weekend was saved! A cloudy, drizzly atmosphere cleared out just enough for a 15 degree improvement. Not a bad way to finish the weekend, eh? A three way tie between ourselves, The Weather Service and Weatherbug was found atop the forecast leaderboard.
Actuals: Saturday .30 inches of rain, High 48, Low 39
Sunday - High 66, Low 38
Grade: C
Springfield, Ohio to Anderson, South Carolina
Posted by Ryan
It's another 1 day trip tomorrow, this one taking us from Ohio to South Carolina. It's 527 miles between the two cities, and we will cover that ground at a pace of 59.1 miles an hour. That's pretty pokey. Into the car, let's get out of town!
A weak boundary has established itself just south of the Ohio River, and will generally be producing clouds, but some light rain is not out of the question. The drizzle should wind down somewhere between Cincinnati and Lexington, but the southerly drift of this boundary will mean a chance for clouds until we reach Knoxville. Expect things to clear and begin to warm up after we traverse far western North Carolina and arrive in Anderson.
Davenport, Iowa to Springfield, Ohio
Posted by Ryan
A nice little one day journey from eastern Iowa to southwestern Ohio is in the works today. It will take about 7 hours to get from Davenport to Springfield, which are about 439 miles apart. We will navigate the Midwest at a pace of 60.5mph. It's a slow pace, but it's only one day in the car!
Well, it's going to rain. The whole trip, the entire length of the trip from the Quad Cities to Davenport will be under the threat for rain. The heaviest rain will certainly fall on us as we are leaving Davenport, and become less intense, and likely less widespread as we head south and east. It will get a little bit warmer, but not much, as we make our way into Springfield. It's a good thing the plan is to move slowly, because traffic will not be good. Fortunately, Indianapolis is the largest town we travel through. Better luck on the next road trip, right?
Springfield, Ohio
Posted by Ryan
There are a lot of decent sized towns in Southwestern Ohio, much to everyone's surprise. Actually, probably not. Everyone probably already knew that.
At 1156AM, ET, Springfield was reporting a temperature of 46 degrees with clear skies. It was cooler than it's been for much of the spring, as a ridge spilled south from Canada. A strong system has developed over the northern Plains that will eventually bring some wet weather to Springfield, but eventually lose it's organizational structure well ahead of it's arrival in southwestern Ohio.
While some systems develop impressively rapidly, this system will completely fall apart with stunning efficiency. The primary center of low pressure will remain parked over the Dakotas as a remnant warm front stalls over the Ohio Valley. The associated rainfall, wind and clouds from the system will vanish across most of the system, but there may be a lingering shower threat through the weekend for Springfield.
Tomorrow - Scattered showers late, and cloudy, High 53, Low 38
Sunday - Showers and clouds, but warmer, High 63, Low 40
TWC: Tomorrow - Rain showers in the morning with scattered thunderstorms arriving in the afternoon. High 57, Low 39
Sunday - Mostly cloudy (early showers). High 63, Low 36
AW: Tomorrow - Periods of rain High 55, Low 41
Sunday - Warmer with intervals of clouds and sun high 63, Low 41
NWS Tomorrow - Showers High 46, Low 41
Sunday - Mostly cloudy (early showers) High 60, Low 39
WB: Tomorrow - Showers likely in the morning...then showers with a chance of thunderstorms in the afternoon. High 46, Low 41
Sunday - Partly cloudy (early rain) High 60, Low 39
Everyone looks to be in agreement on Springfield this weekend. At least there is a warm up for Sunday! Look how strong the low over the Plains looks today, compared with how weak it will be going forward.
When Fronts Slow Down
Posted by Anthony
Everybody had a forecast high of 41 or lower for Monday at Springfield. Sadly, the cold front didn't make it through until about 4am Monday morning, when temperatures had topped out at 50 just after midnight before crashing into the mid 30s by mid-morning, then never recovered. NWS took home the top spot on the strength of their accuarate low temperature forecasts.
Sunday: 0.05" of rain. High 50, Low 25.
Monday: 0.06" of rain. High 50, Low 33.
Forecast Grade: C
Springfield, Illinois
Posted by Ryan
Off to the farmland outpost and capital of Illinois for today's forecast. I just passed through Springfield for the first time ever a couple weeks ago. It was very nice.
At 1251PM, CT, Springfield was reporting a temperature of 30 degrees with a fairly steady east wind. There was a hole within a broad swath of overcast over the Midwest, and Springfield was enjoying some sunshine and warmer temperatures compared to sites even just to the west near the Mississippi River.
Sharp upper level troughing through the Rockies is leading to an intense amplification of a lee side trough along the Front Range. This is indicative of the system preparing to emerge from the highlands into the Mid Mississippi valley. The first impact for Springfield will be a warm up, thanks to southerly flow, and a few clouds. The heaviest rain and thunderstorm activity will develop over and just east of Springfield on Monday morning, followed by a cool, northwesterly wind. Don't be surprised if there are a few spots of drizzle Sunday evening before the real show starts on Monday.
Tomorrow - Increasing clouds, warm with some light rain late. High 44, Low 24
Monday - Some rain early, then clearing and colder, High 40, Low 31
TWC: Tomorrow - Cloudy skies with a few showers later in the day High 43, Low 24
Monday - Considerably cloudy (rain/snow before sunrise) High 38, Low 34
AW: Tomorrow - Breezy and milder with some sun, then increasing clouds, evening shower, High 45, Low 28
Monday - Breezy with partial sunshine High 40, Low 27
NWS: Tomorrow - A 20 percent chance of rain after noon. Mostly cloudy High 47, Low 25
Monday - Partly sunny, (showers before sunrise) High 41, Low 32
WB: Tomorrow - Mostly cloudy. A 20 percent chance of rain in the afternoon. High 47, Low 25
Monday - Partly sunny (predawn rain/snow) High 41, Low 34
We are in a very active pattern right now, and as Springfield's forecast indicates, the weather will be changing quickly from day to day. Satellite shows the Illinois capital in a clear window.
Turning off the switch
Posted by Ryan
At the time of our forecast, the temperature in Springfield was a sweltering 91 degrees. Strong thunderstorms were on the way, and they certainly knocked the temperature down a degree or two. Friday, the temperature was only 80, and Saturday, after clouds and rain rolled in, the temperature was cooler still, only 68. The Weather Service and Weatherbug split the forecast as the switch for summer seems to have been turned off.
Actuals: Friday - High 80, Low 62
Saturday - .61 inches of rain High 68, Low 55
Grade: C
Harrisonburg, Virginia to Springfield, Massachusetts
Posted by Ryan
Hey! It's a trip that doesn't take us across the country and last 4 1/2 days. In fact, we're only going to take one day to cover the 500 miles betwixt the cities in question, which puts us at a clip of 57.6 miles an hour. Let's head off to Springfield, and hope that the clean up effort is going as well as possible.
The cold front bringing strong thunderstorms to New England at this very moment will be in the Atlantic by the time we get ready to leave Harrisonburg in the morning. The tail of the front, however, will hook back west into the Chesapeake. We should be through the area that will see showers or storms by the time day time heating fires the convection up, but if we get bogged down and aren't past Harrisburg by 1pm, we might be in for an isolated rumble of thunder. The rest of our trip should be dry from that point forward, and we will enjoy a very pleasant arrival in Springfield.
Springfield, Massachusetts
Posted by Ryan
We are heading to Springfield, Massachusetts today, which, of course, was struck by an EF-3 tornado couple of weeks ago. Today looks like another rough weather day for New England. Will it get bad in Springfield?
At 253PM, ET, Springfield was reporting a temperature of 91 degrees with clear skies. There was a strong line of thunderstorms that stretched from Lebanon, New Hampshire to Binghamton New York that had a history of producing strong straight line winds and large hail. Springfield was under a severe thunderstorm watch for the remainder of the evening, and a moderate risk for severe weather.
The line of thunderstorms is so strong thanks to the strength of the front. Temperatures behind the front as nearby as Rochester are in the 70s, and deeper in the ridge, temperatures aren't climbing out of the 60s. This cool, crisp air will take over by tomorrow, and Springfield will move into a quieter pattern for a day or so. A shortwave will move along the Appalachians towards the Mid-Atlantic, and more stratiform rain is likely in the future for Springfield late on Saturday.
Tomorrow - Clear and cool.High 84, Low 63
Saturday - Increasing clouds with rain late, High 65, Low 58
TWC: Tomorrow - Mostly cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy in the afternoon High 83, Low 68
Saturday - Showers possible High 68, Low 60
AW: Tomorrow - Partly sunny, cooler and less humid High 79, Low 65
Saturday - Variable clouds High 72, Low 59
NWS: Tomorrow - Mostly sunny (storms thru 1AM) High 82, Low 64
Saturday - A chance of showers. Cloudy High 68, Low 58
WB: Tomorrow - Mostly sunny (early AM rain) High 80, Low 65
Saturday - Cloudy with a 50 percent chance of showers High 67, Low 58
That line of thunderstorms is looming, stay close to the television in Springfield!
Springfield, Massachusetts to Vineland, New Jersey
Posted by Anthony
A fairly short trip we have in store for us today, 271 miles of roadway including the fine cities of New York and Philadelphia. However, it won't be sunshine and rainbows for our little trip.
A large cut-off low pressure system is continuing to camp out over the Carolinas and Virginia, and with a large blocking pattern in place, isn't going anywhere soon. Constant southeast flow sitting north of a stationary front off the New England coast. Low clouds, fog, and persistent rain showers will rule the day for pretty much the entire trip through western Connecticut, past New York City, and through the heart of New Jersey. Skies and fog could lighten up some in the early afternoon as we get closer to our destination, but could be countered with bouts of heavier rain and perhaps a few isolated thunderstorms traversing the region. All told, a day better off stuck in a car than trying to watch a kids' soccer game.
