#MEwx cold, rainy, freezing rain and when wind and snow become a blizzard

Good morning Augusta

A direct, real-time feed from my personal weather station is available for you here.

Our winter weather advisory has been extended until 5 this evening, so pay attention to the other people on the roads.

Today it’s going to be cloudy with Rain likely and a chance for freezing rain this afternoon. Ice accumulation around a trace. Highs in the mid 30s. North winds around 10 mph with gusts up to 20 mph.

Tonight we’ll have rain this evening, then rain or sleet after midnight. Little or no sleet accumulation. Lows in the lower 30s. North winds around 10 mph.

The readings from my weather instruments are:

Our outdoor temperature is 25.3°F, the humidity is 51%, the Dew Point is 9.7°F and our wind chill is 17.2°F.

The wind direction is East Northeast between 4.3 MPH and 7.9 MPH.  

The Relative pressure is 30.00, the Absolute pressure is 29.80 and falling with a weather graphic indicating sleet/rain.

Visibility is 10.0 Miles / 16.1 Kilometers with overcast skies to 2,400 ft / 731 m.

The UV rating is 0 out of 16, Sunrise is 6:38 AM, Sunset is 4:09 PM, Moonrise is 9:50 PM, moonset is 12:08 AM and the moon phase is Waning gibbous. 

The RAW METAR readings from Augusta’s airport are:

METAR KAUG 181153Z AUTO 36011KT 10SM OVC024 M04/M10 A3008 RMK AO2 SLP190 T10391100 11039 21056 58018

We didn’t receive any rain or snow here over the past 24 hours, but we’re going to get it later today.

Just exactly what is a “Blizzard?”

By Jeff Smith and Mike Bencivenga, Jamie Nguyen

NEW YORK (WABC) –

A blizzard is a snowstorm on steroids. The term blizzard may be tossed around casually, but to officially qualify as a blizzard, a storm

has to meet the following three criteria:

1. Sustained wind or frequent gusts of 35mph or greater.

2. Considerable falling and/or blowing snow reducing visibility to under a quarter mile.

3. These conditions have to continue for at least three consecutive hours!