AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 87
P&E
WX WATCH
Snow watch
Spotting winter storms before they strike
BY THOMAS A. HORNE
IT’S NOVEMBER 2012 as I write this, and winter weather has already
made its first bold appearance in the form of Superstorm Sandy.
Sandy began as a tropical depression south of Jamaica on October
22, became a tropical storm, went to hurricane status before crossing Cuba, lost some of its punch as it went through the Bahamas,
then reintensified to hurricane status by October 28. By this time it
was well east of North Carolina’s Outer Banks. But then the storm
was drawn into the circulation of a huge upper-level trough over
the eastern United States. This, along with the blocking effects of
high pressure centered over Greenland, made the storm turn left,
ultimately making landfall along the New Jersey shore.
Wraparound moisture
is the big reason why
many airports east of
the Appalachians can be
closed by winter weather.
SNOWMAGEDDON covered the East Coast during a 2010 storm.
What does any of this have to do with snowfall? Well, the
storm’s counterclockwise circulation drew in a lot of cold air
from that Greenland high. And while colder, drier air usually
means the beginning of the end of a hurricane, in this case it
meant that the cold air was cold enough to cause snow to fall
along the Appalachians. This is a good example of wraparound
precipitation mechanics. Take air that’s cold enough, let it get
sucked around the north side of a low that’s full of precipitation,
and presto: snow from a hurricane.
This example is interesting because it illustrates how
nor’easters along the East Coast can create widespread snowfall.
Wraparound moisture is the big reason why many airports east of
the Appalachians can be closed by winter weather. Wraparound
precipitation can be easily observed by locating high cloud tops
forming in a dense comma moving around a center of low pressure. Often, those lows are off Cape Hatteras, which explains
why some call them “Hatteras lows.” If you loop a satellite image,
you’ll see that those clouds are moving counterclockwise, or
trending that way. If your proposed flight path is in the line of
fire, you’ve been warned.
Nor’easters—so called because their worst weather comes
on winds out of the northeast—are but one type of major winter snowmaker, and they affect areas from North Carolina to
the Canadian Maritime provinces. Here are some other areas to
watch for snow trouble:
PACIFIC NORTHWEST. Very often, North America’s biggest snow
systems enter the United States in or near Washington state, then
travel across the width of the nation. In the days before landfall,
www.aopa.org/pilot AOPA PILOT | 87
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013
AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - February 2013
Contents
President’s Position
Visual Approach
Letters
Waypoints
Proficient Pilot
Safety Pilot
License to Learn
Pilot Counsel
Fly Well
Sun Power
Debonair Sweepstakes
People
Test Pilot
GA at Work
Mentor Matters
First in Class
Tale of Three Decades
No-Spin Twin
Shaking Things Up
Breach of Peace
Time in Type
At Home in the Kingdom
Ownership
Proficiency
Technique
Wx Watch
Avionics
Dogfight
Never Again
Membership
State & Local Action
Member Products
AOPA Foundation
Air Safety Institute
AOPA Insurance Services
Fly by Wire
Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - February 2013
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Cover2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - President’s Position
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 5
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 6
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 7
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 8
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 9
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Visual Approach
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 11
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Letters
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 13
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 14
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 15
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Waypoints
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 17
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Proficient Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 19
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Safety Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 21
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - License to Learn
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 23
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Pilot Counsel
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 25
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Fly Well
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 27
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Sun Power
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 29
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Debonair Sweepstakes
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 31
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - People
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 33
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Test Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 35
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - GA at Work
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 37
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 38
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 39
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 40
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 41
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - No-Spin Twin
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 43
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 44
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 45
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 46
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 47
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 48
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 49
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Shaking Things Up
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 51
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 52
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 53
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 54
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 55
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 56
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 57
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Breach of Peace
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 59
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 60
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 61
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 62
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 63
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 64
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 65
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Time in Type
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 67
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 68
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 69
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 70
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 71
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - At Home in the Kingdom
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 73
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 74
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 75
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 76
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 77
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Ownership
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 79
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 80
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Proficiency
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 82
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 83
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Technique
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 85
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 86
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Wx Watch
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 88
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Avionics
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 90
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Dogfight
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Never Again
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 93
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 94
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Membership
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - State & Local Action
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 97
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Member Products
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 99
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - AOPA Foundation
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 101
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Air Safety Institute
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 103
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - AOPA Insurance Services
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 105
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 106
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Fly by Wire
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 108
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 109
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 110
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - 111
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Cover3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - February 2013 - Cover4
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