29. A series of storms moving into the West Coast, freezing temps and flurries in Florida, and a warm-up for the Northland.
Over the last couple days a series of three storms have been moving onshore into Washington, Oregon, and California. The map (to the right) shows the largest storm system.Accuweather News says up to 6 feet of snow has fallen in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and winds have been gusting up to 50 and 60 mph in the lower elevations. The Weather Channel (TWC) reports that the highest winds have been reported at Ward Mountain, NV (165 mph) and at Ship Mountain, CA (152 mph). Bridges were closed in California to prevent large semi-tractors from blowing over and waves of 30 feet were expected to impact the coast (Headline News).
The NWS in Tallahassee, Florida set a record high barometric reading on Tuesday of 30.77 "Hg (1041.87 mb) at 11:00, breaking the old record of 30.74 "Hg in 1979 and 1996.That high pressure produced freezing temperatures across the entire Southeast since January 1st. Mike Wilhelm in Vinemont, AL had 17.4 degrees on the 2nd and 11.1 degrees on the 3rd. More about this at his Alabama Weather Blog.
Temperatures across central Florida dipped below freezing too. The map (to the left), from the NWS Office in Tampa Bay, shows their morning low temperatures. Of their 46 reports, only 5 were records... so cold air of this magnitude has happened before.
Snow flurries were reported at Palm Coast in Flagler County at 12:30 on January 3rd, with reports also from Volusia, Brevard, and Indian River Counties. Unseasonably warm air arriving.
Already at 9:30 this morning I have 27.6 degrees. The average high temperature for today's date is 21.632 for my location. With a high temperature forecasted in the upper 30s today, we'll be much above normal. The map (to the right) is the NWS Graphical Forecast showing high temperatures on Sunday (the 6th). Temperatures will also be in the upper 30s on Saturday and maybe even hit 40 in several spots by Sunday. All this warm air will melt snowpack, creating foggy skies at night and low stratus clouds in the day. With some luck, we'll get some sun to break through, we'll have to see how high the temperatures will go. Derek (NW Wisconsin Weather blog) will also be keeping an eye on area high temperatures.
In the blue screenshot (below) you can see that the highest temperature reached in Ashland, WI (10 miles distant) since 1906 was 42 degrees in both 1930 and 1980. I just wanted to show that this warmth is not unusual, and has happened before -- many times. This screenshot is from ClimProb v.3.1.
Near-term outlook.
A small system will move through the area tonight and tomorrow, bringing a chance of freezing drizzle across the entire region before a Pacific cold front moves through Sunday afternoon; it will bring a drier air mass to the area. Another storm for Tuesday? Another low pressure will organize on Sunday as it comes out of the Rocky Mountains near the Oklahoma Panhandle. Computer models have not yet locked onto a good track of this next storm system. It remains something we need to watch.
Current weather on my Vantage Pro weather station.
And lastly, something I don't think I've posted before... a screenshot of my weather station's software.
Temp: 28.2 Dp: 28.2 RH: 88% Baro: 29.70 "Hg Wind: light from the ENE Gust: 4 mph Sky:stratus overcast 100%
A cold snap in Florida early Tuesday. 
Near-term outlook.
Current weather on my Vantage Pro weather station.