Rare August Snow For The Sierra Nevada; The Atlantic's Rapid Cooling; + Failed Climate Testimony
The COLD TIMES are returning...
Rare August Snow For The Sierra Nevada
Swaths of the Eastern U.S. continue to endure August lows not seen in decades. Now the West is joining in and all. The 2023-24 Tahoe ski season ended barely three months ago, but winter-like conditions are already making a return this week.
A rare August storm is forecast to deliver the Sierra Nevada its first snowfall of the 2024-25 season, as a cold front, plunging down from Canada, threatens to hit Northern California in the coming days, bringing with it a high possibility of the white stuff.
Models foresee an unusually strong low-pressure system dropping from Canada toward the Oregon-California border by Friday. While such a system is common in the winter months, it is very rare in August — its strength could actually be record-breaking, and any snow would be the first in August for at least 20 years, according to the NWS Hanford office.
The European weather model forecasts near-record to record cold air over Northern California this week, with temperatures at 5,000 feet expected crash below 40F—some 20F below normal.
The National Weather Service anticipates freezing temperatures at higher elevations in the Sierra Nevada come Friday night.
As moisture-rich winds collide with the mountains, precipitation is expected. If these freezing temperatures align with showers, as expected, then snowflakes accumulate across the Sierra.
“I was going to go camping, but now I’m not,” said Chris Johnston, a meteorologist with the NWS in Reno on seeing the forecast. Johnston goes on to urge campers and hikers to prepare for cold weather and the possibility of summer snow this weekend.
The snow line could drop as low as 7,000 feet at Tahoe resorts like Palisades Tahoe, Heavenly, and Kirkwood. The highest elevations could receive snow in the multiple inches.
"It’s exceptionally rare for our area to experience new snowfall in August, as it’s typically one of the warmest months here in Tahoe," said Patrick Lacey, spokesperson for Palisades Tahoe.
Further south, even Mammoth Mountain could see a dusting of snow. The resort hasn’t seen pre-October snowfall, let alone August snows, since 2017, as per its website.
After what has been a lackluster summer for many, the U.S. continues its 'cool-blue' theme into late-August:
Biting cold is on the way for the West come Saturday, August 24:
The Atlantic's Rapid Cooling
After a year of anomalous warmth, the Atlantic Ocean is now undergoing swift and unprecedented cooling.
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