Despite the beautiful weather we experienced Wednesday, the Accumulated Winter Storm Severity Index (AWSSI) remains in the extreme category from Iowa and Illinois through the Great Lakes, Ohio Valley, and Northeast. Extreme, indicating the persistence of cold and snow in the pattern so far this winter. The (AWSSI) was developed to objectively quantify and describe the relative severity of the winter season on a running basis. Goals of the AWSSI Use max/min temperature, snowfa

The winds at the jet stream level are setting up in a favorable pattern to drive mild Pacific air across the Midwest for much of the next two weeks. In doing so, it enables the development of Chinook winds, named after the Chinook Tribe who first noticed them and the significant impacts they had on temperatures. WHAT IS A CHINOOK WIND? As warm, moist air moves inland along the west coast, it encounters a 10,000 foot wall, known as the Rocky Mountains. Forced to ascend over th

After one of the coldest, snowiest first two weeks of December, the worst is behind us. We've been telling you there was light at the end of the tunnel and for those who believed, your faith is soon to be rewarded. Before I expound on the great flip of December 2025, here's what the average temperature departures look like around Iowa for the first 15 days of the month. Many places in the eastern half of the state are running 12–14 degrees below normal per day! Snowfall has b

Another brutally cold morning is in place across the region with sub-zero temperatures taking over Monday, but in the coming days temperatures will be gradually moderating and a storm system in the short term will bring rain, not snow. A look above shows the long-range high-resolution modeling early Thursday with light rain showers sweeping through around sunrise. This system is rather moisture starved so heavy rain is not a concern, but we might at least get some rain accumu

If you are sick and tired of the cold and snow in the Midwest on this brutally cold Sunday, you just need to wait a bit longer for changes as the pattern is continuing to show major signals for a big pattern flip towards the end of the month. Above you can see the European Ensemble has a rather strong ridge taking over by Christmas week which would shut off the active storm track and favor a generally warming pattern. Starting Sunday morning most of the area will be below zer