Yesterday was cold and snowed off and on all day. It warmed up slightly and melted the snow in the afternoon. Even so, we had maybe 2″ at its peak.
This morning in Rio Rancho, the weather is mostly sunny and cold. My weather station in Rio Rancho says:
The NWS in Albuquerque, NM, forecaster’s discussion says that there will be a warming and drying trend over the next day or so before the next winter storm strikes. Some lingering showers and snow showers (at high elevations) may continue in the central part of the state today as a small disturbance passes through.
The NWS in Albuquerque, NM, forecasts (for Rio Rancho, NM) a partly sunny day, with a high temperature of 42 F. The winds will be from the northeast at 10 mph, becoming southeasterly in the afternoon. This evening will be partly cloudy, with a low temperature of 27 F. The winds will be from the southeast at 5-10 mph, becoming northerly after midnight.
The NWS in Albuquerque, NM, forecasts (for Socorro, NM) a mostly cloudy day, with a 30% chance of showers and a high temperature of 49 F. The winds will be from the north at 10 mph, becoming southeasterly in the afternoon. This evening will be mostly cloudy, with a 20% chance of showers and a low temperature of 30 F. The winds will be from the south at 5-10 mph.
The NWS in Albuquerque, NM, forecasts (for Magdalena, NM) a mostly cloudy day, with a 30% chance of snow showers (< 0.5″) and a high temperature of 36 F. The winds will be from the northeast at 10 mph. This evening will be mostly cloudy, with a 20% chance of snow showers (no accumulation) and a low temperature of 24 F. The winds will be from the east at 10 mph, becoming southerly after midnight.
The NWS in Albuquerque, NM, forecasts (for Mountainair, NM) a mostly cloudy day, with a 20% chance of snow showers (< 0.5″) and a high temperature of 35 F. The winds will be from the east at 10-15 mph. This evening will be mostly cloudy, with a low temperature of 21 F. The winds will be from the southeast at 5-10 mph, becoming northwest after midnight.
The visible satellite imagery shows cloudy weather, with some clearing in the west.
The upper-level water vapor imagery shows the dip of the passing shortwave trough.
The 12Z upper air sounding from Albuquerque, NM, shows a cold, nearly-saturated boundary layer. There was 0.19 inches of precipitable water present in the column this morning. There was no Convective Available Potential Energy (CAPE), and no Convective Inhibition (CINH). The Lifted Condensation Level (LCL) was 868 m. There was no thermal inversion and the 0-3 km lapse rate was 6.2 C/km. The hodograph shows that the low-level shear was 7 kts (due mostly to directional changes) and the deep-layer shear was 47 kts (due mostly to speed changes).
The SPC Mesoscale Analysis Surface Map shows cold, humid weather. The skies are sunny in the west and cloudy elsewhere (according to the sensors). The winds are light and variable.
The SPC Mesoscale Analysis Pressure Map shows we are under high pressure with a slight northeasterly to southwesterly. The RAP shows this trend is expected to continue for at least the next six hours.
The NAM 250 mb chart shows moderate zonal flow over the state today.
The NAM 700 mb and 850 mb charts show no strong thermal advection over the state today. These charts have been excluded from today’s post.
The Nested NAM simulated reflectivity chart shows a few lingering, scattered echoes, particularly over the south and central parts of the state.
The Nested NAM precipitation chart shows that light rain is possible, but rainfall will stop this evening virtually everywhere in the state. The snow charts are in agreement, but snow is light, so they have been excluded from today’s post.
The Nested NAM temperature chart shows the high temperatures are expected to reach into the mid 60s F.
The Nested NAM temperature chart also shows the low temperatures are expected to drop into the mid 20s F.
The Nested NAM dewpoint chart shows that the dewpoints will remain in the 20s F.
The Nested NAM wind prediction chart shows strong winds are unlikely today. This chart has been excluded from today’s post.
The Nested NAM simulated infrared chart shows partly to mostly cloudy skies, statewide.
Temperature-wise, today will be similar to yesterday, maybe a few degrees warmer. However, precipitation will taper off this morning and the skies begin to clear slightly. It will still be cold, and the ground will still be wet, but maybe things will have dried out a bit by tomorrow.
I will drive down to church this morning, and then we may go to a rock and gem show later this afternoon, and do some grocery shopping in the evening. It is still wet and gross out, and we will probably stay indoors for the most part today.
The forecasts from the National Weather Service are from The NWS Homepage. The upper air soundings and mesoscale analysis plots are from the Storm Prediction Center website. The satellite data, model data, and forecasted soundings are from College of DuPage – SATRAD.
High Plains Chasing 