Chilly Weekend In Store

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Satellite imagery as of 5 PM. The storm currently located over Northern Maine is intensifying as it moves away. In its wake, we have had gusty WNW winds all day. Click to enlarge.

Water Vapor Image showing the amount of moisture in the middle section of the atmosphere. The orange area circled above shows very dry air behind the cold front, which extends all the way from Canada to the Carribbean! Click to enlarge.

While we have been dealing with cold and wind, Bangladesh and India were hit by strong category 4 hurricane Sidr late Thursday, packing winds of 150 mph with gusts up to 184! That's stronger than hurricane Katrina was at landfall. Thousands are homeless after the storm, and the death toll could be high. Read more about it here: http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/11/15/bangladesh.cyclone/index.html



Trivia:



What do they call a hurricane in Bangladesh? Read on for the answer.....

If you weren't happy walking around today with the cold temperatures and windy conditions, and you weren't too thrilled with yesterday's rain, don't blame me. Scroll back up top, find the big "L" on the maps, and start shaking your finger at it. There's your culprit.



A storm which developed along the cold front which passed through yesterday is responsible for the large temperature swing from the lower 60s to the lower 40s. It could be worse though - parts of Maine have been seeing.... yup, the white stuff! Heavy snow/winter storm warnings have been issued for NW Maine, northern New Hampshire, and parts of Vermont.



So with that in mind, we lucked out with this one. Behind the storm, temperatures will remain below normal through the weekend. A small disturbance will slide south of the area Saturday Night, and could bring with it a scattered flurry at most. However, parts of the Cape could see more in the way of snow as the Ocean Effect will be kicking in. What the heck is the Ocean Effect you say? When cold air passes over the warmer waters of the Atlantic, it picks up moisture and spits it out as snow. NE winds Saturday night and early Sunday could do just that over the Cape.



But for us, it looks relatively quiet. Weekend temperatures will stay cool, and by Monday we could be looking at upper 30s/low 40s for a high! however, we could start to see a warm-up around these parts by Wednesday. What about Turkey Day? It's pretty far out, but right now Thanksgiving Day looks to be warmer with showers possible as a cold front approaches from the west. We'll have updates as the big day gets closer.



Trivia Answer:


Hurricanes are called "Cyclones" in the Indian Ocean. While we call any general storm system a cyclone in the United States, in that part of the world the term Cyclone is reserved for the hefty tropical ones. If you were to jet over to the Pacific, a hurricane would be called a "Typhoon!"



And now for the forecast.......




Lowell Regional Forecast

Tonight: Clearing and cool. West winds at 20 mph gusting to 30 mph, diminsishing to 10 mph late. Low 27.

Saturday: Clear to start, becoming partly cloudy during the afternoon. High 44. West winds 10-15 mph.

Saturday Night: Cloudy with a flurry possible. Low 26.

Sunday: Becoming partly sunny. High 43.

Sunday Night: Mostly clear and cold. Low 19.

Monday: Mostly sunny. High 40.

Extended Outlook

Tuesday: Continued mostly sunny. High near 44.

Wednesday: Becoming mostly cloudy. Warmer, with highs in the lower 50s.

Thanksgiving Day: Cloudy with a shower possible. High in the upper 40s to near 50.

For WUML Lowell 91.5 FM, this is WUML weather director and UMass Lowell student meteorologist John Webster. Have a great weekend!