It’s time to brush up on our winter weather definitions! Here are some of the key words you need to know:
- Freeze Warning: Issued when widespread freezing temperatures are expected, typically issued from autumn to the end of the growing season.
- Wind Chill: The measure of how cold people feel due to the combined effect of wind and cold temperatures. This is based on the rate of heat loss from exposed skin.
- Graupel: Precipitation that forms when supercooled droplets of water collect and freeze on falling snowflakes, often called snow pellets or soft hail.
- Ice Storm Warning: Issued when ice accumulation of a quarter of an inch or more is possible. This amount of ice accumulation will make travel dangerous or impossible and will likely lead to snapped power lines and down tree branches.
-Blizzard Warning: Issued when heavy or blowing snow is accompanied by wind gusts greater than 35 miles per hour, reducing visibilities to less than a quarter of a mile for 3 hours or more.
**As we begin to see a threat from any type of winter precipitation, winter weather watches and warnings will be issued for the area**