First winter storm warning of Fall 2022 issued by Alaska meteorologists

Fall is my favorite season, and one of the signs of the season’s approach is the first winter storm warning of the year in the country. Not shockingly, this almost always occurs in Alaska and 2022 is no different. An upper level low pressure system is moving from the Russian Far East into Alaska, bringing […]

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Smoke from California wildfires headed for the Pacific Northwest; fire danger east of the Cascades starting Wednesday

The weather pattern that is forecast to bring excessive heat to the Pacific Northwest for much of this week may also bring wildfire smoke into the region from fires burning in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains. As of Monday morning, the largest smoke maker out of these is the Oak Fire burning near Yosemite National Park. […]

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We need to close the Pacific Northwest Radar Gaps

Doppler radar is one of my favorite tools for viewing weather data. Its amazing to me that using radio waves, we can see light rain and snow, tornadoes, and fine details in hurricanes. Not only can we see where these are, but we can also estimate wind speeds, freezing levels, and hail sizes – all […]

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Earthquakes in the Cascadia Subduction Zone

Author’s Note: This part of a weekly series on geology for a class I am taking this semester at BYU-Idaho. This week’s prompt required students to find a news article, post it on our blogs and explain how plate tectonics played a role in the situation. Other posts from this assignment can be found under […]

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Warm system for Thanksgiving week

An atmospheric river is set up to douse almost the entire West Coast. Raising freezing levels today and tomorrow will aid Thanksgiving travelers the next couple of days, keeping snow off of the major passes. By midnight Monday night, the freezing level in much of Oregon will be above 9,000 feet with freezing levels remaining near […]

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The Pacific Northwest heatwave… won’t be that bad in East Idaho

It’s no secret that I talk to a lot of weather folks in the Portland and Seattle areas, despite living in East Idaho. The “hot topic” (pun intended) of conversation in these circles is the impending heat wave, which spells imminent doom for everyone west of the Cascades who doesn’t have air conditioning. Our good […]

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Pacific Northwest Snowpack Report – December 2016

If it seems like you’ve gotten a lot of snow so far this season, you’re not wrong. All of Oregon is above average for snowfall thus far, as well as most of Washington and southern Idaho. This is good for improving our ongoing drought situation, especially in eastern Oregon where the drought is still keeping […]

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Your way too early Christmas Forecast

I shamelessly admit that making a Christmas forecast right now is more of a crap shoot than anything, but I thought I might shed some light of the general idea that the Pacific Northwest is looking at here in two weeks. Before I start, though, take everything I say here with a grain of salt. Long-range Forecast […]

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