Very Early 2/21 Weather Thread

[ISUCubswin]

I think the meteorologists did a good job with snowfall amount, but it sure wasn't a snowstorm. All the wind in Ames happened Thursday morning.

It's like calling a strong thunderstorm a hurricane.

 

[FDWxMan]

I do... if middle schoolers can predict the future of how far a baseball will travel based on it's initial speed and angle, i don't see why meteorologists can't tell me how much it's going to snow today.

extrapolating the age of ed wilson vs the age of middle schoolers against the complexity of the two scenarios, it should obviously even out

You don't see why because you don't have any idea what you're talking about. It's basically a non-starter for any sort of discussion.

How many unknowns are in that middle school problem?

Spoiler

Zero. There are zero unknowns in the middle school problem.

 

[FDWxMan]

I think the meteorologists did a good job with snowfall amount, but it sure wasn't a snowstorm. All the wind in Ames happened Thursday morning.

It's like calling a strong thunderstorm a hurricane.

The wind happened as forecast. We said the wind would be on the front end of the storm.

The heavy snowfall rates we forecasted did not materialize though, so that kept it from looking more like a big storm.

 

[Al_4_State]

I assume places typically cancel based on forecasts and not hype.

Maybe the pussification of America is real then. If the forecasts were for 6 inches of snow, and that's what happened, then there was no need to cancel stuff yesterday afternoon.

 

[chuckd4735]

Maybe the pussification of America is real then. If the forecasts were for 6 inches of snow, and that's what happened, then there was no need to cancel stuff yesterday afternoon.

Maybe its the fact that america has become so sue happy that everyone is afraid of getting sued for not making the right decision in the chance that something bad could happen?

 

[3TrueFans]

Maybe the pussification of America is real then. If the forecasts were for 6 inches of snow, and that's what happened, then there was no need to cancel stuff yesterday afternoon.

I saw forecasts saying up to 8 inches coming on hard and fast starting in the afternoon, reality was less snow starting later, but you can only work with the information you have. Hindsight being 20/20 they shouldn't have cancelled school in central Iowa, but did they know that at 9am yesterday? Do they err on the side of caution or do they risk it, going to be people on both sides of the fence.

 

[CycloneGB]

I assume places typically cancel based on forecasts and not hype.

But I thought the meteorologists were the ones trying to calm everybody down and say we aren't going to get what the models and other people were going crazy over?

Can't have it both ways..

I don't have a dog in this fight, I know meteorologists have a tough job basically trying to predict the future. But as Al said, there was hype coming from somewhere.. (Weather Channel, people on here slinging model maps, etc.) Lots of people bought into it, and it flopped for them.

Everybody always wants to be the first one breaking news anymore. It's getting ridiculous. PRetty soon, I half expect to see that some kid flushed a turd in Australia and when that disturbance finishes it's 2nd trip around the world, we are gonna have the storm of the century March 15th

 

[wxman1]

About to hit the road for Ames from Wichita. Any reports of I-35 from the KC area north?

 

[CycloneGB]

Or maybe it's just the fact that any dim wit that knows how to run a mouse can now access all these models on the internet that only meteorologists found before.. and regurgitates them as exactly what is going to happen. I don't know what it is, but it's comical.

 

[3TrueFans]

But I thought the meteorologists were the ones trying to calm everybody down and say we aren't going to get what the models and other people were going crazy over?

Can't have it both ways..

I don't have a dog in this fight, I know meteorologists have a tough job basically trying to predict the future. But as Al said, there was hype coming from somewhere.. (Weather Channel, people on here slinging model maps, etc.) Lots of people bought into it, and it flopped for them.

Everybody always wants to be the first one breaking news anymore. It's getting ridiculous. PRetty soon, I half expect to see that some kid flushed a turd in Australia and when that disturbance finishes it's 2nd trip around the world, we are gonna have the storm of the century March 15th

On the flip side everyone could report the lowest likely numbers and everyone will be unprepared for when a storm changes and drops more snow than expected, then everyone can complain because they didn't tell them we'd get so much snow.

The totals came in on the low side of most estimates, if things would have gone different and totals were on the high side things would be a bit different I think.

 

[Wesley]

The wind happened as forecast. We said the wind would be on the front end of the storm.

The heavy snowfall rates we forecasted did not materialize though, so that kept it from looking more like a big storm.

Did the thundersnow over KC take the moisture content out from the storm?

 

[MartyMcCy]

Snowfall amounts.

Click here for the Latest Snowfall Reports

View attachment 18527

 

[bawbie]

Here in CR they predicted 5-7 and we got 5 or 6.

 

[bawbie]

Snowfall amounts.

Click here for the Latest Snowfall Reports

So basically, everyone got exactly what was forecasted, except for the city of Des Moines.

fire all the damn meteorologists!!!! How could they not have predicted that!

 

[CykoAGR]

Or maybe it's just the fact that any dim wit that knows how to run a mouse can now access all these models on the internet that only meteorologists found before.. and regurgitates them as exactly what is going to happen. I don't know what it is, but it's comical.

I think that this is what really happens. Im not a weather expert and there only are a few on here (if they havent left from all of the idiots bashing them.) but when I see a model I think this model is a forecast which I learned this week that this is false. A model is a tool that meteorologists use to help them predict the weather along with various other tools and calculations.

Models continue to change and the forecast continued to change along with it so I dont understand the butt hurt from everyone expecting them to be right all of the time.

 

[CykoAGR]

I do... if middle schoolers can predict the future of how far a baseball will travel based on it's initial speed and angle, i don't see why meteorologists can't tell me how much it's going to snow today.

extrapolating the age of ed wilson vs the age of middle schoolers against the complexity of the two scenarios, it should obviously even out

I dont see a jimlad so I assume you are serious. Next time ask a middle schooler to predict how far a baseball will travel in a game that will be played 4 days from now when a "dry slot" shows up in the middle of the outfield which carries a bird which the baseball hits and then falls to the ground. How far is that gonna go?

 

[bosco]

I think that this is what really happens. Im not a weather expert and there only are a few on here (if they havent left from all of the idiots bashing them.) but when I see a model I think this model is a forecast which I learned this week that this is false. A model is a tool that meteorologists use to help them predict the weather along with various other tools and calculations.

Models continue to change and the forecast continued to change along with it so I dont understand the butt hurt from everyone expecting them to be right all of the time.

You know rational thought is not well received here don't you? It's obvious the meteorologists have it in for Cyclone fans they are in cahoots with Ubben.

 

[Al_4_State]

Something that has been overlooked in this thread:

I'm not saying meteorologists are bad at their job.

I'm saying that storms get overblown by someone (the media) on an extremely consistent basis, but due to all the meteorologists and amateur weathermen on this site, everyone got butt hurt about it. All you have to do is look around the internet and you will see that the somehow, starting somewhere, this storm was built up to epic proportions. It wasn't what the meteorologists predicted, it was how those predictions were communicated. Its like when the news anchor says "there's rain in tomorrow's forecast" when there's a 20% chance.

 

[alarson]

The thing with this storm is, it might have deserved a little hype. Things didnt blow up here, but the snowfall was still a decent size (6") and as we saw elsewhere, had plenty of potential for more. Had things shifted northeast (or we not had that dry slot), we couldve had quite the storm on our hands, like other areas did.

I think that might be the difference. Most meteorologists were right in calling the 5-8" range, and also right in saying there was the potential for even larger amounts. And there's nothing wrong with being prepared for that.

I was glad for the advanced notice... it meant i went and got groceries early in the week before i would have otherwise, which would have left me getting groceries with the snowstorm panickers

 

[alarson]

Something that has been overlooked in this thread:

I'm not saying meteorologists are bad at their job.

I'm saying that storms get overblown by someone (the media) on an extremely consistent basis, but due to all the meteorologists and amateur weathermen on this site, everyone got butt hurt about it. All you have to do is look around the internet and you will see that the somehow, starting somewhere, this storm was built up to epic proportions. It wasn't what the meteorologists predicted, it was how those predictions were communicated. Its like when the news anchor says "there's rain in tomorrow's forecast" when there's a 20% chance.

There may be an element of this as well, the meteorologists get the job done, but then the 'normal' media, when they have to report on a weather story, blow it up like they do every other story they report on.