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News / Clark County News

Weather Eye: Chances for snow in lowlands melt away for now

By Patrick Timm for The Columbian
Published: December 16, 2021, 6:03am

Our flirtation with snow here in the lowlands is over for now so everyone can rest easy for the next several days. The thoughts are nice for a white Christmas this year, but that is all there are. Thoughts. Some extended forecast models insist on colder weather Christmas weekend and that is half of the two key ingredients we need for snow. Next would be the precipitation.

Wednesday’s affair with winter didn’t materialize for several reasons. One, the precipitation wasn’t all that heavy, only light rain. Even though easterly winds picked up, there wasn’t any cold air to speak of in the Gorge. Drier air yes, but not enough. Then a southerly wind flow aloft kept those snowflakes from staying frozen all the way to sea level.

Yes, there were some wet snow showers here and there in the higher locations but nothing to write home about. With the overcast Wednesday, temperatures hovered between 36 and 40 degrees here in Vancouver. Cold enough for me and a good warm jacket. Expect some scattered showers around today.

Friday, we have a break in the weather action before a couple of weather systems arrive for the weekend. These will bring warmer air aloft with snow levels jumping for a short time to 6,000 feet or so before dropping back down to pass levels or lower late Sunday.

Next week looks cool and unsettled. What happens later in the week is still “wrapped” under the Christmas tree. You might consider this December for the first half to be running exactly “normal.” That is, the average mean temperature is right at statistical averages and rainfall is what is expected for the first 15 days of the month. How often does that occur? Not often, it seems we are either above or below average in one category or another.

In not too many days our sunsets will cease to be so early and slowly we head the other way. Oliver Herford wrote this merry note, “I heard a bird sing in the dark of December. A magical thing. And sweet to remember. We are nearer to spring than we were in September. I heard a bird sing in the dark of December.”

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