John Horel, Jonathan Slemmer*, Mike Splitt NOAA Cooperative Institute for Regional Prediction,* CWSU...
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Transcript of John Horel, Jonathan Slemmer*, Mike Splitt NOAA Cooperative Institute for Regional Prediction,* CWSU...
John Horel, Jonathan Slemmer*, Mike Splitt
NOAA Cooperative Institute for Regional Prediction,* CWSU ZLC
Local Microclimates of the Wasatch Local Microclimates of the Wasatch Front and Olympic VenuesFront and Olympic Venues
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
OverviewOverview
What is the “normal” weather for February/March?– Interplay of synoptic/mesoscale weather
systems and local terrain Preparing for media and public interest in
the weather during the Olympics Monitoring weather during the Olympics:
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Is it very
common to have so many hours in
a row of …?
Has “this” ever happened before?
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Olympic Climate InformationOlympic Climate Information
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
February/March 500 mb HeightFebruary/March 500 mb Height
Zonal Average Removed
February
SLC
SLC
March
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Local Weather Local Weather HazardsHazards
• Orographic snow• Lake effect snowbands• Dense fog• Downslope winds
• Gap flows
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
What’s the difference in precipitation between What’s the difference in precipitation between the valleys and mountains?the valleys and mountains?
Annual Annual Precipitation: Precipitation:
NRCS (in)NRCS (in)
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr
SLCAlta
S no w
fall
(In
c he s
)
How does snowfall vary during the How does snowfall vary during the winter ?winter ?
Monthly Snowfall: Monthly Snowfall: 1948-20001948-2000
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
How often do strong fronts move How often do strong fronts move through the Wasatch Front?through the Wasatch Front?
February- 1+ strong front per yearMarch- 2+ strong fronts per year
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
How often is there heavy snowfall?How often is there heavy snowfall?
During the Olympic period, 2 periods of 7 consecutive hours of moderate/heavy snowfall
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
How often is there strong wind?How often is there strong wind?
During the Olympic period, 2 years with more than 24 consecutive hours of winds > 20 mph
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
How often is there dense How often is there dense fog/stable conditions?fog/stable conditions?
1 Occurrence of 13 consecutive hours of dense fog
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
What’s the chance for fog during What’s the chance for fog during Opening/Closing Ceremonies?Opening/Closing Ceremonies?
Higher chance of stable period for Opening Ceremonies than Closing Ceremonies
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Was the fog last winter unusual?Was the fog last winter unusual?
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Is this year unusually cold?Is this year unusually cold?
For the Olympic period, 18 of 24 h were below freezing during 1989; 3 of 24 h during 1992
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
The Olympic regionThe Olympic region
Snowbasin Downhill, Combined, Super-G
Utah Olympic ParkBobsled, Luge, Skeleton,
Ski Jumping, Nordic Combined
Park CityAlpine GS, Snowboard GS
Snowboard Half Pipe
Deer ValleyAlpine Slalom, Aerials, Moguls
Soldier Hollow: Cross Country, Biathlon, Nordic Combined
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Snowbasin- Downhill VenueSnowbasin- Downhill Venue
• Mt. Allen- SBB
• John Paul- SBW
• Shooting Star- SSS
• Base- SBE
SBE
SBB
SBB
SBB
SBW
SSS
SBE
• Ogden Peak- OGP
• Strawberry Top- SB2
OGP
SB2
• Wildcat-SWI
•MidBowl- SNI
• Strawberry Base- SB2
SB1
SNI
SWI
SBE
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Park City- Snowboard/Grand SlalomPark City- Snowboard/Grand Slalom
•Base- PCB
•Eagle- PCS
•Summit- PCT
•Jupiter- PKC
•Golf Course- SNC
SNCPCBPCSPCTPKC
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Deer Valley: Aerial/Slalom/MogulsDeer Valley: Aerial/Slalom/Moguls
•Burns- DVE
•Bald Eagle- DVB
•Bald Mtn- MBY
•Empire Peak- EMP
•Daly West- SNV
DVE
MBYDVB
EMP
SNV
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Venue Stations
• Bear Upper- WBU
• Bob Lower- WBE
• Bob Upper- WBS
CLK
C99
Utah Olympic ParkUtah Olympic Park
WBSWBU WBE
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Wind Variations on the Ski Jump SlopeWind Variations on the Ski Jump Slope
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Wind Variations on the Ski Jump SlopeWind Variations on the Ski Jump Slope
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Wind Variations on the Ski Jump SlopeWind Variations on the Ski Jump SlopeSeptember 28-29 2001
Top-bottom- Black; Blue; Green; Red
Dow
nslo
pe
Up
slop
e
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Soldier Hollow- Cross Country/Biathlon VenueSoldier Hollow- Cross Country/Biathlon Venue
•Venue Stations
•Stadium- WMP
•Whale’s Tail- WM2
•West Slope- WMH
•Valley- WMG
WM2 WMP WMG
WMH
Stadium
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Snow TemperatureSnow Temperature
Photo: Al Bello/ALLSPORT)
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
How cold will it feel at the venues?How cold will it feel at the venues?
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Monitoring Weather Conditions during the OlympicsMonitoring Weather Conditions during the Olympics
www.met.utah.edu/olympics
Monitoring the Weather During Monitoring the Weather During the Olympicsthe Olympics 24/7 Monitoring of weather observations Special weather summaries– 12-h snowfall/precipitation totals from venues– Daily summary of weather at venues and
Olympic region
Weather history of the Olympics– Evaluation/validation of model guidance– Impact of weather upon the Games