strange weather...i thought it was the end of times last week

i live in ohio and we are in the middle of winter. it's very cold and a few days ago it was snowing pretty bad. my wife and i were watching tv at night, it was snowing and then the worst thunder and lightning storm i have ever seen started. i didn't even notice it at first but my wife said something about the skys are getting ready to part and then i noticed it. in all my years of living in the north i don't remember any serious storms like that happening in the winter.
i looked it up on the net and it's a rare occurance called thundersnow.

it freaked me out. i honestly thought "it" was about to happen

I know the recent weather the world is experiencing is strange, and I'll admit I'm worried too, but I don't know if the end of the world, whatever that may be, is right around the corner.

A lot of the recent wacky weather can be explained (at least partially) by global warming, fluctuations in the Gulf Stream, volcanic activity, and a host of other items that fluctuate from time to time. I'm not saying that these events are happening now, but any small change in any of these can definitely produce some big changes.

You know though, despite all the arguments as to how much of the recent climate change is our fault, one thing remains - we got very complacent with our dependency on certain weather cycles that just can't persist forever. Most of dealing with the climate in the 21st century seems to be focused around being able to deal with change.

I have noticed drastic temp changes this year in my valley in southern California.

Temperature have been much much warmer than normal. We have not had a winter this year yet. Today even I was outside tanning in shorts and a t-shirt - non the norm at all.

The ski\ snowboard resort is has only had like 7inches this year, the worst season I have ever seen. Last year I was on the slopes nov 5th, Iv haven't gone yet this year, cause of the lack of snow!

I once lived in North Carolina and thundersnow was fairly common when it did snow. (at least where I lived) It can be quite shocking (no pun intended) if you are outside playing in the snow and you see a flash of lightning and hear the loud rumble of thunder nearby. I believe it's due to a lot of uplift within the storm clouds similiar to the effect you may have in the summertime with rapid uplift.

It's been in the upper 60's here in the Carolinas in the middle of what is supposedly the coldest month of the year at least on average. I believe the northern states are experiencing increased turbulence from all of the extra warmth down south.

I told my mother the other day that if we're going to have record heat, I like having it in January.

Hey guys, the weather here in NC is crazy these last few weeks. Last week we had snow in some cities near me. Today we have severe thunderstorms, and next week we are forecast for 70 degree weather. I don't know what's going on but it is definately strange. I can't remember a time when we had 70 degree weather in Central NC in the middle of January. Something is definately up.

And yes, thundersnow is very common in NC

[edit on 11-1-2006 by deeprivergal]

I also live in the midwest.I've noticed alot of weird things about the weather as well.I always assumed January meant cold and snow.But lately its been temps in the 30s and 40s with rain.I cant remember a january like this ever in my lifetime.Its unseasonably warm for this area this time of the year.I wouldnt say I thought the world is going to end,but i would say everything has a beginning.And this could very well be a beginning,to what,who knows such things?

[edit on 11-1-2006 by Black_Fox]

Here is a good article on MSNBC detailing many strange winter weather events across North America - www.msnbc.msn.com...

the rain is here in ohio now too. it has been pretty warm here and raining lie crazy in what should be the coldest time in ohio.

things are different

We've had some mild thunder and lightening with snow storms here in Virginia, but not that frequently.

The weather is just frustrating. Honestly, it's comfortable, but not really what you should see see for this time of year. We've had a lot of nights recently above freezing, like one night we noted temperatures around the 50s.

People can rejoice all they want about "beautiful warm" weather, but it's just not right, and it really could do us harm. But not that long ago we had a fairly normal Winter weather pattern going. A lot of the precipitation was in the form of ice though.

What is going on? Is this weather control? Is it brought about by our own irresponsible hands? Is it a cycle? Or is it a combination of all or some of these things?

Troy

I was so afraid last week when we had 5 tornaodes touch down and 15 reported..I live in Georgia and tornadoes do NOT come in January as a rule, unprecedented..this weather is bad for my heart..
Sumpin is not right here...These that came down were from 1 through 3 on the scale.

I have always lived in the midwest. (Hoosier)

And it surprises me, How little people Know about thier History.

The Great lakes Taken Together result in a Weather Vortex. (much like the Sargasso sea In the Atlantic ocean and The one by Japan.) (The "Great lakes Triangle")

In 1816, A Canadian Weather Front Settled into Indiana and there was No weather. Snow covered The Ground Through June to July. And August hit a Balmy 40 Degree's Below zero For one "day".

Recently, In 1994 The Temp Dropped From 76 F* To -36 F*. (In one Hour.) All due to a Rapid cold front pushing the Gulf Stream Down south to Kentucky at 60 Mph. During That time We Had a Tornado, Followed By Freezing Golf Sized "hail, Then Snow during a Thunderstorm. And Then It got to Cold To snow. And everything Froze solid under two inches of Ice. (And House's splintered And cracked from the Stress of the Elements. Hot To Cold to Ice.)

Anyway, When Two Fronts hit each Other the Warm air Rises, and the Cold air sinks. The thunderstorm is High in the Air, But by the time the Rain hits the Ground. It becomes Snow. (From what i have been told.)

As a Kid, it always scared me. To hear "storms" during a Blizzard. Seeing the mini tornadoes we Have during the Fall. The One Storm cloud in the Sky with a Vortex Passing over Head. The Rain of Tadpoe's, The Rain of Green Stuff, (Algae From the local "lakes".) The Rain without the Clouds, Or Snow Without the Clouds, The Heat lightning without the Clouds, etc.

My Father and Grand Father told me such weather is common around here.

And I will give you a little secret, Ignore The weatherman. Instead Watch the animals. If they act Crazy, Running in Circles, Hiding and whimpering without a Cause, Running from nothing, Making strange Noises, Fainting (Dumb Goats.), etc. Then Watch out.

I haven't had any precipitation at all so far this winter, nothing. This was the first christmas in a long time without mountain snow. Last year we had precip but no real snow. This year it's been warm and sunny and very springlike aside from about 2 weeks of cool weather and not a cloud in the sky. It's been in the 70's and I'm over 1 mile elevation. The first year i lived here it snowed up until may, and monsoon season actually happened.

I went on a trip last week to Taos (Angelfire) to do some snowboarding and all the way up there was no precip, and very little snow even north of santa fe. There's no snow anywhere in Arizona and it doen't look like there'll be any this year. Every year season has been getting shorter, drier, and warmer, and last summer was ridiculous. I'm thinking about moving north if this trend continues because i moved here to get away from heat and have seasons, and that's just not happening anymore. Everyone i talked to in New Mexico ski shops said the same thing, that every year it gets drier and hotter.

I think Antarctica is going to be the place to be in 20 more years,,,