NASA sees gulf coast severe weather from developing winter storm

Weather satellites jointly managed by NOAA and NASA have been watching the development of winter storm Jonas as it gains steam over the middle of the country.

It will be a bummer of a weekend for travelers in the storm’s path. Many states have already declared a state of emergency and more than 2,520 flights have been cancelled. Blizzard conditions are expected for several major cities in the 2016 snowstorm’s path, including Baltimore, Washington D.C., and New York City. The video shows one frontal system moving across the southern United States followed by a second storm system that is expected to bring the powerful Winter Storm Jonas to the Mid-Atlantic.

Early on January 21, the NWS hazards web page showed a winter storm watch stretching from the Tennessee valley into the interior Carolinas and up into the Central Appalachians/Mid-Atlantic region. GPM’s DPR saw precipitation falling at a rate of over 64 mm (2.5 inches) per hour in storms over northern Alabama. NASA’s Global Precipitation Measurement or GPM mission core satellite observed the extreme rainfall this system was generating in the Gulf coast.

The storm could shut down roads and airports, cause power outages and knock down trees, and also cause some flooding in low areas and along the coast.

But forecasters say the current freeze is nothing compared to the frigid blast set to hit the East Coast Friday.

For more meteorological-centered live updates on Winter Storm Jonas, AccuWeather has updates on all the latest projections and weather events. “On Jan. 22, heavy rainfall is expected in lower elevations of northwestern California and southwestern OR with heavy snow in higher elevations of Sierras and Washington Cascade mountain range”.