A winter storm is an event in which wind coincides with varieties of precipitation that only occur at freezing temperatures, such as snow, mixed snow and rain, or freezing rain. In temperate continental climates, these storms are not necessarily restricted to the winter season, but may occur in the late autumn and early spring as well. A snowstorm with strong winds and other conditions meeting certain criteria is called a blizzard.
It is very rare for snow to fall in the U.S. state of Florida, especially in the central and southern portions of the state. With the exception of the far northern areas of the state, most of the major cities in Florida have never recorded measurable snowfall, though trace amounts have been recorded, or flurries in the air observed few times each century. According to the National Weather Service, in the Florida Keys and Key West there is no known occurrence of snow flurries since the European colonization of the region more than 300 years ago. In Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Palm Beach there has been only one known report of snow flurries observed in the air in more than 200 years; this occurred in January 1977. In any event, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Palm Beach have not seen snow flurries before or since this 1977 event.
The February 2007 North American blizzard was a massive winter storm that affected most of the eastern half of North America, starting on February 12, 2007 and peaking on Valentine's Day, February 14. The storm produced heavy snowfalls across the midwestern United States from Nebraska to Ohio and produced similar conditions across parts of the northeastern United States, and into Canada in Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick. Significant sleet and freezing rain fell across the southern Ohio Valley and affected portions of the east coast of the United States, including the cities of Boston, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., New York City and Philadelphia.
Global weather activity of 2009 profiles the major worldwide storms, including blizzards, tornadoes, ice storms, tropical cyclones and other meteorogical events, from January 1, 2009, to December 31, 2009. Wintery storms are events in which the dominant varieties of precipitation are forms that only occur at cold temperatures, such as snow or sleet, or a rainstorm where ground temperatures are cold enough to allow ice to form. It may be marked by strong wind, thunder and lightning, heavy precipitation, such as ice, or wind transporting some substance through the atmosphere. Summer storms including flooding, severe thunderstorms and extratropical cyclones are also included in this list to a certain extent.
Global storm activity of 2008 profiles the major worldwide storms, including blizzards, ice storms, and other winter events, from January 1, 2008 to December 31, 2008. A winter storm is an event in which the dominant varieties of precipitation are forms that only occur at cold temperatures, such as snow or sleet, or a rainstorm where ground temperatures are cold enough to allow ice to form. It may be marked by strong wind, thunder and lightning, heavy precipitation, such as ice, or wind transporting some substance through the atmosphere. Major dust storms, Hurricanes, cyclones, tornados, gales, flooding and rainstorms are also caused by such phenomena to a lesser or greater existent.
The January 8–13, 2011 North American blizzard was a major Mid-Atlantic nor'easter and winter storm, and a New England blizzard. The storm also affected portions of the Southeastern regions of the United States. This storm came just two weeks after a previous major blizzard severely affected most of these same areas in December 2010. It was the second significant snowstorm to affect the region during the 2010–11 North American winter storm season.
The 2011 Groundhog Day blizzard was a powerful and historic winter storm that affected large swaths of the United States and Canada from January 31 to February 2, 2011, especially on Groundhog Day. During the initial stages of the storm, some meteorologists predicted that the system would affect over 100 million people in the United States. The storm brought cold air, heavy snowfall, blowing snow, and mixed precipitation on a path from New Mexico and northern Texas to New England and Eastern Canada. The Chicago area saw 21.2 inches (54 cm) of snow and blizzard conditions, with winds of over 60 mph (100 km/h). With such continuous winds, the blizzard continued to the north and affected Eastern and Atlantic Canada. Blizzard conditions affected many other large cities along the storm's path, including Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Kansas City, St. Louis, Springfield, El Paso, Las Cruces, Des Moines, Milwaukee, Detroit, Chicago, Indianapolis, Dayton, Cleveland, New York City, New York's Capital District, and Boston. Many other areas not normally used to extreme winter conditions, including Albuquerque, Dallas and Houston, experienced significant snowfall or ice accumulation. The central Illinois National Weather Service in Lincoln, Illinois, issued only their fourth blizzard warning in the forecast office's 16-year history. Snowfall amounts of 20 to 28 inches were forecast for much of Northern and Western Illinois.
The Geography of Atlanta encompasses 132.4 square miles (342.9 km2), of which 131.7 square miles (341.1 km2) is land and 0.7 square miles (1.8 km2) is water. The city is situated among the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, and at 1,050 feet (320 m) above mean sea level, Atlanta has the highest elevation among major cities east of the Mississippi River. Atlanta straddles the Eastern Continental Divide, such that rainwater that falls on the south and east side of the divide flows into the Atlantic Ocean, while rainwater on the north and west side of the divide flows into the Gulf of Mexico. Atlanta sits atop a ridge south of the Chattahoochee River, which is part of the ACF River Basin. Located at the far northwestern edge of the city, much of the river's natural habitat is preserved, in part by the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area.
The February 2014 nor'easter was a major nor'easter that produced a damaging snow and ice storm that affected the Southern United States and East Coast of the United States, bringing with it up to a foot of snow and crippling ice across parts of the South. Thousands if not hundreds of thousands of people were left in the dark for days, possibly even up to 2 weeks without power. Delta Air Lines canceled over 2,000 flights, and it was reported by 8:00 p.m. Thursday, February 13, that as many as 6,500 flights originating in or destined for the United States had been canceled. On that day 70 percent of flights were cancelled at airports in Baltimore, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Charlotte.
The 2013–14 North American winter was one of the most significant for the United States, due in part to the breakdown of the polar vortex in November 2013, which allowed very cold air to travel down into the United States, leading to an extended period of very cold temperatures. The pattern continued mostly uninterrupted throughout the winter and numerous significant winter storms affected the Eastern United States, with the most notable one being a powerful winter storm that dumped ice and snow in the Southeastern United States and the Northeastern United States in mid-February. Most of the cold weather abated by the end of March, though a few winter storms did affect the Western United States towards the end of the winter.
The January 2016 United States blizzard was a blizzard that produced up to 3 ft of snow in parts of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States from January 22–24, 2016. Evolving from a shortwave trough that formed in the Pacific Northwest on January 19, the system consolidated into a defined low-pressure area on January 21 over Texas. Regarding it as a "potentially historic blizzard", meteorologists indicated the storm could produce more than 2 ft (61 cm) of snow across a wide swath of the Mid-Atlantic region and could "paralyze the eastern third of the nation". Winter weather expert Paul Kocin described the blizzard as "kind of a top-10 snowstorm".
The 2016–17 North American winter was quite warm across North America in general, due in part to a weak La Niña that was expected to influence weather conditions across the continent. Several notable events occurred during the season, including a potent winter storm that affected the East Coast of the United States in early January, the second-largest winter tornado outbreak on record later that month, and an unusually warm February. In addition, towards the end of the season, a large cyclonic storm system that caused a large tornado outbreak, flooding, and a potent blizzard occurred in the Heartland of the country. However, the most notable event of the winter was a powerful blizzard that impacted the Northeast and New England in mid-March, towards the end of the season.
The January 4–8, 2017 North American winter storm was a major snow and ice storm that affected the Lower 48 of the United States with winter weather. Moving ashore on the West Coast on January 3, the system produced heavy snowfall in the Sierra Mountains, with nearly 4 feet of snowfall falling in the highest elevations. After impacting the Northwest and Southwest, the winter storm went on to strike the Southeast on January 5–6 with snow and ice, with snowfall accumulations up to 4 inches (10 cm). Afterwards, it began to morph into a nor'easter as it moved off the Southeast coast late on January 6, while producing blizzard conditions in the Carolinas. It then began to affect the Northeastern United States as it tracked northwards early on January 7. It produced a swath of moderate snowfall accumulations up the East Coast, with easternmost areas such as parts of Massachusetts receiving up to 1.5 feet (18 in) of snow.
The February 2015 Southeastern United States winter storm was a rare winter storm that dumped up to a foot of snow in the Southeast, an area that rarely receives such heavy snowfall. Forming out of a shortwave trough that developed over Texas near the Gulf of Mexico on February 24, the storm quickly made its way over the southern United States, coalescing into a surface low-pressure area as it did so. With arctic air unusually far south, this helped spawn heavy, wet snowfall across the northern portions of several southern states, including the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia. States such as Alabama and Georgia declared a state of emergency in the northern portions of the state due to the possibility of up to 6 inches (15 cm) of snow, which was normally never seen.
The 2017–18 North American winter saw weather patterns across North America that were very active, erratic, and protracted, especially near the end of the season, resulting in widespread snow and cold across the continent during the winter. Significant events included rare snowfall in the South, an outbreak of frigid temperatures that affected the United States during the final week of 2017 and early weeks of January, and a series of strong nor'easters that affected the Northeastern United States during the month of March. In addition, flooding also took place during the month of February in the Central United States. Finally the winter came to a conclusion with a powerful storm system that caused a tornado outbreak and blizzard in mid-April. The most intense event, however, was an extremely powerful cyclonic blizzard that impacted the Northeastern United States in the first week of 2018. Similar to the previous winter, a La Niña was expected to influence the winter weather across North America.
The March 20–22, 2018 nor'easter brought additional significant late-season snowfall to the Northeastern United States – after three previous such nor'easters had struck the general region on March 1–3, 6–8, and 12–14, respectively. affected the Mid-Atlantic states and New England with over 18 in (46 cm) of heavy snow and whiteout conditions. It also affected areas of the Southeastern and Midwestern United States with both snowfall and severe weather. The nor'easter was also one of the heaviest spring snowstorms on record in some areas in the Mid-Atlantic, especially Philadelphia and New York City. Originating from a surface low that formed over the Rocky Mountains, the system tracked across the central United States, bringing some wintry weather to surrounding areas as well as severe weather in the South. It then reached the Northeastern U.S. on March 20–21 and – while moving slowly near the shorelines of Delaware, New Jersey and Long Island – dropped heavy snowfall with rates of up to 5 inches (13 cm) an hour in some spots. The storm was given unofficial names such as Winter Storm Toby and Nor'easter 4.
Hurricane Zeta was a late-season major hurricane in 2020 that made landfall on the Yucatán Peninsula and then in southeastern Louisiana, the latest on record to do so at such strength in the United States. Zeta was the record-tying sixth hurricane of the year to make landfall in the United States. The twenty-seventh named storm, twelfth hurricane and fifth major hurricane of the extremely active 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, Zeta formed from a broad area of low pressure that formed in the western Caribbean Sea on October 19. After battling wind shear, the quasi-stationary low organized into Tropical Depression Twenty-Eight on October 24. The system strengthened into Tropical Storm Zeta early on October 25 before becoming a hurricane the next day as it began to move northwestward. Hurricane Zeta made landfall on the Yucatán Peninsula late on October 26 and weakened while inland to a tropical storm, before moving off the northern coast of the peninsula on October 27. After weakening due to dry air entrainment, Zeta reorganized and became a hurricane again, and eventually a Category 2 hurricane, as it turned northeastward approaching the United States Gulf Coast on October 28. It continued to strengthen until it reached its peak intensity as a major Category 3 hurricane with 115-mile-per-hour (185 km/h) sustained winds and a minimum pressure of 970 mbar (28.64 inHg) as it made landfall at Cocodrie, Louisiana, that evening. Zeta continued on through Mississippi and parts of Alabama with hurricane-force winds. Zeta gradually weakened as it accelerated northeastward, and became post-tropical on October 29, as it moved through central Virginia, dissipating shortly afterwards off the coast of New Jersey. After bringing accumulating snow to parts of New England, the extratropical low-pressure system carrying Zeta's remnant energy impacted the United Kingdom on November 1 and 2.
The December 15–17, 2020 nor'easter was a powerful nor'easter that hammered the Northeastern United States and produced widespread swaths of over 1 foot (12 in) of snow in much of the region from December 15–17, 2020, ending a 1,000+ day high-impact snowstorm drought in much of the Mid-Atlantic and coastal New England regions. The system developed out of a weak area of low-pressure that first developed over the Central United States producing some snowfall before moving eastward, and by December 16, a new, dominant area of low pressure began to develop along the Southeast coast. This low steadily deepened as it moved along and impacted the Mid-Atlantic coastline, prompting several winter-related advisories and warnings for much of the Northeast.
The 2020–21 New Year's North American winter storm was a major storm system that brought a wide swath of snow and ice to parts of the High Plains and Central and Northeastern United States during the New Years holiday from December 30–January 2. The system began developing early on December 30, and began spreading wintry precipitation to parts of Texas, coalescing into a low pressure system that formed near the western Gulf of Mexico. The winter storm tracked north and brought heavy snow, ice and strong winds to much of the center of the Midwest and interior parts of the Northeast and New England, causing widespread impacts and travel issues.
The January 14–17, 2022 North American winter storm brought widespread impacts and wintry precipitation across large sections of eastern North America and parts of Canada. Forming out of a shortwave trough on January 13, it first produced a swath of snowfall extending from the High Plains to the Midwestern United States. The storm eventually pivoted east and impacted much of the Southern United States from January 15–16 before shifting north into Central Canada, the Mid-Atlantic states, and the Northeastern United States. The system, named Winter Storm Izzy by The Weather Channel, was described as a "Saskatchewan Screamer".
