Weekly Weather Map – for Jan. 13, 2011

This map is created by Environment Canada but I do a fair bit of tidying up of the data displayed to make it easier to read. Because of this, the data on the map should be seen as giving you a general idea of how much snow there is across the Prairies. Overall snow cover

2010: A Remarkable Year, Weather-Wise

Well, it’s that time of year again: a time to look back. Before we try to peer ahead at what 2011 might have in store for us, weather-wise, we need to take a good look back at some of the crazy weather we experienced across the Prairies during 2010. Before we really dig into the


Weekly Weather Map – for Jan. 6, 2011

The Weather Vane is prepared by Daniel Bezte, a teacher by profession with a BA (Hon.) in geography, specializing in climatology, from the University of Winnipeg. Daniel has taught university-level classes in climate and weather and currently operates a computerized weather station at his home near Birds Hill Park, on 10 acres he plans to

Forecasts For The Rest Of The Winter

As we start the new year I have to admit that I haven’t had the time to go through all the weather data for 2010, so a complete summary of last year will have to wait until the next issue. Instead, we’ll take our usual look back at the previous month’s weather and then peer


Forecast – for Dec. 16, 2010

This forecast period starts off a little tricky as the models are forecasting an area of low pressure to our west with a ridge of high pressure persisting to our east. The question is how far east the western low will be able to push and just where any snow will fall. Currently it looks

Big Snows Hit Ontario

Every so often a set of atmospheric conditions comes together to create some really remarkable weather. This is what happened last week in Ontario when cold northwesterly winds combined with the relatively warm waters of the Great Lakes to produce some remarkable snowfalls. Whenever there is cold air and warm water, you can get what


Forecast – for Dec. 9, 2010

After a fairly quiet weekend and start to the week it looks like we might see more snow move in during the second half of the week as an Alberta Clipper takes shape. The models are showing an area of low pressure moving in from off the B.C. coast on Wednesday and then pushing east.

December To Follow November’s Pattern?

Before we dive into our monthly look back at the weather, I think I need to clear up a misunderstanding from the “probability of snow” article from a couple of weeks ago. A fair number of people have emailed me asking if there is such a low probability of getting more than 10 cm of


Past Weather Does Not Always Mean Future Weather

Early in September I took a quick look at the kind of weather we might expect this winter. In particular, we examined the phenomenon known as La Nińa or the “anti El Nińo.” La Nińa is a cooling of the equatorial Pacific Ocean and when this occurs it can have an impact on our winter

Weekly Weather Map – for Dec. 2, 2010

With early significant snowfalls across the Prairies it is time for the first snowcover map of the season. This map is created by Environment Canada but I do a lot of cleaning up of the map to try and make it more readable. During this process a lot of detail is lost so this map