For those of you watching today's weather broadcast, you're probably wondering what Meteorologist Larry Handley was talking about when he called yesterday's freak snow event a "Snow Bomb."
Is "Snow Bomb" a technical term? Not exactly. Here's the story:
Larry says that in his 20 years of forecasting, he had never heard nor used the term before...until yesterday.
"When I was out shoveling my driveway in the midst of the storm I mumbled to myself (among other things), 'this is like a snow bomb. It exploded right over top of me.' When I went back inside I glanced at Ultimate Doppler 9 radar and the returns looked more like a maturing summer thunderstorm than snow echoes. I fully expected to hear some thunder or see lightning but I never did."
The "unofficial term" also sums up not only the behavior of the storm, but it's specific coverage as well. Like with an exploding bomb the coverage was unique and obvious with 6-10 inches within a narrow, long band. Outside of the "ground zero" area the snow totals were significantly less.
The heaviest snow occurred between 3 pm and 6 pm in about a 30 mile wide strip from southeast Indiana north of I-74 through Butler, Warren, Clermont, Brown and Adams counties. Check out the huge differences in the snow totals across the region.
Non-"Snow Bomb" Areas:- Aurora, IN - 1.5 inches
- Union, KY - 3.0 inches
- Dry Ridge, KY - 2.0 inches
- Independence, KY - 2.0 inches
- Maysville, KY - 3.5 inches
"Ground Zero" Areas:
- Connersville, IN - 6.0 inches
- Liberty, IN - 6.0 inches
- West Union, OH - 6.0 inches
- Georgetown, OH - 5.0 inches
- Oxford, OH - 5.0 inches
- Milford, OH - 7.0 inches
- Madeira, OH - 7.0 inches
- Sharonville, OH - 7.0 inches
- Mason, OH - 6.5 inches
There you have it. The story behind the "Snow Bomb of 2009". It may not be a scientific term, but if you were in a "ground zero" area you have to admit that it does sum it up pretty well.
