We saw rain, snow -- and thundersleet

Our first taste of the season, Winter Storm "Lynyrd Skynyrd", brought a nice collection of wet snowflakes, sleet, and even a rumble of thunder. It's not even December yet and some of us have already experienced that most elusive of weather phenomena, thundersleet.

I was skeptical, but the NAM computer model, which forecasted heavy snow accumulations to our south, was actually on to something. The Missouri Bootheel and Northeast Arkansas saw widespread 3+ inch totals, with one spot near Jonesboro, Arkansas, picking up 8 inches.

If the ground had been colder, and the air temperature just slightly lower, Cape Girardeau could have seen a huge snowfall. Just like last year, we seem to be under some kind of protective dome that pushes the snow to our south and west. (This is either really good or really bad news, depending on who you ask.)

This map shows the areas that received a complete blanket of snow:

(Image from the National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center)

Looking ahead, the next weather maker for this weekend appears to be too warm for snow, likely delivering only liquid POUR (Plain Old Uneventful Rain). We may have to be patient for the arrival of the next storm on the list, Winter Storm "Metallica".