Presidents' Day Storm of 1979


Background Reading Materials and Web Links for the Visit of Dr. Louis Uccellini to our Atm 401-501 Class on Tuesday 19 Feb 2019 to Revisit the Famous Presidents’ Day Storm on its 40th Anniversary: Impact on Science and Operations

Student Tasks to Prepare for Dr. Uccellini’s Class Visit:
  1. Listen to previous Uccellini and Bosart presentations from 29 Nov 2016
  2. Read Professor Andrea Lang’s stratospheric perspective on the storm
  3. Familiarize yourself with Alicia Bentley’s maps for the event
  4. Read the *starred papers in this order: 5, 12, 1, 4, and 7

Schedule:
  1. Introduction: (10 min)
  2. Louis: (35 min)
    ---Uccellini: Roots Run Deep
    ---Uccellini: Reflecting on the Presidents’ Day Storm 18-19 February 1979
  3. Lance: (15-20 min)
    ---Bosart: Presidents’ Day Storm of 19 Feb 1979: A Big Picture Perspective
  4. Kevin Biernat/Andrew Winters/Dan Keyser: (15 min)
    ---Biernat: Linkages between a Coherent Tropopause Disturbance and the Presidents’ Day Storm of 1979
    ---Winters: Divergent Circulations Associated with the President’s Day (1979) Storm
  5. Undergrad students: Chelsea Snide and Brennan Stutsrim: (15 min)
  6. Graduate students: Tyler Leicht (Cornell) and Alex Mitchell (NC State): (15 min)
  7. Closing remarks: (10 min)

Presentations:
  1. Reflecting on the Presidents Day Storm 18-19 February 1979: Louis Uccellini
    ----Updated 29 Nov 2016 Presentation (Password Protected)
    ----Username: Atm409509 ; Password: Class

  2. Multi-scale Interactions during the Winters of 2009-2010 and 2010-2011: A Link to the February 1979 Presidents' Day Storm: Bosart, Archambault, and Cordeira

  3. Southern Stream Storm 11-17 February 2003: Presidents' Day Weekend Snow Storm: Richard Grumm

  4. NH mean and anomaly maps before and after the Presidents’ Day II storm of 17–18 Feb 2003: NOAA/ESRL

  5. Email from Andrea Lang: 29 Nov 2016
    Supplemental Data
    ---Northern Annular Mode index for February 1979
    ---50-hPa Minimum Temperature (50-90N): 1979 MERRA2
    ---50-hPa Zonal Mean Zonal Wind (60N): 1979 MERRA2
    ---10-hPa Mean Zonal Wind (60N): 1979 MERRA2
    ---10-hPa Wave 2 Height Amplitude (60N): 1979 MERRA2
    ---50-hPa Wave 2 Height Amplitude (60N): 1979 MERRA2
    ---50-hPa Geopotential Height: 18 Feb - 22 Feb 1979 NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis
    ---50-hPa Geopotential Height Anomaly: 18 Feb - 22 Feb 1979 NCEP/NCAR Reanalysis

  6. Synoptic Aspects and Predictability of Cold Air Outbreaks in Relation to Tropopause Polar Vortices and Cold Pools: Kevin Biernat: (2, 7, and 14 February 2018)

Maps: The Presidents' Day Storm February 1979
  1. CFSR Loops (Courtesy: Kevin Biernat)
    1. Northern Hemisphere:
      Standard
      Standardized Anomalies
    2. Pacific:
      Standard
      Standardized Anomalies
    3. North America:
      Standard
      Standardized Anomalies
    4. Atlantic:
      Standard
      Standardized Anomalies
    5. CONUS:
      Standard
      Standardized Anomalies
    6. Eastern CONUS:
      Standard
      Standardized Anomalies
  2. ERA5 Loops (Courtesy: Marshall Pfahler)
    1. Northern Hemisphere:
      Standard
    2. Pacific:
      Standard
    3. North America:
      Standard
    4. Atlantic:
      Standard
    5. CONUS:
      Standard
      Standard (hourly)
      2m Temperature (hourly) (Courtesy: Tomer Burg)
    6. Eastern CONUS:
      Standard (hourly)
  3. Additional Loops/Maps (Courtesy: Tomer Burg)
    1. Hourly surface observations loop
    2. Height & MSLP minima tracks from ERA5:
      All tracks
      MSLP track
      Minimum MSLP
    3. Storm total snowfall from COOP/ASOS: (Description)
      Amounts
      Standardized Anomaly

Papers: The Presidents' Day Storm I (18-19 February 1979)
  1. Title: A Diagnostic Analysis of the Presidents' Day Storm Of February 1979*
    Author: L. F. Bosart and S. C. Lin
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1984
  2. Title: Inclusion of a TKE Boundary Layer Parameterization in the Canadian Regional Finite-Element Model
    Author: R. Benoit and J. Mailhot
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1989
  3. Title: Sensitivity of Model Simulations for a Coastal Cyclone
    Author: I. Orlanski and J.J. Katzfey
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1987
  4. Title: Synergistic Interactions between an Upper-Level Jet Streak and Diabatic Processes that Influence the Development of a Low-Level Jet and a Secondary Coastal Cyclone*
    Author: L. W. Uccellini, R. A. Petersen, P. J. Kocic, K. F. Brill, and J. J. Tuccillo
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1987
  5. Title: The Presidents' Day Snowstorm of 18–19 February 1979: A Subsynoptic-Scale Event*
    Author: L. F. Bosart
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1981
  6. Title: Application of the 4-D McIDAS to a Model Diagnostic Study of the Presidents' Day Cyclone
    Author: H. Hibbard, L. W. Uccellini, D. Santek, and K. F. Brill
    Journal & Year: Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society - 1989
  7. Title: Stratospheric–Tropospheric Mass Exchange during the Presidents' Day Storm
    Author:P. Spaete. D. R. Johnson, and T. K. Schaack
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1994
  8. Title: Height Tendency Diagnostics Using a Generalized Omega Equation, the Vorticity Equation, and a Nonlinear Balance Equation
    Author: J. Räisänen
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1997
  9. Title: A Model-Based Diagnostic Study of the Rapid Development Phase of the Presidents's Day Cyclone
    Author: J. S. Whittaker, L. W. Uccellini, and K. F. Brill
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1988
  10. Title: A Technique for Diagnosing Three-Dimensional Ageostrophic Circulations in Baroclinic Disturbances on Limited-Area Domains
    Author: A. F. Loughe, C.-C. Lai, D. Keyser
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1995
  11. Title: The Presidents' Day Cyclone of 18–19 February 1979: Influence of Upstream Trough Amplification and Associated Tropopause Folding on Rapid Cyclogenesis*
    Author: L. W. Uccellini, D. Keyser, C. H. Walsh, and K. F. Brill
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1985
  12. Title: The Presidents' Day Cyclone of 18–19 February 1979: Synoptic Overview and Analysis of the Subtropical Jet Streak Influencing the Pre-Cyclogenetic Period*
    Author: L. W. Uccellini, P. J. Kocin, R. A. Petersen, C. F. Walsh, and K. F. Brill
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1984
  13. Title: On the Use and Significance of Isentropic Potential Vorticity Maps
    Author: B. J. Hoskins, M. E. McIntyre, and A. W. Robertson
    Journal & Year: Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society - 1985
    ---Upper- and lower-level PV interaction (p. 929 w/ Fig. 21)

Papers: The Queen Elizabeth II Storm (10-11 September 1978)
  1. Title: The Impact of Seasat-A Scatterometer Data on High-Resolution Analyses and Forecasts: The Development of the QE II Storm
    Author: A. C. M. Stoffelen and G. J. Cats
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1991
  2. Title: Meteorological Precursors to the Explosive Intensification of the QE II Storm
    Author: J. R. Gyakum
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1991
  3. Title: On the Evolution of the QE II Storm. I: Synoptic Aspects
    Author: J. R. Gyakum
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1983
  4. Title: The Possible Influence of Upstream Upper-Level Baroclinic Processes on the Development of the QE II Storm
    Author: L. W. Uccellini
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1986
  5. Title: On the Evolution of the QE II Storm. II: Dynamic and Thermodynamic Structure
    Author: J. R. Gyakum
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1983
  6. Title: Analysis of the Impact of Seasat Scatterometer Data and Horizontal Resolution on GLA Model Simulations of the QE II Storm
    Author: A. J. Lenzen, D. R. Johnson, and R. Atlas
    Journal & Year: Monthly Weather Review - 1993
--------