Kristovich, D.A.R., G.S. Young, J. Verlinde, P.J, Sousounis, P. Mourad, D. Lenschow, R.M. Rauber, M.K. Ramamurthy, B.F. Jewett, K. Beard, E. Cutrim, P.J. DeMott, E.W. Eloranta, M.R. Hjelmfelt, S.M. Kreidenweis, J. Martin, J. Moore, H.T. Ochs III, D.C. Rogers, J. Scala, G. Tripoli, J. Young, 2000

Tthe lake-Induced Convection Experiment and the Snowband Dynamics Project

Bull. Amer. Meteor. Soc., 81, 519-542

Abstract

A severe 5-day lake-effect storm resulted in eight deaths, hundreds of injuries, and over $3 million in damage to a small area of northeastern Ohio and northwestern Pennsylvania in November 1996. In 1999, a blizzard associated with an intense cyclone disabled Chicago and much of the U.S. Midwest with 30-90 cm of snow. Such winter weather conditions have many impacts on the lives and property of people throughout much of North America. Each of these events is the culmination of a complex interaction between synoptic-scale, mesoscale, and microscale processes.

An understanding of how the multiple size scales and timescales interact is critical to improving forecasting of these severe winter weather events. The Lake-Induced Convection Experiment (Lake-ICE) and the Snowband Dynamics Project (SNOWBAND) collected comprehensive datasets on processes involved in lake-effect snowstorms and snowbands associated with cyclones during the winter of 1997/98. This paper outlines the goals and operations of these collaborative projects. Preliminary findings are given with illustrative examples of new state-of-the-art research observations collected. Analyses associated with Lake-ICE and SNOWBAND hold the promise of greatly improving our scientific understanding of processes involved in these important wintertime phenomena.