Reading Time: 2 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – We had a fairly major storm system on the Prairies in late April, but it was not strong enough to warrant major attention. Manitoba received the most moisture from this system, with widespread 20 to 30 millimetres of rain mixed with snow. The northern half of agricultural Saskatchewan, along with the far […] Read more
The slow slide into drought
The current Prairie moisture situation is the result of years of ongoing precipitation deficits
Prairie forecast: Cool and unsettled weather to continue
Forecast issued May 1, 2024, covering May 1-8
The weather and subsequent forecasts lately have been—to state it simply—a mess. A very active but difficult to forecast pattern has developed across much of Canada and the northern U.S. states. This has brought damp and cool weather to most regions of the Prairies and unfortunately, it looks like this weather will be sticking around at least until the weekend.
Prairie forecast: Typical spring weather expected; not dry, not wet
Forecast issued April 24, 2024; covering: April 24 – May 1
It looks like this will be a good news, bad news forecast. For those of you hoping for rain, it may be good news. For those wanting things to dry out enough to get out working, it's a bit of bad news. The one thing, which is typical for spring forecasts, is that there's a fair bit of uncertainty.
Prairie forecast: Effects of Colorado low to bring widespread precipitation
Forecast issued April 16, covering April 16 to 25, 2024
We are putting out this week’s forecast a day earlier than usual, as the weather models now have a good handle on the predicted Colorado low and how it will impact the Prairies starting Tuesday. Here is what the weather models are predicting.
Prairie forecast: Spring has sprung but winter might not be done
Forecast issued April 10, 2024, covering April 10 to 17
Spring has definitely sprung across the prairies with only a few locations still having snow cover. Spring is a notorious time for forecasting as warm air builds to the south while cold air still sits to the north. That means this forecast period looks both easy and hard.
Prairie forecast: Cooler and unsettled west, mild and dry east
Forecast issued April 3, covering April 3 to 10
In a nutshell, it looks like Saskatchewan and Manitoba will see dry weather and nice, warm, spring temperatures. Alberta is going to have to deal with colder air being drawn southwards into the developing storm system over the south-central U.S. Along with the colder air, southern Alberta may deal with some more snow as moisture is pulled northward and then westward on the eastern side of the low.
Prairie forecast: Spring trying to regain control
Forecast issued March 27, covering March 27 to April 3, 2024
The main weather maker will be a trough of low pressure forecasted to develop over the northwestern U.S. today, which will then track eastwards over the next several days.
Prairie forecast: Is winter making one last push?
Issued March 20, covering March 20-27, 2024
A sprawling Arctic high pressure system is poised to dominate the region, ushering in colder-than-normal temperatures reminiscent of January's grip, but not as cold. While cold snaps this time of year often bring snow, the prevailing high pressure suggests storm activity will largely skirt the area, save for southern and southwestern Alberta where significant snowfall is anticipated.
How volcanoes can both cool, and warm our climate
Sometimes an eruption can cool the Earth, sometimes it warms it
Reading Time: 3 minutes Volcanoes usually have a cooling effect on our planet. The ash and SO2 (sulfur dioxide) propelled into the atmosphere from an eruption tend to block incoming solar radiation, resulting in an overall cooling effect. Location is also important. High latitude eruptions tend to have less impact as the ash of SO2 cannot reach as high […] Read more
Prairie forecast: Very warm west, mild but a little unsettled east
Issued March 13, covering March 13 to 20
The cold weather has also been replaced by above average temperatures. The question I have been hearing the most is--has spring arrived or is there still a bit of winter left to be felt?
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
