Rapid deepening of the bomb cyclone off the East Coast underway, U.S.

The rapid deepening of the bomb cyclone off the East Coast, U.S. is well underway. The NWS WPC and OPC surface analyses show the pressure dropped 9 hPa in just 3 hours between 03:00 and 06:00 UTC on January 29, 2022.

• A powerful Nor'easter and winter storm will wallop eastern parts of the Northeast and New England this weekend.
• Plenty of hazards are expected to impact the Northeastern U.S. from heavy snow, with significant accumulations expected, to high winds and coastal issues.
• The combination of intense snow and strong winds will result in blizzard conditions, especially along coastal areas.

Total snowfall accumulations greater than 30 cm (12 inches) are expected along much of the Northeast coast with local maxima greater than 60 cm (24 inches) across eastern Massachusetts including the Boston metro.

Heavy snow rates of up to 5 – 10 cm (2 – 4 inches) per hour and strong winds will produce dangerous blizzard conditions along portions of the Mid-Atlantic and New England coasts.

Residents can expect whiteout conditions and nearly impossible travel at times. The strong to damaging winds will lead to scattered power outages.

Significant coastal impacts are possible, including coastal flooding and beach erosion.

Very cold temperatures will follow the storm with dangerous wind chills tonight into Sunday morning, January 30.

Image credit: NOAA/GOES-16, RAMMB/CIRA, TW. Acquired at 10:00 UTC on January 29, 2022

The storm will move over the Canadian Maritimes after impacting the United States and then hit southern Greenland.

Forecast models

Featured image credit: NOAA/GOES-16, RAMMB/CIRA, TW