Winter Weather — Western Cape May, New Jersey

2022-01-07 · Western Cape May, New Jersey

Event narrative

A widespread 3 to 4 inches of snow fell. A CoCoRaHS observer near Woodbine reported 4.0 inches of snow.

Wider weather episode

A developing wave of low pressure brought a period of snow to the eastern mid-Atlantic during the overnight of January 6 into the morning of January 7. The developing low was fast-moving, with steady precipitation lasting only 6 to 8 hours in many areas. However, the storm brought a widespread swath of 3 to 6 inches of snow to most of the eastern mid-Atlantic. Some portions of eastern New Jersey saw some slightly higher amounts of 6 to 7 inches, but in general it was a fairly uniform snowfall for most areas. With most of the accumulation occurring near or before dawn, roadway conditions were rendered poor for the Friday morning commute on the 7th, causing many businesses and schools to close or shift to virtual operations for the day. One notable aspect of this event was its higher than usual snow to liquid ratios for the mid-Atlantic. Temperatures were cold enough for precipitation to fall as all snow. With plenty of cold air at the surface and aloft, snow tended to be light and fluffy, causing it to pile up quickly despite liquid equivalents being a rather paltry 0.20 to 0.50 inches in most of the region. The 'snowfall ratio', which often averages close to 10:1 or lower (i.e., 1 inch of liquid would equate to 10 inches of snow) was closer to 15:1 or even 20:1 in most reports containing both a snowfall and liquid equivalent measurement.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 992493. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.