Wind

Not a fan. Don't like wind.

Last night it was reported that some storms were moving through at 100 mph. That's pretty fast when you consider average travel speed for weather is about 35 mph. Some thunderstorms travel at 50 and rarer still is 70, making 100 pretty darn fast.

Along with with these storms came a good amount of wind. Wind gusts out on Long Island were recorded over 60 mph around 4am, just around the time I was awakened by the rain. Today, in NYC, we'll see winds over 20 and 30 with some higher gusts.

I've been reading lately about the effect ice cap melting will have on weather patterns across North America. In short, a warmer North Pole will increase the amplitude of the jet stream in winter (image below). Increased amplitude creates slower west to east movements of storms, increases their moisture content, and also amplifies the pressure gradient between troughs and ridges (ridges are high pressure and troughs are low). Science has modeled this effect of ice cap melting and this storm appears as a case study.