Nothing but light snow?

gkainz

gkainz

Final Approach
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Display name:
Greg Kainz
KBJC 130001Z 01015KT 3/8 SM -SN BR VV003 M02/M03 A2965

Does the TAF not know about any other snow that "light snow"? I can just barely see across the street right now, KBJC is reporting 3/8 mile vis and 300 obscured ceiling, but it's only "light snow"? Same deal the other day ... what criteria constitutes heavier than "light" snow?
 
maybe the BR is the biggest contributor to the 3/8?
It better clear up there by Friday.
 
Greg, what part of TAForecast do you not understand? And when did they start using the minus sign as a modifier? I thought it was assumed to be light unless preceeded by a "+".

I think Dave has it right. BR is the obscuring phenomena.
 
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Richard said:
Greg, what part of TAForecast do you not understand? And when did they start using the minus sign as a modifier? I thought it was assumed to be light unless preceeded by a "+".

I think Dave has it right. BR is the obscuring phenomena.
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I understand the F in TAF ... my point is that the weather guessers on TV were all predicting HEAVY snow showers throughout the area all day, and the TAF has nothing but light snow mentioned. And, there was no mist - with the temps as low as they stayed, it was all snow... heavy snow (at least heavy in my opinion - grew up in Northern Minnesota and South Dakota - I believe I know heavy snow when I see it).

So my question still remains unanswered - what conditions qualify for light snow, snow and heavy snow? Is there some rules, similar to the "8ths" of the sky cover to categorize scattered, broken, etc?
 
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gkainz said:
I understand the F in TAF ... my point is that the weather guessers on TV were all predicting HEAVY snow showers throughout the area all day, and the TAF has nothing but light snow mentioned. And, there was no mist - with the temps as low as they stayed, it was all snow... heavy snow (at least heavy in my opinion - grew up in Northern Minnesota and South Dakota - I believe I know heavy snow when I see it).

So my question still remains unanswered - what conditions qualify for light snow, snow and heavy snow? Is there some rules, similar to the "8ths" of the sky cover to categorize scattered, broken, etc?
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Dang, you saw the reply before I did. I'm sorry about that, Greg. Please forgive my impetuous alter ego.

To make it up to you I'm gonna' drag out my METAR/TAF decoder.
 
AIM 7-1-31

SN is precipitation
BR is sky condition (obscuring phenomena)

Are you trying to compare the forecast with your observations, is that the problem? I know what you're asking but it seems the forecasters got it wrong. You said there was no BR, it was all SN, so maybe the TAF should have been amended to read +SN only without the BR. Also, was there a probability in the TAF?
 
gkainz said:
So my question still remains unanswered - what conditions qualify for light snow, snow and heavy snow? Is there some rules, similar to the "8ths" of the sky cover to categorize scattered, broken, etc?
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I don't know the official answer you seek. However, from the mouths of media weatherguessers, there are no rules, 'cept overstate everything and whip the ignorant populace into a tizzy so they at least remember your name.

It is the "publish or perish" syndrome in TV-land. Get your name out there. Any attention is better than none, nobody gets punished for a forecast that turns out to be wrong if you forecast conditions too severe. There is some downside to forecasting light snow, rain, etc. and a severe storm emerges. Why didn't you tell us?

-Skip
 
Richard said:
And when did they start using the minus sign as a modifier? I thought it was assumed to be light unless preceeded by a "+".
Click to expand...

Odd, I've never known it any other way:

-SN - Light Snow
SN - Moderate Snow
+BR - Heavy Snow

That's how I learned it from Rod Machado's Book, and that's how I learned it from Jeppesen's text book for my Aviation Meterology class also.

Did I learn it wrong?
 
I was reading the "-SN BR" part of the TAF as light snow and mist ... the "Baby Rain" quip from the Kings stuck in my brain ... but BR is broken in relation to sky condition, right? (no, wait a minute, broken sky condition is BKN?) and as Nick notes above, he found +BR as Heavy Snow ...

dang, I gotta go back to TAF/METAR refresher school
 
gkainz said:
I was reading the "-SN BR" part of the TAF as light snow and mist ... the "Baby Rain" quip from the Kings stuck in my brain ... but BR is broken in relation to sky condition, right?
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BR = baby rain = mist

I'll never forget that dumb baby rain thing from the Kings.
 
Be thankful we're not Hawaiian Eskimo. In Hawaiian the are 27 different words to describe rain and at least 15 more to descibe mist. And, of course, everyone knows the Eskimos have over 119 words for snow.
 
Bill Jennings said:
BR = baby rain = mist

I'll never forget that dumb baby rain thing from the Kings.
Click to expand...

Anybody know the French from which the annoying BR abbreviation is derived?
 
BR= Brume
GR= Grele (with that carot thingie I can't do on my keyboard over the first "e")

And while that "baby rain" / "granite rain" concept might be "dumb" to folks, y'all DO still remember it, and THAT was the point! :D I first heard of it here, and I'm glad I did! Never could get those right.
 
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