**Updated
5/27/05**
One of the great southern US snowstorms of all time occurred from January 5-8 1988. This storm was memorable because of the far-reaching snow effects. It was an all time great snowstorm for Oklahoma and Arkansas where 12 to 18 inch amounts were widespread and brought heavy snow as far east and north as Virginia. But it also brought very heavy snow and ice to parts of Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, and the Carolinas, which will be the focus of this discussion.
Below is the accumulation map for NC from the National Weather Service in Raleigh.
1/6/88 18z. 
1/7/88 00z. 
1/7/88 06z. 
1/7/88 12z.
1/7/88 18z. 
1/8/88 00z. 
Below are vertical cross sections of the ageostrophic circulation vectors from Lubbock, Texas (LBB) to Norfolk, Virginia (ORF) for selected times. The vectors (arrows) pointing upward indicate upward motion. Notice at 15z the upward vectors just left of the second mountain peak from the left. This is in the approximate locations of Oklahoma and Arkansas, and indicate that in these areas strong upward ascent was occurring in the 700mb to 300mb layer. Also notice by 12z on the 7th, the very strong upward motions to the right of the mountain peaks (which are indicative of the Appalachian mountain range) indicating that there was also an upslope enhancement to the areas of the foothills and western piedmont of the Carolinas and Virginia, which could explain the enhanced accumulations in those areas. Vertical Cross Sections: (Lubbock, Tx to Norfolk Va) Ageostrophic Circulation:
1/6/88 15z.
1/6/88 21z. 
1/7/88 12z. 
1/7/88 15z. 
1/7/88 18z.
1/6/88 15z.
1/6/88 21z. 
1/7/88 00z. 
1/7/88 03z. 
1/7/88 06z.
1/7/88 09z. 
1/7/88 12z. 
1/7/88 15z. 
1/7/88 21z.
1/8/88 00z. 
1/8/88 03z. 
1/8/88 06z. 
1/8/88 09z.
The 700mb RH gives you an approximate idea of where the clouds were with this system. You can see that the highest RH values are in north Texas, Oklahoma, and western Arkansas on the morning of the 6th, and you can see the system move east with time.
700mb RH:
1/6/88 12z.
1/6/88 18z. 
1/7/88 00z. 
1/7/88 06z. 
1/7/88 12z.
1/7/88 18z. 
1/8/88 00z. 
1/8/88 06z. 
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
One of the great southern US snowstorms of all time occurred from January 5-8 1988. This storm was memorable because of the far-reaching snow effects. It was an all time great snowstorm for Oklahoma and Arkansas where 12 to 18 inch amounts were widespread and brought heavy snow as far east and north as Virginia. But it also brought very heavy snow and ice to parts of Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, and the Carolinas, which will be the focus of this discussion.
Below is the accumulation map for NC from the National Weather Service in Raleigh.
| City, State | Snow (inches) | City, State | Snow (inches) | City, State | Snow (inches) | City, State | Snow (inches) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tryon, NC | 16.5 |
Caesers Head, SC | 16.5 | Clayton, GA | 14 | Bridgeport, AL |
10.5 |
| Asheville, NC | 14 | Longcreek, SC | 15 | Beaverdale, GA | 12 | Valley Head, AL |
10 |
| Shelby, NC | 14 | Gaffney, SC | 14.4 |
Blairsville, GA | 11.2 | Hunstville, AL |
9.6 |
| Brevard, NC | 14 | Salem, SC | 13 | Toccoa, GA | 8.5 | Guntersville, AL |
9.1 |
| Murphy, NC | 13 | Greenville/Spartanburg, SC | 12 | Gainesville, GA | 6 | Scottsboro, AL | 9 |
| Charlotte, NC | 12.1 | Oakway, SC | 11.5 |
Atlanta, GA | 4.2 | Falkville, AL |
6.5 |
| Hickory, NC | 11 | Walhalla, SC | 11 | Athens, GA | 3.3 | Muscle Shoals, AL |
5.4 |
| Boone, NC | 9 | Florence, SC | 9.9 | Augusta, GA |
2.3 |
Oneonta, AL |
2 |
| Greensboro, NC | 8.6 |
Clemson, SC |
9 |
Macon, GA |
2.1 |
Birmingham, AL |
1 |
| Pope AFB, NC | 8 |
Greenwood, SC |
6 |
||||
| Raleigh, NC | 7.3 |
Anderson, SC |
5 |
|
|
||
| Monroe, NC | 7.2 |
Newberry, SC |
5 |
||||
| Wilmington, NC | 0.4 |
Columbia |
4.3 |
||||
| Cape Hatteras, NC | 0.3 |
Darlington |
2.3 |
||||
| Loris |
2 |
|
|||||
| Chattanooga, TN |
10.2 |
||||||
| Jackson, TN |
9.6 |
Hernando, MS |
11 |
||||
| Knoxville, TN |
8.9 |
Clarksdale, MS |
10 |
||||
| Waynesboro, TN |
8.5 |
Mount Pleasant, MS |
10 |
||||
| Nashville, TN |
8.2 |
Lake Cormorant |
9.5 |
||||
| Dyersburg, TN |
8 |
Corinth, MS |
9.2 |
||||
| Memphis, TN |
7.9 |
Pleasant Hill, MS |
9 |
||||
| Murfreesboro, TN |
7 |
Batesville, MS |
8.2 |
|
|||
| Columbia, TN |
7 |
Booneville, MS |
8 |
|
|||
| Oak Ridge, TN |
6.9 |
Cleveland, MS |
8 |
|
|||
| Crossville, TN |
6 |
Tupelo, MS |
7.2 |
|
|||
| Franklin, TN |
6 |
Pontotoc, MS |
6 |
|
|||
| Bristol, TN |
5.4 |
Winona, MS |
2 |
|
|||
| Clarksville, TN |
4.8 |
Lexington, MS |
1 |
|
Quick
Overview
First off, here are the maps
from the NOAA Central Library.
Jan 6th 1988.
Jan 7th 1988.
Jan 8th 1988.
Jan 9th 1988. 
Jan 6th 1988.
Jan 7th 1988.
Jan 8th 1988.
Jan 9th 1988. 
500mb NH Analysis:
500mb Heights NH:
Jan 2nd 1988.
Jan 3rd 1988. 
Jan 4th 1988. 
Jan 5th 1988.
Jan
6th 1988. 
Jan
7th 1988. 
Jan 8th 1988.
Now let's look
at the NH 500mb maps. As you can see from the maps below the major
features I see present during this period are the "omega" block over
western Canada, which is promoting cross-polar flow into Canada and
into the US and the cold polar vortex that drops down into southern
Canada and then rotates into southern Ontario, Quebec, and eventually
into Newfoundland. It is the presence of this vortex that keeps the
flow suppressed and allows for this major southern US winter storm.
500mb Heights NH:
Jan 2nd 1988.
Jan 3rd 1988. 
Jan 4th 1988. 
Jan 5th 1988.
Jan
6th 1988. 
Jan
7th 1988. 
Jan 8th 1988.
North
American 500mb Analysis:
An analysis of the 500mb
pattern shows the main s/w (marked by the white line) rotates thru the
Gulf of Alaska and comes ashore in California by 00z January 6th. As
noted above also notice the strong 498dm vortex across southern Ontario
and Quebec that rotates over to Newfoundland and keeps this system
suppressed. As the s/w moves east into the lower Mississippi
Valley and southeast US, notice the confluent flow flattens the s/w and
weakens it, as it is never able to close off over the southeast.
This system is a classic example of how most of the southern US
snowstorms come about from a rather weak or disorganized s/w that is
suppressed, but serves the purpose of producing an overrunning setup,
with southwest winds aloft, and if there is enough cold air around, as
there was in this situation, widespread wintry weather can result.
500mb Heights vs Vorticity:
1/3/88 00z.
1/3/88 12z. 
1/4/88 00z. 
1/4/88 12z. 
1/5/88 00z.
1/5/88 12z. 
1/6/88 00z. 
1/6/88 12z. 
1/6/88 18z.
1/7/88 00z. 
1/7/88 06z. 
1/7/88 12z. 
1/7/88 18z.
1/8/88 00z. 
1/8/88 06z. 
1/8/88 12z. 
500mb Heights vs Vorticity:
1/3/88 00z.
1/3/88 12z. 
1/4/88 00z. 
1/4/88 12z. 
1/5/88 00z.
1/5/88 12z. 
1/6/88 00z. 
1/6/88 12z. 
1/6/88 18z.
1/7/88 00z. 
1/7/88 06z. 
1/7/88 12z. 
1/7/88 18z.
1/8/88 00z. 
1/8/88 06z. 
1/8/88 12z. 
250mb
Analysis:
1/6/88 12z. Below are the 250mb winds
for 12z on the 6th thru 00z on the 8th. I have circled the areas where
I believe vertical motions were enhanced to the ageostrophic
circulations present in the right front entrance region of a 250mb jet
streak. Notice at 12z on the 6th the 120-140 kt jet streak across the
Ohio Valley and into the Mid-Atlantic regions. The area circled lies in
the right front entrance region of this jet streak. And indeed, it was
during the day of the 6th when the record heavy snow fell across
Oklahoma and Arkansas. This jet streak propagates eastward thru time
and so does the area of enhanced lift. It moves across Tennessee, the
northern portions of Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and
across North Carolina thru the days of the 6th and 7th.
250mb Winds
250mb Winds
1/6/88 18z. 
1/7/88 00z. 
1/7/88 06z. 
1/7/88 12z.
1/7/88 18z. 
1/8/88 00z. 
Below are vertical cross sections of the ageostrophic circulation vectors from Lubbock, Texas (LBB) to Norfolk, Virginia (ORF) for selected times. The vectors (arrows) pointing upward indicate upward motion. Notice at 15z the upward vectors just left of the second mountain peak from the left. This is in the approximate locations of Oklahoma and Arkansas, and indicate that in these areas strong upward ascent was occurring in the 700mb to 300mb layer. Also notice by 12z on the 7th, the very strong upward motions to the right of the mountain peaks (which are indicative of the Appalachian mountain range) indicating that there was also an upslope enhancement to the areas of the foothills and western piedmont of the Carolinas and Virginia, which could explain the enhanced accumulations in those areas. Vertical Cross Sections: (Lubbock, Tx to Norfolk Va) Ageostrophic Circulation:
1/6/88 15z.
1/6/88 21z. 
1/7/88 12z. 
1/7/88 15z. 
1/7/88 18z.
700mb
Analysis:
700mb Omega:Now let's look at the 700mb
maps. First off the 700mb omega maps, you can see from these maps that
the highest upward accelerations, (negative omega), are in the general
areas I circled above. At 15z on the 6th, we see significant upward
motion over central, southern, and eastern Oklahoma, as well as
northeast Texas, and western Arkansas. Throughout the rest of the day
on the 6th the upward motions translate east, at 03z on the 7th, you
can see the -16ub/s upward motions over south-central Arkansas where
heavy snow was recorded. Notice by 12z on the 7th, the increase in the
upward vertical motions over the Carolinas, and the enhancement to this
over the eastern slopes of the Appalachian
Mountains by 15z. These
translate east and are out of the picture by 9z on the 8th.
1/6/88 15z.
1/6/88 21z. 
1/7/88 00z. 
1/7/88 03z. 
1/7/88 06z.
1/7/88 09z. 
1/7/88 12z. 
1/7/88 15z. 
1/7/88 21z.
1/8/88 00z. 
1/8/88 03z. 
1/8/88 06z. 
1/8/88 09z.
The 700mb RH gives you an approximate idea of where the clouds were with this system. You can see that the highest RH values are in north Texas, Oklahoma, and western Arkansas on the morning of the 6th, and you can see the system move east with time.
700mb RH:
1/6/88 12z.
1/6/88 18z. 
1/7/88 00z. 
1/7/88 06z. 
1/7/88 12z.
1/7/88 18z. 
1/8/88 00z. 
1/8/88 06z. 
UNDER CONSTRUCTION