A winter storm sweeping through the U.S. South on Tuesday has brought snow in amounts that many residents have never seen before. The rare and frigid storm passed through Texas and the northern Gulf Coast, blanketing cities like New Orleans and Houston. The event led to highway closures, flight cancellations, and school closures affecting over a million students. As the snow piled up, some residents took the opportunity to enjoy the unusual sight, with children in particular engaging in snowball fights.
Moisture from the Gulf of Mexico mixed with a low-pressure system and cold air, resulting in significant snowfall in certain areas. For instance, near Lafayette, Louisiana, snow accumulated to 10.5 inches by Tuesday afternoon, almost reaching the state record of 13 inches set in 1960. The National Weather Service reported 7 to 8 inches of snow in areas between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, breaking the city’s previous record of 2.7 inches set in 1963. In Texas, the Houston-Galveston area received 2 to 4 inches before midday.
One notable aspect of the storm was the issuance of the first-ever blizzard warning by the National Weather Service office in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Social media videos shared by the NWS Mobile office even showed people enjoying a snowball fight on the beach in Orange Beach, Alabama, a place usually associated with warm weather. Tom Kines, a meteorologist with AccuWeather, described the event as a “once-in-a-lifetime” occurrence for many in the region, especially for children who had never seen snow before.
This rare snowstorm has disrupted the usual weather patterns in a region that typically faces hurricanes rather than snow. In Houston, for example, residents are more accustomed to tropical storms, not winter weather. This storm is a stark contrast to other major weather events that have impacted the area, such as Hurricane Beryl in July.
The storm also affected Florida, where it appears to have broken the state’s snow record of 4 inches, set in Milton in 1954. According to the National Weather Service’s Mobile office, Pensacola saw 5 inches of snow, and Mobile’s airport recorded 6.2 inches, surpassing the old record of 5 inches set in 1881.
Though the snowfall near Lafayette, Louisiana, did not match the historic Valentine’s Day snowstorm of 1895 that dumped up to 19 inches in Houston, it still stood out as a rare event. Despite not reaching the monumental totals of the 1895 storm, this recent storm has been significant for its impact on the region.
The unusual weather pattern is being linked to the shifting Arctic polar vortex, which typically traps cold air over the North Pole. However, the vortex has extended southward, pushing frigid air down into the United States. This phenomenon has brought unusually low temperatures to much of the continental U.S. The extreme cold has led to wind chills as low as 10 to 15 degrees in parts of Texas, where an extreme cold warning has been issued.
Scientists are increasingly connecting these types of polar vortex disruptions with climate change. Studies have shown that warming in the Arctic, driven by human emissions, is reducing the temperature difference between the Arctic and lower latitudes. This disruption is making extreme weather events like the one seen this week more likely, affecting regions far from the usual path of such storms.
As these rare weather events become more frequent, the effects of climate change remain a major concern. Scientists continue to monitor these shifts, as they may have long-term implications for weather patterns across the globe.
For further information on climate change and extreme weather events, you can explore resources from organizations like NASA’s Global Climate Change Initiative and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
