This is the next in an occasional series of diaries on the state of Northern Hemisphere Arctic sea ice (and other topics as warranted), written in memory of Johnny Rook, who passed away in early 2009. He was the author of the Climaticide Chronicles.
December 26 we lost our snow cover after a week with at least 7" on the ground. But the storm that plagued the Midwest and South Central U.S. pulled in mild air from the southeast into the Mid-Atlantic states; Christmas afternoon through Saturday noon featured rain and fog; the fog resulting from mild moist air in contact with cold snow pack. And that fog was quite the snoweater; as water vapor changes to water droplets, heat is released which rapidly increases the melt rate of the snowcover.
There have been many days recently featuring gloomy greyness with an active southern storm track resulting in greater than usual rainfall, snowfall, and cloud along the southern tier of the U.S. and up the Atlantic coast. This is common with moderate to strong El Niño events in these areas. The recent storm in the Midwest was not your typical El Niño pattern storm at all, however.
The story from the Arctic follows.