Hang onto your hat! It's springtime in the Rockies!

Thursday the 16th, has proven to be an interesting day in southern Colorado. It started breezy and warm, transitioned to windy, with showers and thunderstorms, and will continue to evolve into 2 days of wind, rain and snow.

The culprit is a low pressure system about 20,000 feet in the air (for you up-and-coming meteorologists, that's the 500 millibar level), that will take its time moving across northern New Mexico. That means this isn't a "hit and git" storm, it's a "here's the way it would be all winter if you lived further north" storm.

Snowfall totals will vary WIDELY, but the most impressive will be in northern and western El Paso County, Teller County, the Wet Mountains and Wet Mountain Valley, the southern Foothills and the Sangre de Cristo's. (Initially, lots of the snow that falls will melt, then will become that wet, heavy spring snow that snaps trees and power lines.

Now then, during the couse of the day, a few terms that we haven't used for awhile came up, so here's a quick refresher on some definitions.

Severe Storm - one with any or all of the following:
a) Hail greater than or equal to 1" in diameter
b) Winds 58 mph or stronger
c) A Tornado

Graupel - We saw some of this from thunderstorms in the Colorado Springs area this afternoon. It's defined as either hard snow or soft hail. It looks like hailstones, but it's soft enough that you can crush it in your fingers. (You can't do that with a hailstone).

A Watch - means that whatever kind of weather it refers to is POSSIBLE. The elements are there, but there's still a question about whether or not it will come together.

A WARNING - means that the conditions are imminent or occurring.

As this storm develops, I'd appreciate it if you'd keep me updated with e-mails/photos of what it's doing in your neighborhood.