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MONDAY JANUARY 7 - ALBERTA CLIPPERS
In the mid-19th century, sailing vessels with
tall masts and built for speed were
called "clipper ships." Meteorologists have
their own version of the "clipper ship,"
a type of storm that's fairly common during the winter.
I'm referring to the so-called "Alberta clipper,"
a fast-moving low-pressure system
that's born on the eastern slopes of the Canadian Rockies, in or near the province of
Alberta. These often race southeastward following a
track that eventually brings them
close to our area. But given the dry region
that they come from and their fast
movement, Alberta clippers usually bring us only a small accumulation, maybe an
inch or two at most.
Sometimes when these storms get off the East Coast, they intensify, but by that time
it's usually too late for more significant accumulation here. All we get is an
increasingly strong northwest wind that brings in lots of cold air behind the