Last weekend, North Georgia was hit pretty hard with an ice storm and arctic winter weather blast. And while the storm largely missed Atlanta proper, we still had freezing temperatures, some ice accumulations, and some weather-related issues. This weekend, however, we’re looking at another impactful storm. Keep scrolling for all the details we know so far about this upcoming weekend’s winter weather.
Wait… what’s going on?
A low-pressure system will form near the Carolinas’ coast early Saturday and then intensify rapidly into a bomb cyclone. Blizzard conditions are possible on the southeast Virginia and northeast North Carolina coasts by Saturday night and significant coastal flooding possible by Sunday morning.
More than 25 million people in the Southeast are under winter storm watches, including some in Atlanta.
Hold up. A ‘bomb cyclone’? What’s that?
It might sound really scary, but the name bomb cyclone actually comes from the meteorological term ‘bombogenesis’, which, according to The Weather Channel, “refers to the central pressure of a low-pressure system dropping at least 24 millibars within 24 hours.”
In other words, it’s similar to the intensification meteorologists talk about when they are reporting on hurricanes. Bombogenesis is a similar phenomenon: a storm rapidly strengthening.
How will this weekend’s bomb cyclone affect Atlanta?
We can see from local weather models that Atlanta is on the edge of the storm this weekend, which means we aren’t positive yet which way it will go. Right now, the National Weather Service is predicting between 0.5 – 2″ of snow in Atlanta.
It’s also going to be dangerously cold this weekend, with the wind chill bringing temperatures down to the single digits and even into the negatives over the weekend.
If possible, stay indoors. If you MUST go outside, make sure to wear appropriately warm clothing, including covering hands, feet and head/ears.
If you need somewhere warm to stay, the City of Atlanta always announces warming centers before they open on their press release page, here.
Get ready for a cold weekend with possible snow, Atlanta. Stay safe and stay warm!