After a brief surge in temperatures on Thursday, a quiet but breezy cold front moved through Central Texas, setting the stage for another round of freezing nights this weekend.
While the system passed through Texas with little fanfare, it’s having a much bigger effect in Florida, where it’s creating a stir with the potential of snow showers near Tampa Bay. This setup is known as “Gulf-effect” snow, and is similar to lake-effect snow, except that it occurs along the Gulf Coast.
It’s a rare phenomenon that develops when frigid arctic air passes over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, where sea-surface temperatures are near 60 degrees. The sharp heat contrast creates atmospheric instability, or lift, leading to cloud development and narrow bands of snowy areas…