Snowfall in the Northern Great Lakes: Lessons Learned from a Multisensor Observatory

A multisensor snowfall observational suite has been deployed at the Marquette, Michigan, National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office (KMQT) since 2014. Micro Rain Radar (MRR; profiling radar), Precipitation Imaging Package (PIP; snow particle imager), and ancillary ground-based meteorological observations illustrate the unique capabilities of these combined instruments to document radar and concomitant microphysical properties associated with northern Great Lakes snowfall regimes. Lake-effect, lake-orographic, and transition event case studies are presented that illustrate the variety of snowfall events that occur at KMQT. Case studies and multiyear analyses reveal the ubiquity of snowfall produced by shallow events. These shallow snowfall features and their distinctive microphysical fingerprints are often difficult to discern with conventional remote sensing instruments, thus highlighting the scientific and potential operational value of MRR and PIP observations. The importance of near-surface lake-orographic snowfall enhancement processes in extreme snowfall events and regime-dependent snow particle microphysical variability controlled by regime and environmental factors are also highlighted.

Automated summary

A multisensor snowfall observational suite has been deployed at the National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office in Marquette, Michigan since 2014, showcasing the unique capabilities of combined instruments in documenting radar and microphysical properties associated with snowfall regimes. The case studies and multiyear analyses reveal the ubiquity of shallow snowfall events and the importance of near-surface lake-orographic snowfall enhancement processes in extreme snowfall events. The study also highlights the value of MRR and PIP observations in revealing distinctive microphysical features of snowfall events.