ARLINGTON, Texas — When we see lake effect snow flying off of the Great Lakes in the Midwest and Northeast, it can bury folks in FEET of snow. In North Texas, it’s really just a few, glittery flurries and steam blowing off of our area lakes. It happened today at Lake Arlington. Our photojournalist, Josh Stephen caught some video:
How does it happen?
Let’s look at Lake Arlington in particular. The lake surface water temperatures were in the 50s. This is warm compared to the bitterly cold Arctic air sweeping through. Temperatures midday Saturday were in the teens and low 20s!
That sharp temperature contrast allows heat and moisture from the relatively warm lake to rise (or evaporate) before condensing into fog and snowflakes! The strong wind gusts (20-30mph) then carried the snowflakes south of the lake to produce flurries.
Wind plays a key role in determining what areas will experience the lake effect.
Winds are out of the north in North Texas this weekend, which means the best chances to see lake effect snow will be for those that are south of any major body of water.
If you catch any of these lake effect flakes, let us know!