Not Snow, Not Hail, Not Sleet… Graupel!

You might have seen some frozen precipitation today. Was it snow? Or was it sleet? Or was it hail? No, it was actually graupel. Typically when the ground temperature is below 45 degrees and the temperature of the cloud is below 32 degrees, sometimes as low as 15 degrees, this temperature differential leads to instability. The snowflakes in the cloud are covered in super cooled water droplets (liquid water, which has a temperature below freezing). When the pellet is heavy enough, it will fall to the ground quickly enough to maintain its frozen characteristics.

These showers may continue for the Cape and Islands throughout the overnight and into the day on Monday. The water temperature is still in the 50s, so that increases the instability over the ocean.

High pressure will be building in for Tuesday. Election Day will likely be the warmest day of the week. Expect sunny skies and temperatures in the low 60s. Southern New England may see temperatures reach the mid and even upper 60s. We won’t break any records; the record high in Boston for November 7th was 74 degrees set back in 1938.

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