Friday’s weather wasn’t snow. It was graupel. Here’s what that means
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Friday precipitation in the Triangle was graupel — small ice pellets, not snow.
- NWS said some precipitation dried up before hitting the ground.
- Forecasters warn extreme cold Sunday night into Monday; wind chills may near zero.
Wintry precipitation, or threats of it, have plagued the Triangle this week.
On Friday, Dec. 12, with surface temperatures cold but above freezing, precipitation fell across parts of central North Carolina.
It’s not snow. It’s not rain. It’s graupel.
“Very small sleet is basically what it is,” said Gail Hartfield, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Raleigh, in a phone interview.
The precipitation can also be called small ice pellets, Hartfield said.
Some precipitation is drying up before it hits the surface, as it passes through a dry layer. But some precipitation doesn’t dry up and reaches the ground. However, the precipitation is not enough to accumulate or cause any real hazards, Hartfield said.
“If there’s snow falling, it can survive a trip to the ground, even though the ground is above freezing,” Hartfield said.
The precipitation should clear out by sunset Friday, Hartfield said.
Sub-freezing temperatures coming soon
Meteorologists are expecting extremely cold temperatures in the Triangle on Sunday night, Dec. 14 into Monday, Dec. 15.
Temperatures should be in the teens, Hartfield said.
“It won’t take much wind to drop the wind chills down into the single digits and perhaps close to zero,” Hartfield said.
