Central Atlantic Storm Investigators 
 
Live Storm Investigation : Heat Wave
 
The storm system that whipped the Eastern U.S. with Severe Weather, Flooding, and Ice brought ahead of it extremely warm weather, breaking records all over the Eastern US.  Temperatures that were normal for May or June were experienced in the first weeks in January.  Member J. Ferrell has compiled the following report on the extreme temperatures:

Highlights:

1.) State College, PA (Member J. Ferrell) - Temperature 48 degrees above normal. At 7am on January 8, 1998, the temperature in State College PA was 66 degrees at the climo station, Penn State Univ.  The normal low temperature for that date at PSU is 18 degrees.

2.) Heating Degree Days were reduced to 0 as far north as Philadelphia, and Cooling Degree Days were recorded from Virginia south.

3.) Dewpoints were as high as 70 in the Carolinas at 11pm on 1/8 (see image plot below).

3.) High temperature records were being broken before the sunrise on January 8 with temperatures in the 70's as far north as Virginia (see image below).

4.) In Newark, NJ, this was the 4th time ever that the temperature hit 70 degrees in January; for that to happen this early in the month (8th) is tremendous!

5.) High temperature records broken by 10 or more degrees:

6.) Average temperature departures  > 30 degrees above normal for reporting climo stations on the East Coast: Images:

Click on any of the images below for a full-sized version.
 
 The Cause:
 
Low Pressure System Over The MidWest 11pm 1/8		  
Counterclockwise Rotation Of the Low Draws In Southerly Air 11pm 1/8		  
More Detailed Look At The Streamlines		  
Full-Size Streamlines For 10pm 1/8 Showing Pronounced Southerly Flow into the Mid-Atlantic States
 

The Effects:
  
11pm 1/7 - 63 Degrees At CASI HQ in Central PA		   
11pm Temperatures Over the Mid-Atlantic States		  
11pm Temperatures Over The Northeastern US
 
10pm Station Plots (North Mid-Atlantic) Show Temps In the 60's and 70's		  
10pm Station Plots  (South Mid-Alantic) Show Temps In the 70's and Dewpoints to 70 degrees!		  
8am 1/8 Temperatures In Northeast US - 70's Into VA; Unbelieveable!
 

Thanks to the following who posted these images which aided in our Storm Investigation:  CASI, PSU, Purdue University, Ohio-State University, The Storm Machine.  (C) of these image belongs to those people whose (C) appears on the images.