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Blizzard Stella Visits the Northeast

The major cities along the coast might have seen Blizzard Stella fizzle into rain and wind but here in the Upper Valley area around Hanover College, we got a big dump of snow.

A blizzard is a severe snowstorm characterized by strong sustained winds of at least 35 mph (56 km/h) and lasting for a prolonged period of time—typically three hours or more. A ground blizzard is a weather condition where snow is not falling but loose snow on the ground is lifted and blown by strong winds.

A nor’easter is a macro-scale storm along the upper East Coast of the United States and Atlantic Canada. It gets its name from the direction the wind is coming from. The usage of the term in North America comes from the wind associated with many different types of storms some of which can form in the North Atlantic Ocean and some of which form as far south as the Gulf of Mexico. The term is most often used in the coastal areas of New England and Atlantic Canada.

Recent Blizzards:

  • December 17–22, 2012 North American blizzard December 17–22, 2012
  • December 25–28, 2012 North American storm complex December 25–28, 2012
  • February 2013 nor’easter February 7–20, 2013
  • February 2013 Great Plains blizzard February 19-March 6, 2013
  • March 2013 nor’easter March 6, 2013
  • October 2013 North American storm complex October 3–5, 2013
    Buffalo, NY blizzard of 2014. Buffalo got over 6 feet of snow during November 18-20, 2014.
  • January 2015 North American blizzard January 26–27, 2015
    Late December 2015 North American storm complex December 26–27, 2015 Was one of the most notorious blizzards in the state of New Mexico and West Texas ever reported. It had sustained winds of over 30 mph and continuous snow precipitation that lasted over 30 hours. Dozens of vehicles were stranded in small county roads in the areas of Hobbs, Roswell, and Carlsbad New Mexico. Strong sustained winds destroyed various mobile homes.
  • January 2016 United States blizzard January 20–23, 2016
  • February 2016 North American storm complex February 1–8, 2016
  • February 2017 United States blizzard February 6–11, 2017