Low pressure formed over Iowa as strong jet stream-energy dove into the Southern Plains.
November 4-6, 1988: Powerful, Slow-moving Storm
By Karl Bohnak
Wednesday, November 04, 2009 at 4:31 p.m.
Copious amounts of precipitation fell from a powerful, slow-moving storm that developed into the western Great Lakes in early November 1988.
Pacific energy dove from the northwestern states into the southern Plains on Friday, November 4, 1988. This energy induced the development of low pressure over Iowa (Image 1). An expanding area of rain formed around the low and headed northeast into Upper Michigan. Rain poured down all night into the next morning as the low deepened while drifting northeast. By early Saturday morning, the system was situated just off the shoreline near Manistee in the Lower Peninsula. Almost two inches of rain fell at the National Weather Service (NWS) near Negaunee overnight into Saturday.
Under normal circumstances the low would continue northeastward and system precipitation would wind down and, if the air was cold enough, lake-effect rain and snow showers would occur. In this case, the storm barely moved over the next 24 hours as it continued to wind up. On Sunday morning, the low was over northern Lake Michigan not far off shore from Traverse City (Image 2). The central pressure of the storm fell to 976 millibars or 28.82 inches of mercury—an impressive November gale.
Its position just east of the western and central U.P. allowed just enough cold air to wrap in from the north to change rain to a soggy, wet snow in the higher elevations. Snow fell heavily accompanied by strong northerly winds. Nearly 19 inches was measured at the NWS. However near Lake Superior virtually no snow fell. Because of the slow movement of the storm excessive precipitation totals fell at all locations. Three-and-a-half inches of rain fell in Munising on the 4th and 5th, while around five inches was reported near Marquette along the lakeshore.
The 4.8 inches of rain and melted snow collected at the National Weather Service contributed to the wettest November on record in the Marquette area. By month's end, 8.25 inches of rain and melted snow was tallied. The average for the month is just over three-and-a-quarter inches.
