Alaska's cold boosts Hurrican Sandy's punch

While millions of people on the East Coast are still without power, and transportation on roads and rails in the New York area will be swamped for days due to Hurricane Sandy, inland areas on the east coast are seeing blizzards. According to the National Weather Service, this is because of cold air form Alaska that has moved south toward the midwest, and has been caught by the jet stream, incorporating the cold air into the western flank of the Tropical storm.

From the National Weather Services Facebook page:

“Part of the concern with Hurricane Sandy, and the resulting Nor’easter, is the amount of cold air available to the storm for heavy snow and blizzard conditions. Because of the amount of cold flowing into the storm setup from the jet stream’s stair-stepping position, Sandy has the potential to be a deadly and costly storm.”