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Winter storm watch -- Indicates severe winter weather such
as heavy snow or ice is possible within the next day or two.
Prepare now.
Winter storm warning -- Indicates severe winter weather
conditions are occurring, imminent or highly likely. Stay
indoors.
Heavy snow warning -- Snowfall of 6 inches or more in
north and central Illinois, 4 inches or more in southern Illinois.
Ice storm warning -- Heavy accumulations of ice will
create extremely dangerous travel and damage trees and power lines.
Blizzard warning -- Snow and strong winds will combine to
produce blinding snow, near-zero visibility, deep drifts and
life-threatening wind chill.
Wind chill warning -- Life-threatening wind chills of 25
below zero or colder.
Snow advisory -- Snowfall of 3 to 5 inches in northern and
central Illinois, 2 to 4 inches in southern Illinois.
Winter weather advisory -- Indicates winter weather
conditions will cause significant inconveniences and may be
hazardous, especially to motorists. Use caution.
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 Wind chill advisory -- Dangerous wind chills of 15 to 24
below zero.
Freezing rain advisory -- Light accumulations of ice will
cause hazardous travel.
Blowing and drifting snow advisory -- Poor visibility and
hazardous driving conditions.
Freezing fog advisory -- Very light ice accumulation on
roadways, bridge decks and overpasses, predominantly from fog,
causing hazardous travel.
Wind chill -- A calculation of how cold it feels outside
when the effects of temperature and wind speed are combined.
Freezing rain -- Rain that freezes upon impact with the
ground, creating a coating of ice on roads and walkways.
Sleet -- Pellets of ice created by frozen raindrops. Sleet
bounces when hitting a surface and does not stick to objects. An
accumulation of sleet can make roads slick and hazardous.
[From National
Weather Service guide provided by Chris Miller] |
Winter
weather terms
