Nor'easter Alert: New England Residents Prepare as Storm Could Intensify Into Bomb Cyclone

A nor'easter alert is in effect across New England due to an approaching winter storm that could bring heavy snow, blowing winds, cold temperatures, blizzard conditions, and other winter weather hazards.

US weather forecast shows the winter conditions could manifest by early week and experienced by millions of Americans in the coming days, disrupting travel and causing life-threatening risks.

The US is on the edge of its 2022-2023 winter season. However, weather systems associated with the season is reportedly far from over as seen in recent weeks.

The remainder of March, wherein the spring season will enter, may lead to the continued occurrence of winter storms in the country's tier, which was struck by cold Arctic air earlier this year due to a polar vortex.

New England Nor'easter Alert

(Photo : Photo by JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images)
Waves crash over oceanfront homes during a noreaster in Scituate, Massachusetts, on January 29, 2022. - Blinding snow whipped up by near-hurricane force winds pummeled the eastern United States on January 29, as one of the strongest winter storms in years triggered severe weather alerts, transport chaos and power outages across a region of some 70 million people.

AccuWeather reported that residents of the US regions of Northeast and New England are bracing for a powerful nor'easter as this week entered.

Two weather systems will join forces, with the first being moving across the Upper Midwest and into the interior Northeast. Meanwhile, the second system is traversing to the Southeast and off the Carolina coast.

According to AccuWeather forecasters, the nor'easter could develop into a bomb cyclone, as the storm can be felt until Tuesday, March 14, bringing damaging winds and heavy snow. The hotspots or most-affected areas can be those along the coastline, including Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, and Maine.

The winter storm could also affect the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

Also Read: Nor'easter: Late-Season Winter Storm to Hit New England, Appalachians; Extreme Cold Weather Expected

Nor'easter Winter Storm

According to the National Weather Service (NWS), a nor'easter is a storm that forms along the East Coast of North America, and its name was coined as such since its winds are from the Northeast coastal area.

These storms may transpire at any time of the year but it can reach its maximum intensity between September and April.

The NWS cites some of the most notable nor'easters in history:

1888 Blizzard
1962 Ash Wednesday storm
1978 New England Blizzard or the "New England Blizzard of February 1978"
March 1993 "Superstorm"
2015 Boston Snowstorms or the "Boston Snowstorms of January and February 2015"

The US weather agency emphasizes that the US East Coast is an ideal breeding ground for nor'easters.

What is a Bomb Cyclone?

A bomb cyclone is a type of storm that normally develops during winter season above the ocean or off the coast; it starts in the temperate regions or latitudes of the world and strengthens quickly as the atmospheric in its center plummets at a significant rate, through a process called "bombogenesis," according to US weather authorities.

Meteorologist John Gyakum from McGill University in Canada explained that when the central pressure falls quickly, there will also be a sudden burst of intensifying wind speeds, as cited by the Wall Street Journal. Gyakum also co-authored a 1980 study which described the fundamental characteristics of a bomb cyclone.