The Superior Express -

In late 2022, area residents received multiple warnings about the winter weather expected to arrive with the new year. Daily newspapers published the weather forecast, cell phones lit up with weather alerts. Radio and television media were broadcasting storm alerts. The National Weather Service sent out a number weather bulletins via the internet and held at least one live weather briefing with weather reporters. Weather radio stations like the one located near the Nuckolls County ghost town of Smyrna were repeatedly warning of the approaching storm. Each warning contained a disclaimer about the accuracy of the forecast. The various forecast models the weather people use when preparing a forecast offered different scenarios of what might happen.

Depending upon where you were, the storm delivered a variety of conditions. There was rain, hail, sleet, ice and snow. The were thundersnow warnings but I don’t remember the weather service including the word “grauple.” I remember the first time I heard a forecaster use that word. I had no idea what it meant and asked a friend employed by the weather service what it meant. She admitted she didn’t know the meaning of the word and had to look it up. Wikipedia defines graupel as soft hail, hominy snow, or snow pellets. It is a precipitation that forms when supercooled water droplets are collected and freeze on falling snowflakes.

I thought of grapel as I walked to work Tuesday morning.

When I first looked out before sunup Tuesday, I was pleased to see no evidence of snow or ice and retreated to my basement office to read the morning newspapers posted on the internet.

When I next looked out, it was after sunrise and I was surprised to see the streets had turned white.

I don’t know the proper term to describe what I saw. The white stuff was too coarse for snow. It was much like frost on steroids. I don’t think it fit the graupel definition.

Weather forecasts were not always as easy to obtain as they are today nor did they include as much information. There was a time when residents of Superior got their weather news from a weather flag. That’s right, a flag.

The Superior weather flag served a useful purpose and was looked at daily by the people of the community just as today we turn on our radios or glance at our telephones for weather bulletins. The weather flag was not unique to Superior. All of the progressive pioneer towns had them when the their populations grew large, say past the four or five hundred mark. For Superior, the weather flag pole was at the intersection of Fourth and Central. When the weather report arrived at the town’s telegraph station, it would be rushed to the man who had charge of the weather flag. Different colors of flags and different designs told what was ahead.

The pioneers knew the time of day to look for the weather flag. With few trees or large buildings, it could be seen from most anywhere in town.

While the method of delivering weather news may have changed, one thing has not changed. While the forecasters try to accurately predict what will happen, when it comes to weather there is always a measure of uncertainty. Sometimes the forecast is right, sometimes it isn’t. As plains residents, we know to be prepared for a variety of weather conditions.