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{{Short description|Type of cyclone occurring in the northern Atlantic coast of North America}}{{Other uses}}{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2018}}File:Early January 2018 Nor'easter 2018-01-04 1345Z.jpg|thumb|upright=1|Nor'easter off the New England coast of the United States responsible for the January 2018 North American blizzardJanuary 2018 North American blizzard{{Weather}}A nor'easter (also northeaster; see below), is a large-scale extratropical cyclone in the western North Atlantic Ocean. The name derives from the direction of the winds that blow from the northeast. The term is commonly used in the winter in New England and Atlantic Canada. Typically, such storms originate as a low-pressure area that forms within {{convert|100|mi|km}} of the shore between North Carolina and Massachusetts. The precipitation pattern is similar to that of other extratropical storms. Nor'easters are usually accompanied by heavy rain or snow, and can cause severe coastal flooding, coastal erosion, hurricane-force winds, or blizzard conditions. They tend to develop most often and most powerfully between the months of November and March, because of the difference in temperature between the cold polar air mass that comes down from central Canada passes over the warm ocean waters off the upper East Coast, creating low pressure.WEB, Multi-Community Environmental Storm Observatory, Nor'easters, 2006, Multi-community Environmental Storm Observatory,weblinkweblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20071009034304weblink">weblink October 9, 2007, WEB,weblinkweblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20160214123432weblink">weblink February 14, 2016, Know the dangers of nor'easters, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, WEB, How stuff works, What are nor'easters?, 2006, January 22, 2008,weblink The susceptible regions—the upper north Atlantic coast of the United States and the Atlantic Provinces of Canada—are generally impacted by nor'easters a few times each winter.WEB, National Weather Service,weblink February 29, 2016, National Weather Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, WEB, AccuWeather.com,weblink WEB, L. Dove, Laurie, December 15, 2012, What's a nor'easter?,weblink

Etymology and usage

(File:Compass thumbnail.jpg|thumb|right|upright=.90|Compass card (1607), featuring the spelling "Noreast")The term nor'easter came to American English by way of British English. Early recorded uses of the contraction nor (for north) in combinations such as nor'-east and nor-nor-west, as reported by the Oxford English Dictionary, date to the late 16th century, as in John Davis's 1594 The Seaman's Secrets: "Noreast by North raiseth a degree in sayling 24 leagues.""nor'-east, n., adj., and adv." OED Online. Oxford University Press, January 2018. Web. March 13, 2018. The spelling appears, for instance, on a compass card published in 1607. Thus, the manner of pronouncing from memory the 32 points of the compass, known in maritime training as "boxing the compass", is described by AnstedAnsted. A Dictionary of Sea Terms, Brown Son & Ferguson, Glasgow, 1933 with pronunciations "Nor'east (or west)," "Nor' Nor'-east (or west)," "Nor'east b' east (or west)," and so forth. According to the OED, the first recorded use of the term "nor'easter" occurs in 1836 in a translation of Aristophanes. The term "nor'easter" naturally developed from the historical spellings and pronunciations of the compass points and the direction of wind or sailing.{{Citation needed|date=September 2011}}As noted in a January 2006 editorial by William Sisson, editor of Soundings magazine,WEB,weblink Featuring Boating News, Stories and More, Soundings Online, August 18, 2012, use of "nor'easter" to describe the storm system is common along the U.S. East Coast. Yet it has been asserted by linguist Mark Liberman (see below) that "nor'easter" as a contraction for "northeaster" has no basis in regional New England dialect; the Boston accent would elide the "R": no'theastuh'. He describes nor'easter as a "fake" word. However, this view neglects the little-known etymology and the historical maritime usage described above.19th-century Downeast mariners pronounced the compass point "north northeast" as "no'nuth-east", and so on.{{Citation needed|date=November 2008}} For decades, Edgar Comee, of Brunswick, Maine, waged a determined battle against use of the term "nor'easter" by the press, which usage he considered "a pretentious and altogether lamentable affectation" and "the odious, even loathsome, practice of landlubbers who would be seen as salty as the sea itself". His efforts, which included mailing hundreds of postcards, were profiled, just before his death in 2005 at the age of 88, in The New Yorker.WEB, McGrath, Ben, Nor'Easter, The New Yorker: Tsk-Tsk Dept., Condé Nast, September 5, 2005,weblink June 3, 2013, Despite the efforts of Comee and others, use of the term continues by the press. According to Boston Globe writer Jan Freeman, "from 1975 to 1980, journalists used the nor'easter spelling only once in five mentions of such storms; in the past year (2003), more than 80 percent of northeasters were spelled nor'easter".WEB, Freeman, Jan, Guys and dolls, Boston Globe: The Word, The New York Times Company, December 21, 2003,weblink June 3, 2013, University of Pennsylvania linguistics professor Mark Liberman has pointed out that while the Oxford English Dictionary cites examples dating back to 1837, these examples represent the contributions of a handful of non-New England poets and writers. Liberman posits that "nor'easter" may have originally been a literary affectation, akin to "e'en" for "even" and "th'only" for "the only", which is an indication in spelling that two syllables count for only one position in metered verse, with no implications for actual pronunciation.WEB, Liberman, Mark, Nor'Easter Considered Fake, Language Log, January 25, 2004,weblink June 3, 2013, However, despite these assertions, the term can be found in the writings of New Englanders, and was frequently used by the press in the 19th century.

• The Hartford Times reported on a storm striking New York in December 1839, and observed, "We Yankees had a share of this same "noreaster," but it was quite moderate in comparison to the one of the 15h inst.""Snow Storm", The Hartford Times, Hartford, December 28, 1836
• Thomas Bailey Aldrich, in his semi-autobiographical work The Story of a Bad Boy (1870), wrote "We had had several slight flurries of hail and snow before, but this was a regular nor'easter".BOOK, Thomas Bailey Aldrich, The Story of a Bad Boy,weblink May 19, 2013, 1911, Houghton, Mifflin,
• In her story "In the Gray Goth" (1869) Elizabeth Stuart Phelps Ward wrote "...and there was snow in the sky now, setting in for a regular nor'easter".BOOK, Library of the World's Best Literature, Charles Dudley Warner, 1896,
• John H. Tice, in A new system of meteorology, designed for schools and private students (1878), wrote "During this battle, the dreaded, disagreeable and destructive Northeaster rages over the New England, the Middle States, and southward. No nor'easter ever occurs except when there is a high barometer headed off and driven down upon Nova Scotia and Lower Canada."BOOK, John H. Tice, A new system of meteorology, designed for schools and private students: Descriptive and explanatory of all the facts, and demonstrative of all the causes and laws of atmospheric phenomena,weblink May 19, 2013, 1878, Tice & Lillingston,

Usage existed into the 20th century in the form of:

• Current event description, as the Publication Committee of the New York Charity Organization Society wrote in Charities and the commons: a weekly journal of philanthropy and social advance, Volume 19 (1908): "In spite of a heavy "nor'easter," the worst that has visited the New England coast in years, the hall was crowded."BOOK, Charities and the Commons: A Weekly Journal of Philanthropy and Social Advance,weblink May 19, 2013, 1908, Publication Committee of the New York Charity Organization Society, unknown,
• Historical reference, as used by Mary Rogers Bangs in Old Cape Cod (1917): "In December of 1778, the Federal brig General Arnold, Magee master and twelve Barnstable men among the crew, drove ashore on the Plymouth flats during a furious nor'easter, the "Magee storm" that mariners, for years after, used as a date to reckon from."BOOK, Mary Rogers Bangs, Old Cape Cod: The Land, the Men, the Sea,weblink May 19, 2013, 1920, Houghton Mifflin, 182–,
• A "common contraction for "northeaster"", as listed in Ralph E. Huschke's Glossary of Meteorology (1959).BOOK, Ralph E. Huschke, Glossary of Meteorology,weblink May 19, 2013, 1959, American Meteorological Soc., 9780933876354,

The Pacific Northwest is also affected by a similar class of powerful extratropical cyclones, known as Pacific Northwest windstorms. While the storms on the East Coast are named "nor'easters", the Pacific Northwest windstorms are not called "nor'westers" because the cyclones' primary winds can blow from any direction, while the primary winds in nor'easters usually blow from the northeast.NEWS,weblink Weathercatch: The Northeast had a Nor'easter, why wasn't our storm a Nor'wester?, Nic Loyd, Linda Weiford, The Spokesman-Review, November 4, 2021, November 4, 2021,

Geography and formation characteristics

(File:Gulf Stream water temperature.jpg|thumb|upright=.90|Surface temperature of the sea off the east coast of North America. The corridor in yellow gives the position of the Gulf Stream.)

Formation

Nor'easters develop in response to the sharp contrast in the warm Gulf Stream ocean current coming up from the tropical Atlantic and the cold air masses coming down from Canada. Very cold and dry air rushing southward and meeting up with the warm Gulf stream current, which is typically near {{convert|70|F|C}} even mid-winter, often causes low-pressure areas to develop and intensify.In the upper atmosphere, the strong winds of the jet stream remove and replace rising air from the Atlantic more rapidly than the Atlantic air is replaced at lower levels; this and the Coriolis force help develop a strong storm. The storm tracks northeast along the East Coast, normally from North Carolina to Long Island, then tracks east toward the waters off Cape Cod. Counterclockwise winds around the low-pressure system blow the moist air over land. The relatively warm, moist air meets cold air coming southward from Canada. The low increases the surrounding pressure difference, which causes the very different air masses to collide at a faster speed. When the difference in temperature of the air masses is larger, so is the storm's instability, turbulence, and thus severity.WEB, Storm-E, Nor'easters, 2007, January 22, 2008,weblink dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20070626044252weblink">weblink June 26, 2007, mdy-all, The nor'easters taking the East Coast track usually indicates the presence of a high-pressure area in the vicinity of Nova Scotia.WEB, The Weather Channel, Nor'easters, 2007, The Weather Channel, January 24, 2016,weblink dead,weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20160408114440weblink">weblink April 8, 2016, mdy-all, Sometimes a nor'easter will move slightly inland and bring rain to the cities on the coastal plain (New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, etc.) and snow in New England (Boston northward). On occasion, nor'easters can pull cold air as far south as Virginia or North Carolina, bringing wet snow inland in those areas for a brief time.WEB, Multi-Community Environmental Storm Observatory, Nor'easters, 2006, January 22, 2008,weblinkweblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20071009034304weblink">weblink October 9, 2007, Such a storm will rapidly intensify, tracking northward and following the topography of the East Coast, sometimes continuing to grow stronger during its entire existence. A nor'easter usually reaches its peak intensity while off the Canadian coast. The storm then reaches Arctic areas, and can reach intensities equal to that of a weak hurricane. It then meanders throughout the North Atlantic and can last for several weeks.Meteorologists use the Miller classification to determine the track and severity of a nor'easter. The technique is named after J.E. Miller, who created the system in 1946.WEB, The Miller Classification, December 4, 2020, Priante, Mike,weblink WeatherWorks Inc., December 11, 2020, The Miller classification classified storms into two categories: type A and type B. Type A storms form in the Gulf of Mexico or along the coast of Georgia or South Carolina, and cause heavy snow mainly to parts of the inland upper south, Mid-Atlantic, New England, and Atlantic Canada. Type B storms form from a parent low-pressure system over the Ohio Valley, which then undergoes a center reformation over Gulf Stream off North Carolina or Virginia. These storms can bring a swath of wintry precipitation from the Great Plains and the Ohio River Valley to the Middle Atlantic and New England.REPORT, Types of Storms that Typically Produce Heavy Snow in PA,weblink National Weather Service State College, Pennsylvania, December 11, 2020,

Characteristics

Nor'easters are usually formed by an area of vorticity associated with an upper-level disturbance or from a kink in a frontal surface that causes a surface low-pressure area to develop. Such storms are very often formed from the merging of several weaker storms, a "parent storm", and a polar jet stream mixing with the tropical jet stream.Temperatures usually fall significantly due to the presence of the cooler air from winds that typically come from a northeasterly direction. During a single storm, the precipitation can range from a torrential downpour to a fine mist. All precipitation types can occur in a nor'easter. High wind gusts, which can reach hurricane strength, are also associated with a nor'easter. On very rare occasions, such as in the nor'easter in 1978, North American blizzard of 2006, Early February 2013 North American blizzard, and January 2018 North American blizzard, the center of the storm can take on the circular shape more typical of a hurricane and have a small "dry slot" near the center, which can be mistaken for an eye, although it is not an eye.

Difference from tropical cyclones

Often, people mistake nor'easters for tropical cyclones and do not differentiate between the two weather systems. Nor'easters differ from tropical cyclones in that nor'easters are cold-core low-pressure systems, meaning that they thrive on drastic changes in temperature of Canadian air and warm Atlantic waters. Tropical cyclones are warm-core low-pressure systems, which means they thrive on purely warm temperatures. However, in rare cases, such as the 1991 Perfect Storm, a small tropical cyclone can develop inside the warm seclusion of an intense nor'easter if the sea surface temperatures are sufficiently warm. Nor'easters can rarely also turn into tropical or subtropical cyclones, such as Tropical Storm Wanda in 2021.

Difference from other extratropical storms

A nor'easter is a strong extratropical cyclone, often experiencing explosive cyclogenesis. While this formation occurs in many places around the world, nor'easters are unique for their combination of northeast winds and moisture content of the swirling clouds. Nearly similar conditions sometimes occur during winter in the Pacific Northeast (northern Japan and northwards) with winds from NNW. In Europe, similar weather systems with such severity are hardly possible; the moisture content of the clouds is usually not high enough to cause flooding or heavy snow, although northeasterly winds can be strong.

Geography

The eastern United States, from North Carolina to Maine, and Eastern Canada can experience nor'easters, though most often they affect the areas in the Atlantic Canada and New England. The effects of a nor'easter sometimes bring high surf, strong winds and rain as far south as coastal South Carolina. Nor'easters cause a significant amount of beach erosion in these areas, as well as flooding in the associated low-lying areas.Biologists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution on Cape Cod have determined nor'easters are an environmental factor for red tides on the Atlantic coast.

List of notable nor'easters

{{Unreferenced section|date=March 2023}}{{See also|List of Northeast Snowfall Impact Scale winter storms|List of Regional Snowfall Index Category 5 winter storms|List of Regional Snowfall Index Category 4 winter storms}}A list of nor'easters with short description about the events.{| class="wikitable" valign=top! width=200 | Event! Date! Description valign=middle| Great Blizzard of 1888| March 11–14, 1888

40	50	cm}} of snow, killing 400 people, mostly in New York.

valign=middle| Great Appalachian Storm of November 1950| November 24–30, 1950

30	cm}} of snow in many major metropolitan areas along the eastern United States, with record-breaking temperatures, and hurricane-force winds. The storm killed 353 people.

valign=middle| Ash Wednesday Storm of 1962| March 5–9, 1962| Caused severe tidal flooding and blizzard conditions from the Mid-Atlantic to New England, killing 40 people. valign=middle| Eastern Canadian Blizzard of March 1971| March 3–5, 1971

32	cm}} of snow over areas of eastern Canada, killing at least 30 people.

valign=middle| Groundhog Day gale of 1976| February 1–5, 1976

56	cm}} of snow.

valign=middle| Northeastern United States blizzard of 1978| February 5–7, 1978

27	cm}} of snow in areas of New England, killing a total of 100 people, mainly people trapped in their cars on metropolitan Boston's inner beltway and in Rhode Island.

valign=middle| 1991 Perfect Storm (the "Perfect Storm," combined Nor'easter/hurricane)| October 28 – November 2, 1991| Very unusual storm in which a tropical and extratropical system interacted strangely, with tidal surge that caused severe damage to coastal areas (especially in Massachusetts), killing 13 people. valign=middle| December 1992 nor'easter| December 10–12, 1992| A powerful storm which caused severe coastal flooding throughout much of the northeastern United States. valign=middle | 1993 Storm of the Century| March 12–15, 1993| A superstorm which formed in the Gulf of Mexico, and brought high storm surge to Florida. It then grew so large that it affected the entire eastern U.S., in addition to parts of eastern Canada and Cuba, and was ranked as a Category 5 winter storm on the Regional Snowfall Index. It caused $6.65 billion (2008 USD) in damage and killed 310 people. valign=middle| Christmas 1994 nor'easter| December 22–26, 1994| An intense storm which affected the east coast of the U.S. and exhibited traits of a tropical cyclone. valign=middle| North American blizzard of 1996| January 6–10, 1996

4	cm}} of snow to areas of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern U.S.

valign=middle| North American blizzard of 2003| February 14–22, 2003

2	cm}} of snow in several major cities, including Boston and New York City, affected large areas of the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic U.S., and killed a total of 27 people.

valign=middle

White Juan>White Juan of 2004| February 17–23, 2004	Atlantic Canada, crippling transportation in Halifax Regional Municipality>Halifax, Nova Scotia, and dropping over {{convert	in|cm}} of snow in areas.

valign=middle| North American blizzard of 2005| January 20–23, 2005

40	cm}} of snow in areas of Massachusetts.

valign=middle| North American blizzard of 2006| February 11–13, 2006

30	cm}} of snow in some areas and killed 3 people.

valign=middle| April 2007 nor'easter| April 13–17, 2007| An unusually late storm that dumped heavy snow in parts of Northern New England and Canada and heavy rains elsewhere. The storm caused a total of 18 fatalities. valign=middle| November 2009 nor'easter| November 11–17, 2009

Hurricane Ida (2009)>Hurricane Ida, produced moderate storm surge, strong winds and very heavy rainfall throughout the Mid-Atlantic region. It caused US$300 million (2009) in damage and killed six people.

valign=middle| December 2009 North American blizzard| December 16–20, 2009

New York City, Philadelphia, Providence, Rhode Island>Providence, and Boston. In some of these areas, the storm brought up to {{convert	ft|cm}} of snow.

valign=middle| March 2010 nor'easter| March 12–16, 2010

Northeastern United States. Winds of up to {{convert>70	km/h}} snapped trees and power lines, resulting in over 1 million homes and businesses left without electricity. The storm produced over {{convert	in|cm}} of rain in New England, causing widespread flooding of urban and low-lying areas. The storm also caused extensive coastal flooding and beach erosion.

valign=middle| December 2010 North American blizzard| December 5, 2010 – January 15, 2011

36	cm}} of snow throughout much of the eastern United States.

valign=middle| January 8–13, 2011 North American blizzard and January 25–27, 2011 North American blizzard| January 8–13 and January 25–27, 2011

40	cm}} was recorded in Savoy, Massachusetts. Two people were killed.

valign=middle| 2011 Halloween nor'easter| October 28 – November 1, 2011

32	cm}} of snow in Peru, Massachusetts, and killed 39 people. After the storm, the rest of the winter for New England remained very quiet, with much lower than average snowfall and no other significant storms striking the region for the rest of the season.

valign=middle| November 2012 nor'easter| November 7–10, 2012

Hurricane Sandy a week earlier. The storm exacerbated the problems left behind by Sandy, knocking down trees that were weakened by Sandy. It also left several residents in the Northeast without power again after power had been restored following Hurricane Sandy. The highest snowfall total from the storm was {{convert>13	cm}}, recorded in Clintonville, Connecticut.

valign=middle| Late December 2012 North American storm complex| December 17–31, 2012| A major nor'easter that was known for its tornado outbreak across the Gulf Coast states on Christmas Day and giving areas such as northeastern Texas a white Christmas. The low underwent secondary cyclogenesis near the coast of North Carolina and dumped a swath of heavy snow across northern New England and New York, and caused blizzard conditions across the Ohio Valley, as well as an ice storm in the mountains of Virginia and West Virginia. valign=middle| Early February 2013 North American blizzard| February 7–18, 2013

2	cm}} of snow, especially Connecticut, Rhode Island, and eastern Massachusetts. The highest amount recorded was {{convert	in	Hamden, Connecticut, and Gorham, Maine, received a record {{convert>35.5	cm}}. Over 700,000 people were left without power and travel in the region came to a complete standstill. On the afternoon of February 9, when the storm was pulling away from the Northeastern United States, a well-defined eye could be seen in the center. The eye feature was no longer visible the next day and the storm quickly moved out to sea. The nor'easter later moved on to impact the United Kingdom before finally dissipating on February 20. The storm killed 18 people.

valign=middle| March 2013 nor'easter| March 1–21, 2013

Newfoundland and pivoted back heavy snow and strong winds into the Northeast United States for a period of 2 to 3 days. Many officials and residents were caught off guard as local weather stations predicted only a few inches (several centimeters) of snow and a change over to mostly rain. Contrary to local forecasts, many areas received over {{convert>1	cm	29	cm}} in Milton, Massachusetts. Several schools across the region, particularly in the Boston, Massachusetts, metropolitan area, remained in session during the height of the storm, not knowing the severity of the situation. Rough surf and rip currents were felt all the way southwards towards Florida's east coast.

valign=middle| January 2015 North American blizzard| January 23–31, 2015

Alberta Clipper in the Midwestern states, which was forecast to transfer its energy to a new, secondary low pressure system off the coast of the Mid-Atlantic (United States)>Mid-Atlantic and move northeastward and pass to the south and east of New England. After moving into the sea, the storm began to slowly pull away to the northeast, a little quicker than expected. The storm brought over {{convert

in

30

cm}} across the state of Massachusetts, breaking many records. A maximum of {{convert

in

Worcester County, Massachusetts>Worcester County in Massachusetts and the city of Worcester, Massachusetts

itself received {{convert>34.5

cm}}, marking the city's largest storm snowfall accumulation on record. Boston recorded {{convert

in

80

km/h}} along with sustained winds between {{cvt

and

mph|km/h}} at times, were reported. The storm also caused severe coastal flooding and storm surge.

valign=middle| October 2015 North American storm complex | September 29 – October 2, 2015| In early October, a low pressure system formed in the Atlantic. Tapping into moisture from Hurricane Joaquin, the storm dumped a significant amount of rain, mostly in South Carolina. valign=middle| January 2016 United States blizzard (also known as Winter Storm Jonas, Snowzilla, or The Blizzard of 2016 by media outlets)| January 19–29, 2016

2	3	cm}} of snow in the East Coast of the United States. States of emergency were declared in 12 states and the city of Washington, D.C., in advance of the storm. The blizzard also caused significant storm surge in New Jersey and Delaware. Sustained damaging winds over {{cvt	mph	85	km/h}} reported on Assateague Island, Virginia. A total of 55 people died due to the storm.

valign=middle| February 9–11, 2017 North American blizzard (also known as Winter Storm Niko by media outlets)| February 6–11, 2017

1	2	cm}} across the Northeast megalopolis. The storm also produced prolific thunder and lightning across Southern New England. Prior to the blizzard, unprecedented and record-breaking warmth had enveloped the region, with record highs of above {{cvt	F|C}} recorded in several areas, including Central Park in New York City. Some were caught off guard by the warmth and had little time to prepare for the snowstorm.

valign=middle| February 12–14, 2017 North American blizzard| February 12–15, 2017| valign=middle| March 2017 North American blizzard (also known as Winter Storm Stella, Blizzard Eugene, and Blizzard of 2017 by media outlets)| March 12–15, 2017| valign=middle| October 2017 North American storm complex| October 28–31, 2017

Tropical Storm Philippe (2017)#Preparations and impact>Tropical Storm Philippe. The combined systems became an extremely powerful nor'easter that wreaked havoc across the Northeastern United States and Eastern Canada. The storm produced sustained tropical storm force winds, along with hurricane-force gusts in many areas. The highest wind gusts recorded were {{cvt	mph	Popponesset, Massachusetts and Matinicus Isle, Maine. The storm caused over 1,400,000 power outages, with the worst occurring in Maine, where the vast majority of residents were in the dark immediately following the storm.HTTPS://WWW.NEWSCENTERMAINE.COM/ARTICLE/NEWS/LOCAL/CMP-SAYS-THE-2017-WINDSTORM-COST-69-MILLION-INCREASES-EXPECTED-FOR-CUSTOMERS/97-509179036	DATE=JANUARY 19, 2018, Damage across New England was very extensive. This was due to the combination of the high winds, heavy rainfall, saturated ground, and most trees still being fully leaved. Autumn foliage in parts of northern New England was removed from the landscape in a matter of hours due to high winds. Some residents in Connecticut were also without power for nearly a week following the storm. Heavy rain in Quebec and Eastern Ontario, with up to {{cvt	mm|in}} in the Canadian capital region of Ottawa, greatly interfered with transportation.

valign=middle| January 2018 North American blizzard | January 2–6, 2018| A powerful blizzard that caused severe disruption along the East Coast of the United States and Canada. It dumped snow and ice in places that rarely receive wintry precipitation, even in the winter, such as Florida and Georgia, and produced snowfall accumulations of over 2 feet (61 cm) in the Mid-Atlantic states, New England, and Atlantic Canada. The storm originated on January 3 as an area of low pressure off the coast of the Southeast. Moving swiftly to the northeast, the storm explosively deepened while moving parallel to the Eastern Seaboard, causing significant snowfall accumulations. The storm received various unofficial names, such as Winter Storm Grayson, Blizzard of 2018 and Storm Brody. The storm was also dubbed a "historic bomb cyclone", with a minimum central pressure of 948 mb, similar to that of a Category 3 or 4 hurricane valign=middle| March 1-3, 2018 nor'easter (also known as Winter Storm Riley by media outlets)| March 1–5, 2018| A very powerful nor'easter that caused major impacts in the Northeastern, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States. It originated as the northernmost low of a stationary front over the Midwest on March 1, which moved eastward into the Northeast later that night. A new low pressure system rapidly formed off the coast on March 2 as it slowly meandered near the coastline. It peaked later that day and began to gradually move out to sea by March 3. Producing over 2 feet (24 in) of snow in some areas, it was one of the most significant March snowstorms in many areas, particularly in Upstate New York. In other areas, it challenged storm surge records set by other significant storms, such as Hurricane Sandy. It also produced widespread damaging winds, with gusts well over Hurricane force strength in some areas across Eastern New England as well as on the back side in the Mid-Atlantic via a sting jet. Over 2.2 million customers were left without power. valign=middle| March 6-8, 2018 nor'easter (also known as Winter Storm Quinn by media outlets) | March 2–9, 2018

March 1-3, 2018 nor'easter>another nor'easter devastated much of the Northeast. Frequent cloud to ground Thundersnow as well as snowfall rates of up to 3 inches (7.6 cm) an hour were reported in areas around the Tri-State Area, signaling the rapid intensification of the storm. Late in the afternoon, an eye-like feature was spotted near the center of the storm. It dumped over 2 feet of snow in many areas across the Northeast, including many areas in New England where the predominant precipitation type was rain for the previous storm. Over 1 million power outages were reported at the height of the storm due to the weight of the heavy, wet snow on trees and power lines. Many people who lost power in the previous storm found themselves in the dark again.

valign=middle

2017–18 North American winter#Early–late March nor'easters>March 12–14, 2018 nor'easter (also known as Winter Storm Skylar by media outlets) | March 11–14, 2018	Explosive cyclogenesis>rapid intensification with a central Millibar	dropping down from 1001 mb to 974 mb in just 24 hours. This was the third major storm to strike the area within a period of 11 days. The storm dumped over up 2 feet of snow and brought Hurricane-force wind gusts to portions of Eastern New England. Hundreds of public school districts including, Boston, Massachusetts>Boston, Hartford, Connecticut	, and Providence, Rhode Island>Providence were closed on Tuesday, March 13.

valign=middle| March 20–22, 2018 nor'easter (also known as Winter Storm Toby and Four'Easter by media outlets)| March 20–22, 2018

List of United States tornadoes from January to March 2018>severe weather outbreak over the Southern United States on March 19 before moving off of the North Carolina coast on March 20 and spreading freezing rain and snow into the Mid-Atlantic States after shortly dissipating later that night. A new low pressure center then formed off of Chesapeake Bay on March 21 and then became the primary nor'easter. Dry air prevented most of the precipitation from reaching the ground in areas in New England such as Boston, Massachusetts

, Hartford, Connecticut>Hartford, and Providence, all of which received little to no accumulation, in contrast with what local forecasts had originally predicted. In Islip, New York at the height of the storm, snowfall rates of up to 5 inches per hour were reported. 8 inches was reported at Central Park and over 12 inches was reported in many locations on Long Island as well in and around New York City and in parts of New Jersey. Over 100,000 customers lost power at the peak of the storm, mostly due to the weight of the heavy, wet snow on trees and power lines, with a majority of the outages being in New Jersey.

valign=middle| Early December 2020 nor'easter| December 4–6, 2020| It brought up to 18 inches (46 cm) of snow in northern New England.valign=middle| Mid-December 2020 nor'easter| December 14–19, 2020|The nor'easter brought significant snowfall to metropolitan areas such as New York City, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., which eclipsed the entire snowfall total from the previous winter season, as well as Boston and Portland that saw over a foot of snow from the storm. It killed at least 7 people.valign=middle| January 31 – February 3, 2021 nor'easter| January 31 – February 3, 2021| The Groundhog Day Nor'easter of 2021 was a powerful Nor'easter that impacted the Northeastern United States and Eastern Canada. Large metropolitan areas such as New York City saw as much as 46-61 centimeters of snow accumulations from January 31 to February 2.valign=middle| April 2021 nor'easter (Also known as 2021 Spring nor'easter by media outlets)| April 15–17, 2021|valign=middle

October 2021 nor'easter>Late October 2021 Nor'easter| October 25–28, 2021	2021 Atlantic Hurricane Season#Tropical Storm Wanda>Tropical Storm Wanda. Over 607,000 customers lost power during the storm, with the majority of them in Massachusetts. The Nor'easter fell as high as 5 inches of rain in Hunter, New York.

2021–22 North American winter#Mid-April nor'easter>April 2022 Nor'easter|April 18–20, 2022

Southeastern United States, bringing heavy rain, wind, heavy snow, and coastal flooding to much of the Mid-Atlantic states. Further inland in areas like Pennsylvania, Upstate New York (state)>New York and New England, heavy snowfall fell as high as 6–12 inches (15–30 cm). Over 300,000 customers in the Northeast lost power, including 200,000 in New York. Virgil, New York saw 18 inches (46 cm) of snow, while Montrose, Pennsylvania saw 14.5 inches (37 cm) of snow.

|March 2023 nor'easter|March 13-15, 2023

Northern New England and Upstate New York, with up to {{convert>40	cm}} in isolated spots. The nor'easter brought very little snow to the coast.

See also

• Black nor'easter
• Alberta clipper
• Cold-core low
• Panhandle hook
• Sudestada
• Winter storm
• Pacific Northwest windstorm
• Aleutian low
• European windstorm
• Polar vortex
• Cold wave

References

{{Reflist|30em}}

External links

{{Commons category|Nor'easters}}

• Blizzard Video: Dec 9, 2005 (duration: 9m59sec)
• Archived issues of weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20061208172105weblink">NOR'EASTER (Magazine of the Northeast Sea Grant Programs), published until 1999.
• weblink" title="web.archive.org/web/20071222203840weblink">Duxbury, Massachusetts April 2007 Nor'easter photos

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