First Named Winter Storms Included Blizzard, Post-Sandy Snow Event

November 16,2016

Tracks for the first winter storm of the season since 2012.

November typically brings the first named winter storm of the season to the Lower 48 states.
(MORE: 2016-2017 Winter Storm Names | Science Behind, Criteria of Naming Winter Storms)
The Weather Channel began naming winter storms in the 2012-13 season, as an effort to improve communication of the threats from these events.
Here is a list of the previous other "season's first" winter storms since 2012, starting with a post-Sandy snow event.

Winter Storm Athena, Nov. 6-8, 2012

Rolling through the mid-Atlantic and Northeast just days after Superstorm Sandy, Athena dropped snow on areas from New Jersey to Massachusetts.
Central Park in New York City picked up 4.7 inches of snow, which was just one of a few daily snowfall records in the Tri-State area.
(MORE: Possible Winter Storm This Week | Winter Storm Central)
The highest snowfall total, 13.5 inches, occurred in Clintonville, Connecticut.

Winter Storm Athena seen by the Terra satellite on November 7, 2012.
(NASA/Terra/MODIS)

Winter Storm Atlas, Oct. 3-5, 2013

Bringing blizzard conditions, Atlas downed trees and stranded motorists in the northern Plains and northern Rockies.
More than two feet of snow fell in parts of western South Dakota, Wyoming, northern Nebraska and southern Montana.
In the satellite image below, you can see some of the snow left over after Atlas passed through Utah, Colorado, Idaho and Montana.

Winter Storm Atlas pictured by the Aqua satellite on October 4, 2016
( NASA/Aqua/MODIS)

(MORE: There's a Blizzard Alley?)

Winter Storm Astro, Nov. 9-11, 2014

Astro cut across the upper Midwest, dropping heavy snow in Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Snowfall totals ranged from just a few inches of seasonal first flakes to more than two feet in Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
After Astro passed the Great Lakes, winds following the storm enhanced lake effect snowfall, adding to the snowpack in northern Michigan and far northern Wisconsin.
(MORE: Weather-Related Vehicle Accidents Deadlier Than Tornadoes, Floods, Hurricanes)

Winter Storm Astro as shown on the Aqua satellite on November 11, 2014.
( NASA/Aqua/MODIS)

Winter Storm Ajax, Nov. 15, 2015

More than 200 miles of interstate in the central Plains were closed due to whiteout conditions and icy roadways.
Ajax brought snow from California to Kansas, with the highest total coming in from Monument, Colorado, at 30 inches.

Satellite shot of Winter Storm Ajax on November 17, 2016.
( NASA/Aqua/MODIS)

2016-17

The first name of the season this year is "Argos," a city in Greece. In Greek mythology, it is the home of a number of kings, and people have lived in this location for the past 7,000 years.

MORE: Winter Storm Ajax 2015