Winter Storm

Here's What Four Nor'easters in Three Weeks Looks Like From Space

At a Glance

The East Coast has endured four nor'easters in three weeks.
All four of the winter storms had a similar appearance on satellite imagery.

Four nor'easters in three weeks have brought misery to millions along the Eastern Seaboard this month, while also giving meteorologists déjà vu when examining each storm on satellite imagery.

The nor'easters can be seen in the images below taken March 2 (Winter Storm Riley), March 7 (Winter Storm Quinn), March 13 (Winter Storm Skylar) and March 21 (Winter Storm Toby).

(MORE: Winter Storm Central)

All four nor'easters have the classic comma-shaped appearance typically seen in satellite imagery when these powerful storms develop.

Of the three, Riley and Skylar have the most striking appearance. Both storms underwent bombogenesis, a meteorological term to describe the rapid strengthing of a low-pressure system. This is measured by an atmospheric pressure drop of 24 millibars in 24 hours.

All nor'easters are unique in the impacts they produce in any one location, even though they can look similar.

Riley's legacy is serious coastal flooding, particularly in Massachusetts, and damaging winds that knocked out power to more than 2 million.

Heavier snow occurred during Quinn near the highly-populated Interstate 95 corridor when compared to Riley. Snowfall rates of 1 to 3 inches per hour were observed from eastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey to southern New England. Widespread power outages also occurred in Quinn given the heavy, wet nature of the snow.

Skylar brought widespread snow accumulations of more than a foot to New England and blizzard conditions near the immediate coast.

Winter Storm Toby's snow is piling up farther south compared to the other three nor'easters, including the Washington D.C., and Baltimore metro areas.

(MORE DETAILS: Quinn | Riley | Skylar | Toby)