Dry and warm air aloft this morning

An impressive subsidence inversion is in place over western SD this morning. The UNR sounding shows warming and drying with height just above the surface.

Current dew points (below top) and RH (below bottom) show this dry air mass in place over the region with the driest air at higher elevations.

This dry and warm air will inevitably remove some of the snowpack over the Black Hills. If sufficient snow is melted or sublimated, we may start to expose bare ground bringing a risk for piles escapes. I encourage all land owners and managers to closely monitor their local snow conditions to assess potential for fires to creep away from the piles. This concern will amplify through the week as little precipitation is expected.