A cold front moving into Texas late Sunday could bring snow to parts of the state early next week, following an unseasonably warm Christmas weekend.

Temperatures across much of Texas are expected to stay in the 70s and 80s through Sunday. But a shift in the weather pattern is forecast to send colder air south overnight into Monday, raising the possibility of light snowfall in the Panhandle and parts of West Texas.

“Late Sunday night into Monday morning, we’re expecting a change in the atmospheric weather pattern,” said Kenny Greening, meteorologist at the National Weather Service (NWS) in Midland. “Our confidence in snow falling isn’t that high, though it’s in the forecast because the models are definitely showing that it’s a possibility,” he told the Midland Reporter-Telegram.

Why It Matters

Snowfall in Texas is rare due to its geographic location and typically warmer climate. Much of the state lies far south of the jet stream, meaning Arctic air masses don’t frequently reach deep into the region. Most snowfall there occurs in mid- to late January, when average temperatures are at their lowest.

What To Know

The NWS says there is a low chance of snow in the Midland-Odessa area early Monday, with a 20 percent to 35 percent chance, depending on how moisture and cold air arrive and overlap. Temperatures are expected to drop sharply, with highs near 43 degrees and lows falling to around 28 by Monday night.

The shift begins Sunday evening, when temperatures fall from a high near 72 degrees to an overnight low around 34. Any snow would likely fall before sunrise Monday, followed by mostly cloudy skies for the rest of the day.

Other parts of Texas are predicted to see weather changes as well. In El Paso, there is a 30 percent chance of showers late Sunday night, with rain expected to continue into Monday. Cities in East and Southeast Texas, including Houston, Beaumont and San Antonio, could also see rain starting Sunday evening. Lows in those areas are expected to stay above freezing, but travel could be affected by wet roads.

In Laredo, winds are expected to pick up through the weekend, with breezy conditions likely to continue as the front moves through. While snowfall is not in the forecast for South Texas, residents across the Lone Star State are being advised to monitor conditions and prepare for colder weather early next week.

What People Are Saying

Greening, to the Midland Reporter-Telegram: “Our confidence in snow falling isn’t that high, though it’s in the forecast because the models are definitely showing that it’s a possibility.”

What Happens Next

The NWS will continue monitoring the storm system and refine the forecast as models develop.

Bigger, better, Texas. The entire U.S. has been actively working towards the global mission of achieving net zero by 2050, while also trying to meet its own climate goals. To make this possible, significant investments have been made in expanding the country’s hydrogen infrastructure, with Texas also looking for hydrogen. Instead, it may produce 1.4 million tons of “something that eats CO₂.” With so many investments and so little time, will Texas and the rest of the U.S. meet their goals? Let’s find out.

Expanding the U.S. hydrogen infrastructure

Hydrogen plays a key role in mitigating the effects of climate change, and especially plays a vital role in boosting the U.S.’s energy security while promoting economic growth. It is for these very reasons that the U.S. has been actively expanding its hydrogen infrastructure, as clean hydrogen will assist the country in achieving a zero-carbon power grid by 2035.

One of the states significantly invested in expanding its infrastructure is Texas. As far as perceptions go, “everything is bigger in Texas,” so its clean energy infrastructure may as well be also. The expansion shouldn’t be a problem, as according to the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, the state’s existing infrastructure is already significant, boasting more than 900 miles of pipelines and gigantic underground salt cavern storage plants.

However, Texas may be looking for additional hydrogen, but it may start producing 1.4 million tons of “something that eats CO₂,” instead. Find out more below.

Texas went looking for hydrogen

Seeing as Texas’s electricity demand could almost double in six years, investments in expanding its infrastructure have never been more vital than before. Existing infrastructure that will expand includes Air Liquide’s $50 million strategic upgrades to its facilities’ pipeline system, as well as new compression and distribution equipment.

Another expansion strategy of Texas includes a 240 MW Green Ammonia Project, for which Synergen Green Energy has chosen Electric Hydrogen. The project will be integrating two of Electric Hydrogen’s flagship 120 MW HYPRPlants.

These plants will form part of the project’s front-end engineering and design (FEED) agreement. Once fully operational, 210,000 tons of ammonia will be produced annually, which will be used for European and Asian maritime and industrial applications. However, Electric Hydrogen will also help Texas produce “something that eats CO₂.”

It may produce 1.4 million tons of “something that eats CO₂”

Electric Hydrogen is no stranger to Texas. In fact, one of its electrolyzer systems is already operational at the Roadrunner Power-to-Liquids Facility in Pecos. HIF Global also selected the company to provide large-scale electrolyzer plants for its e-fuels-based facility for the ‘Matagorda’ project. The $7 billion project will reportedly generate 1.4 million tons of e-methanol annually.

This will be achieved by combining captured CO₂ with hydrogen. The company’s HYPRPlant technology is becoming increasingly popular as:

• It uses flagship proton exchange membrane (PEM) technology
• It is powered by renewable power
• It produces cost-effective, clean hydrogen at a commercial scale
• The plant’s installation costs are nearly 60% more cost-effective compared to others

“Our HYPRPLANT technology makes it possible for customers like Synergen Green Energy to produce radically low-cost hydrogen today. This collaboration reflects our shared commitment to accelerating the energy transition and delivering scalable solutions to enable new advanced fuel economies in the U.S. and globally.” – Electric Hydrogen CEO, Raffi Garabedian

So, while Texas has been looking for hydrogen, it has also stumbled upon more strategic ways to improve its current infrastructure and energy security. These projects will help the state to accelerate the renewable energy transition locally and globally, while promoting job growth within the sector and boosting its exports to generate much-appreciated income. For now, the U.S. energy market is dominated by the Permian Basin, but all of that could change soon.

Post Views: 0

Kelly Fox decided to throw a bit of chance into her children’s Christmas gifts this year by buying them all Powerball tickets.

“It was for fun,” Fox said. “Let’s see if we win.”

Her generosity could pay off, as the estimated jackpot is $1.7 billion. The cash option for the prize exceeds $781 million. But the Fox family doesn’t have the exclusive lockdown on playing the fantasy-rich Powerball, where the odds are 1 in about 292 million.

Fuel City on S. Riverfront in Dallas is dealing with the frenzy and the dreams. Jason Flores is working his first Powerball rush. The 17-year-old has been on the job for only four months.

“I actually had a customer come up here the other day. They bought $3,000 worth of Powerball,” Flores said. “And then we had another customer come up here the other day that bought 300. And then today we had a customer buy $100 worth.”

The teen cashier and stocker have to figure out how the customer wants the tickets: all on one ticket, separate, or another preference. As the transactions are occurring, dreams and promises fill the air.

“We’ve had a lot of people come in here and just be like that they’re going to buy their dream house, their dream car, and, you know, put half of it into a savings account,” he said. “Other people that want to just ball out and buy everything. And we always have some customers that have us, the cashiers, as a lucky charm.”

Flores said customers ask him and other workers to bless the tickets. That’s where multi-million dollar promises, he said, have been made to him. If the ticket holder became a winner and honored their word, the teen would become a millionaire.

“One said $10 million, $2 million, $5 million,” he said.

Flores, who simply holds the ticket up and declares it a winner, has not quit his day job for the promises, yet. Even he dreams of the change such currency could bring to his family’s life.

In the meantime, most of Fox’s children decided their winnings would go toward a trip. There was a vote for college. Church donations came up. It will be a family decision for sure, according to the mother of eight.

“It’s got my signature on every single one of them,” Fox said.