Blizzard Nemo is here and many are wondering why winter storms have names all of a sudden and why this storm is called Nemo?
While the National Weather Service names hurricanes and tropical storms, they don't name snowstorms, however the Weather Channel does! The Weather Channel has started putting names on notable snowstorms this year.
Why are winter storms being named? According to the Weather Channel, naming a storm raises awareness and giving a storm a name makes it easier to track it's progress. Naming storms gives it a personality. For social media purposes, it is easier to classify a storm by name rather than the general "a winter storm is coming." Finally, a storm with a name is easier to remember and can be referenced in the future.
"The fact is, a storm with a name is easier to follow, which will mean fewer surprises and more preparation," according to the Weather Channel.
Not everyone is a fan of the Weather Channel's decision to name storms,
"I think the preemptive decision by TWC to begin naming winter storms is, at best, a poor decision by a critical source of weather information and, at worst ... a gimmick," writes WJLA meteorologist Bob Ryan. "I call this a 'preemptive' decision because there was, from everything I have learned, no coordination of this decision to name winter storms with the National Weather Service or any of the professional groups."
So now that you know why winter storms are being named, why is this particular storm called "Nemo." It isn't named after the cute clown fish from the Disney film, "Finding Nemo," although many have already made memes for the storm featuring the character.
The storm is named for a different, much more intimidating Nemo. According to Bryan Norcross of the Weather Channel, the storm is Nemo is a Latin term for "no one" or "no man." The name also refers to Captain Nemo from "Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea."
"Captain Nemo was a pretty tough, fierce guy," Norcross told the New York Times.
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