They're called ice chimes, in the image above. These were photographed along the Susquehanna River in Selinsgrove, Pa., although we've seen them often along the Delaware River in New Jersey.
Near as we can tell, ice chimes are formed when overhanging branches are low enough above a river or stream that's large or fast enough to create wavelets to lap up against the branches periodically, creating these unique formations. If you're looking for a more scientific explanation for them than that, well, sorry!
Yesterday's high temperature of 64 at 12:51 p.m. in Central Park tied the record high set for the date back in 1937. But for the second (really the third) day in a row we failed to establish a new record high during this warm spell. And for the record, wind gusts peaked around 48 mph across the area yesterday afternoon.
We're entering once again into a progressive weather pattern, with a storm system quickly taking shape in the Mississippi Valley and heading this-a-way. The rain should get here by late this afternoon, and last through the overnight into tomorrow morning.
This system will be able to tap into Gulf of Mexico moisture, giving us perhaps as much as an inch of rain. So yes, there will be nuisance ponding --- watch out for it!
The warmth of recent days, meanwhile, has faded. Today's forecast high temp is "just" 54, with temperatures continuing to drop into the weekend. There's talk of a coastal storm for late Sunday into Monday, when temps here could be cold enough for snow. More on that tomorrow.
Yesterday's extreme temperatures in the contiguous United States --- High: 86 at Plant City. Fla.; Low: -6 at Alamosa, Colo.