"Bombo"-what? Bombogenesis. It's not a word you expect to hear from your local meteorologist. So what is it exactly? And what's with the mishmash of strange weather vernacular over the past few months?

On Tuesday, meteorologist John Bolaris at Philly.com was the first to use the term "bombogenesis" to describe the large, fast-moving snowstorm that was heading toward the East Coast. NPR journalist Mark Memmott noticed the unusual word and wrote his own article called "What Is This Bombogenesis And Why Is It Dumping Snow On Us?" Memmott's story went viral and brought national attention to the word.

But these two writers were not the first to use this term and other terms that have been popularized this winter.

The odd