Hope you enjoyed some of that warm winter sun (at least as warm as it can be this time of year) today. We’re heading into yet another nor’easter in this winter of seemingly unceasing storms.
(Quick sidebar: things will settle down in the long range, and discussion will switch to whether or not we hit 60° next weekend.)
This one packs more than a punch, it packs a lot of surprises. Initially, a sloppy, wet storm, after it crosses the Cape Cod Canal, it goes berserk and deepens at a breakneck pace.
Let’s begin…
- Start-up remains 7-9am. Snow will come down steady and occasionally moderate from the get-go.
- Mixing works in by late AM and early PM from the coast to Metrowest.
- Rain pushes in shortly thereafter with the rain/snow line stalling somewhere between 495 and 128.
- Temps warm to the 40s on the Cape.
- Winds pick up from sunup to sundown. Gusts to 50 near the coast late.
- Minor coastal flooding – mostly on Cape Ann Thursday night high tide.
Second phase of the storm is the tricky part. That gets underway after 8pm Thursday. Storm crosses the Canal and heads for The Gulf of Maine. As it does, it will drag the rain/snow line to the coast, and hammer us with a new batch of snow through the early morning on Friday. Winds will clock in at 50-60mph on the North Shore, Cape Ann to NH and Maine. This is when the storm is most intense, and when we could easily put down another 3-6 inches of snow areawide – including the coast. To the right, you can see the storm on approach (courtesy: Weather Bell Analytics)
And here it is after crossing the Cape. (Note how the winds surge off the Islands and on Cape Ann.)
As a result, we thing a few inches on the front end (as the storm approaches), some switchover/melting, then another hit into Fri. AM (as the storm intensifies).
That’s baked into these amounts. So, don’t go looking for these numbers by midday tomorrow. Remember, this is a 24hr storm, there’s plenty to play out tomorrow night.
If I had to pick one area that takes this storm on the chin, it’s the North Shore, Cape Ann, SE NH & Southern Maine. Once that storm turns to the “dark side” on Thursday night, it will crank wind, seas, and whip the snow into a frenzy through Friday morning. That’s not to say that the jackpot area on Rt. 2 will come away unscathed. A solid foot of semi-wet snow (good for snowballs) is destined for that area. Thankfully, the storm is not stalling, so we’ll clear out on Friday afternoon.
Another sneaky storm Saturday, then we’ll go quiet. And remember what I typed at the beginning of the blog…spring is on your side long term.
More ahead.
Pete