Brrr…. Cold enough for you this morning? It was for me as temperatures started off in the single digits for many of the suburbs thanks to clear skies and little wind last night. Overall, not a bad rebound though as many towns reached the low 30s by this afternoon. You know to get the snow you need the cold, and we certainly have that in place…. at least to start the storm.
Patchy flurries and light snow breaks out for many towns this evening and becomes a bit steadier a couple hours either side of midnight. This is the time frame where much of southeast Mass, and towns along the coast, have the best chance to pick up a coating to an inch. By daybreak tomorrow, we’re already over to rain at the coast and through much of Southeast Mass. Inland, the flip to rain is a bit slower, but even there, as the heaviest precipitation comes in, so does the milder ocean air at the surface and warmer air aloft. Bottom line, even inland well switch from snow to ice to rain between 7-10am. The farther north and west you are, the slower the changeover time with northern Worcester County and Southwester NH getting the most snow in our area (Berkshires to our west see the most in the state). The morning commute likely features mainly wet roads inside I-95 with slicker travel to the north and west, especially near and west of 495. By Noon, the rain wraps up for most towns with a few leftover showers lingering across Southeast Mass until early afternoon. We’re dry for the Pats game with afternoon temps in the 40s and kickoff temps back into the lower to mid 30s.
Snow totals run a coating to a couple inches for most towns inside 495 with the lowest totals near the coast. Outside 495, the potential of 3-5″ is there with the highest totals for northern Worcester and interior southern New Hampshire.
Once this storm departs us, were in for a couple quiet days on Tuesday and Wednesday. By Thursday, an Arctic front comes blasting on through with a couple snow showers, a gusty wind, and bitter air. Thursday afternoon temps hold in the 20s or fall into the teens and head for near 0 by Friday morning. With a gusty wind, wind chills by Friday morning run -15 to -25!
Despite being that cold… our next storm on Saturday starts as snow, only to turn to ice and then rain by Saturday night.
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