WeatherWatcher: Arctic Air, Snow possible this week

 

Snow in Shoreline, January 2012
Photo by Carl Dinse.

We went from looking like a rare La Niña winter, escaping any major snow event, to a change in the forecast for this week. Sunday night into Monday morning colder air is moving in place with a convergence zone that could drop 1-2 inches of snow north of Seattle in a narrow east-west band. The accumulations are not expected to stick around on the roads very long, if at all.

North winds are expected to continue through the week, bringing us more and more arctic air through the Fraser river gap in British Columbia. Temperatures are expected to cool down, with daytime high of 40°F on Monday, dropping to the low to mid 30's through the remainder of the week. Low temperatures are expected to drop into the 20's, with Thursday morning possibly dropping into the upper teens. 

This will be the coldest air we've had in our region so far this winter. 

What about snow? There has been huge uncertainty in the forecasts, but as of this writing, we are looking at a slight chance of spotty snow showers or flurries through Wednesday evening. There isn't a lot expected in accumulations - possibly 1-2 inches by Wednesday - though any snow is unlikely to survive the daytime warmth over the next two or three days.

Thursday and Friday, however, it looks like we could have a significant widespread snow event move in. It's looking to be between 2-8 inches of snow. Some models show double that amount but again, this is highly uncertain. I'll be more comfortable giving a forecast as we get closer to mid-week.

Long range forecasts are hinting that the following week could be cold, with more opportunities to see some snow in the area. Keep a close eye on the weather forecasts this week, it could be a wild one.

For current weather conditions visit www.shorelineweather.com