Good evening from Southern Connecticut Weather!
In the wake of a coastal storm that left many places with over 6 inches of snow, and others with basically nothing, temperatures have fallen to some of the lowest levels of the season. Combined with stiff northwest winds, it is no picnic to be outside. Currently around the state we have temperatures ranging from the low teens in northwest Connecticut, to the upper teens and low 20s in southern Connecticut. Also there is a still a bit of a stiff breeze in southern Connecticut where the wind will sometimes gust to about 20 mph. So wind chills are still a factor in this part of the state.
Looking ahead to this evening, temperatures fall back just slightly as clouds begin to increase ahead of a disturbance to our south and west. Winds look to slacken this evening, temperatures across the state look to fall uniformly in the low to mid single digits, so definitely not as cold or windy as it was last night, but still frigid, mid winter conditions for sure. As we head through the overnight, expect snow to start funneling into the the state, first in the southern portion of the state right around dawn, and overspread the rest of the state by morning rush.
In the wake of a coastal storm that left many places with over 6 inches of snow, and others with basically nothing, temperatures have fallen to some of the lowest levels of the season. Combined with stiff northwest winds, it is no picnic to be outside. Currently around the state we have temperatures ranging from the low teens in northwest Connecticut, to the upper teens and low 20s in southern Connecticut. Also there is a still a bit of a stiff breeze in southern Connecticut where the wind will sometimes gust to about 20 mph. So wind chills are still a factor in this part of the state.
Looking ahead to this evening, temperatures fall back just slightly as clouds begin to increase ahead of a disturbance to our south and west. Winds look to slacken this evening, temperatures across the state look to fall uniformly in the low to mid single digits, so definitely not as cold or windy as it was last night, but still frigid, mid winter conditions for sure. As we head through the overnight, expect snow to start funneling into the the state, first in the southern portion of the state right around dawn, and overspread the rest of the state by morning rush.
Right now disturbance that will be causing the nuisance snows is currently affecting areas from Ohio down through Louisiana. The storm system will quickly move its way east and into the mid Atlantic region, where they look to get the brunt of the snows. Connecticut looks to get a relative scraping from this storm due to confluence to the north and the general progressive nature of the current pattern. As the initial storm system slides east into the Atlantic, it will become a somewhat potent coastal storm, but we will see only the light, northern fringes of the precipitation shield. Also, because the storm system is tracking so far away from us, wind and coastal flooding are of almost no concern.
As far as accumulations go, we are thinking generally on the light side. In the case of this system, south is best in terms greater snow accumulations. With the very cold airmass in place, there will be no changeover to rain or mixed precipitation, all columns of the atmosphere are plenty cold enough to support snow. Current thoughts on accumulations, a general 1-3 inches of snow look to fall south of I84, while a coating to 2 inches fall north of there. I am not ruling out the possibility that there could be a spot in southwest Connecticut that could accumulate 4 or 5 inches of snow, but that will be more the exception than the rule. What will allow a few inches of snow to fall despite there being a general lack of liquid in the area, is temperatures in the DGZ, or dendritic growth zone (where snowflakes are produced) will be plenty cold enough to support 15 or 20 inches of snow to 1 inch of liquid, so most of the state is expected to receive between .1 and .2 inches of liquid, these ratios will allow for a very powdery snow that will accumulate easily.
Timing for the snow looks to be a start of between dawn and the early morning rush statewide, and continuing through the early afternoon. As of right now, it does not look as though there will be any accumulating snows around for the PM rush. Again, this looks to be a minor, snow pack freshening snow and nothing major, but please do be careful as even the smallest coating of snow could cause travel problems. Temperatures for the duration of the snowfall look to to be generally in the 20s.
After the snow moves out later Tuesday afternoon and evening, cold air will still be in control with temperatures heading back down into the single digits under clear skies, but it looks like winds will be generally light as opposed to the after effects of the last departing coastal storm.
Timing for the snow looks to be a start of between dawn and the early morning rush statewide, and continuing through the early afternoon. As of right now, it does not look as though there will be any accumulating snows around for the PM rush. Again, this looks to be a minor, snow pack freshening snow and nothing major, but please do be careful as even the smallest coating of snow could cause travel problems. Temperatures for the duration of the snowfall look to to be generally in the 20s.
After the snow moves out later Tuesday afternoon and evening, cold air will still be in control with temperatures heading back down into the single digits under clear skies, but it looks like winds will be generally light as opposed to the after effects of the last departing coastal storm.
A quick look ahead to the Wednesday-Sunday time period shows that cold will still firmly be in place and will again be reinforced on Thursday, where low temps could possibly dip below 0 across most of the state. In fact, it looks as if low temperatures Saturday morning could be below zero as well. As far as storm systems go, we are watching for 2 separate disturbances, one on Wednesday which looks to bring some light snow, and one over the weekend which we will have to watch the track very closely. So still a very active, and cold pattern in place for sure, and looking long term, it does not look like the cold will break in the foreseeable future, if you were looking forward to the possibility of some warmer temps anytime soon, you look to be out of luck.
Have a good Monday night everyone! If you need to be outside, bundle up, and if you need to drive tomorrow morning, please drive safe and allow yourself extra time to get to work or drop the kids off at school. Stay tuned!- Tim
