SHORT TERM FORECAST
TODAY: Cold with sun and some clouds. High: 30
THIS NIGHT: Usually cloudy with snow developing at dawn, accumulating a one-inch layer. Low: 21
THURSDAY: Cloudy and cold with snow of varying intensity, mixing with hail to the south and east at the end of the day or at night. Total accumulation storm until Friday 5-9 inches. High: 29 Low: 27
FORECAST SUMMARY
After a fight with freezing rain and rain from Monday night until early Tuesday morning, we were treated to a rare February thaw on Tuesday afternoon. Although it was short lived, it was nice to see a little sun and temperatures of 40 degrees come together to melt part of our persistent layer of snow, which is now on the ground for more than two weeks.
Don’t expect much more melting for the rest of the week, however, as last night’s cold caused a rapid freeze with temperatures dropping to over 20 degrees and less than 20 degrees. Although the sun will return today, the milder air will not return, being replaced by highs close to 30 degrees on a cold but dry day.
And true to the February theme of one storm every few days, another winter storm is still on its way to arrive on Thursday and last until Friday. It will be colder than its predecessor, meaning that snow is expected to accumulate throughout the area starting on Thursday morning. While there may be some problems with hail and freezing rain towards the Delaware Valley and the coast, washable snow is likely for most of us with travel impacts expected to end the week.
We are going to dry out over the weekend, when another cold air injection arrives for Saturday and Sunday, followed by yet another opportunity for snow early next week on Monday. In case you are counting, there are 32 long days until spring arrives.
DETAILED FORECAST
TODAY AND THIS NIGHT
Wednesday is a much colder day than Tuesday, but it is still a dry day with sunshine giving way to some clouds at the end of the day. The winds will be light, but it will be cold with highs of only about 30 degrees, despite the sun. Do not expect too much melt as a result.
The clouds will get thicker at night with a little snow coming from the south as we approach sunrise on Thursday. Night lows should return to 20 years.
THURSDAY
Ready or not … here comes our next winter storm. Expect the snow to start early in the morning and become stable throughout the morning until the early part of the afternoon, when a good thump of accumulations is expected.
In the late afternoon, the snow will become lighter and more intermittent, and can mix with a little hail and freezing rain, especially to the south and east of the Lehigh Valley. The mix is most likely from the Interstate 95 corridor towards the coast, with a slight mix of snow, sleet and freezing rain expected on Thursday night as well, but more of an intermittent and intermittent lighter variety.
FRIDAY
Our storm is likely to last longer than expected and now on Friday, with clouds and some occasional light snow, perhaps mixed with freezing rain and sleet near the shore. Any snow should be light and mainly in the first half of the day, with a tendency for gradual drying at the end of our Friday, although the clouds remain in place.
Total accumulations appear to be around 5-9 “for much of the area, with 2-5” to the south and east of Interstate 95, where the mixture is most prevalent.
THIS WEEKEND
For the first time in the month, an entire weekend in February seems dry, with plenty of sunshine, but also with very cold temperatures. Expect generally sunny skies on Saturday with cool, cool breezes and high temperatures just around freezing, and partly sunny skies with lighter winds on Sunday, but maximum only in the mid-1930s.
Another chance of snow may occur early next week, with another possible snow round on Monday.
TRACK THE WEATHER: