Balmy weather won't last long in the Northeast
By
Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Feb 26, 2021 4:07 PM EDT
After a cold and snowy February across much of the Northeast, Wednesday brought the warmest weather since the middle of January or even the middle of December. AccuWeather forecasters say people shouldn't get too used to the balmy weather -- for winter standards -- as enough chilly air will settle back into the region to set the stage for wintry precipitation for some as a storm system swings through this weekend.
Wednesday afternoon, the temperature reached 50 degrees, the highest since Jan. 16 when the high hit 52 in Boston.
Similarly, Philadelphia soared to 56, the mildest weather since the high hit 65 on Christmas. Across the interior, Pittsburgh rose to 63, the warmest weather since a high of 65 was recorded last fall on Nov. 11.
Following the warmth, a quick-hitting clipper storm traveled along the border of the United States and Canada into Wednesday night, triggering accumulating snow along its path in northern New England. However, the fast-moving system's primary role will be to drag chillier air southward across the Northeast late this week. Motorists and pedestrians should be on the lookout for icy spots where runoff from melting snow recently froze.
The burst of colder air could cause some new ice concerns as the next system arrives.
As has been the case with many storms this winter, it will be a two-part system that is projected to affect the region this weekend. The first and colder of the two storms is predicted to roll through Friday night into Saturday.
"Even though Arctic air is not returning to the Northeast until perhaps next week, the chilly air moving in through Friday may try to develop some shallow roots in the central Appalachians, the Piedmont and interior New England for a time," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson said.
The shallow wedge of cold air may get stuck in the mountains and valleys and lead to a period of freezing rain and drizzle in western Virginia, eastern West Virginia, western Maryland, central and northern Pennsylvania and western, central and northern New York state late Friday night and Saturday.
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"Warmer air will be streaming in aloft on strong winds, but near the ground, where winds may be light for a time and the cold air is not eroded fast enough, there can be problems with freezing or frozen precipitation," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Rob Miller explained.
The layer of cold air may be thick enough to allow wet snow to fall in some of the higher elevations from western North Carolina to Pennsylvania and New York state as well as northwestern New England at the onset of the storm.
For most locations in the Midwest and Northeast, the storm pair this weekend is forecast to drop mainly light precipitation. However, even a thin glaze of ice or a mere inch of snow can be dangerous and cause slippery travel conditions.
Motorists planning to venture on portions of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, the New York Thruway, the Massachusetts Turnpike, I-68, I-80, I-81 and I-99 should be prepared for slippery travel for a time during the first part of the weekend.
The setup for this weekend is not expected to bring snow and ice to the I-95 corridor from North Carolina to Massachusetts. Instead, rain will spread over these areas Friday night into Saturday. It's possible plain rain may fall as far north as coastal areas of New Hampshire and southern Maine as well.
The major cities along the I-95 have picked up their fair share of snow this season. In fact, Boston to Hartford, Connecticut, and New York City to Philadelphia have all experienced above-average seasonal snowfall to date.
The Big Apple picked up nearly double its normal snowfall for winter so far. The current tally for the city stands at 38.6 inches, compared to the normal of 20.5 inches from Oct. 1 through Feb. 25. Philadelphia has observed 23.9 inches of snow thus far this season, when the city typically receives 18.4 inches. Boston eclipsed its normal seasonal snowfall of 33.0 through Feb. 25 with a total of 38.4 inches of snow.
Farther west, the air is also expected to be too warm for snow or ice along the I-70 corridor and for areas farther to the south in the Midwest. There is the potential for a few hours of snow, ice or a wintry mix from the I-80 and I-90 corridors on north.
The second and milder of the two storms is likely to roll along from late Saturday night to Sunday night.
"The storm that will pivot through the Midwest and Northeast later in the weekend will not have much, if any, cold air to work with, so most areas from the Ohio Valley through the mid-Atlantic are likely to just have occasional rain or drizzle," Anderson said.
"Where the air remains chilly over the northern tier, there may not be enough moisture around for significant snow or wintry mix later this weekend," Anderson added.
Perhaps a more widespread travel problem, in addition to mainly wet roads will be the potential for areas of dense fog. Fog is likely to form in this situation due to mild, moist air passing over a cold ground and snow cover. The same effect can be visible on a warm, humid day in the summer when you open the freezer door and see the vapor that forms as the two batches of air mix and the moisture in the room condenses.
The pair of storms forecast to roll through this weekend will bring mainly light precipitation and the amount of rain that falls is not likely to add significantly to water released from melting snow. Between 2 and 8 inches of snow is expected to melt across the area that stretches from southern Pennsylvania to central New York state and central New England.
AccuWeather meteorologists do not expect a widespread major flooding event from the pattern this weekend as a result. Still, the overall higher temperatures can lead to some minor ice jams on the rivers in the northern tier, perhaps from northern Pennsylvania and upstate New York state into northern New England. Farther west, concerns for ice jam flooding could arise from the I-70 to the I-80 and I-90 corridors in the Midwest.
Sometimes when there is a surge of runoff from melting snow during a winter thaw, ice that breaks up on streams and rivers can get bottled up or jammed and cause water to back up and rise upstream from the jam, resulting in flooding.
As wet and/or sloppy as it may become across the Midwest and Northeast this weekend due to precipitation and melting snow, a lengthier period of wet weather is in store for parts of the South, where rounds of rain may persist well into next week in some locations. The wet pattern will first get underway on Friday or Saturday in southern areas.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, Fubo, and Verizon Fios.
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News / Winter Weather
Balmy weather won't last long in the Northeast
By Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Updated Feb 26, 2021 4:07 PM EDT
After a cold and snowy February across much of the Northeast, Wednesday brought the warmest weather since the middle of January or even the middle of December. AccuWeather forecasters say people shouldn't get too used to the balmy weather -- for winter standards -- as enough chilly air will settle back into the region to set the stage for wintry precipitation for some as a storm system swings through this weekend.
Wednesday afternoon, the temperature reached 50 degrees, the highest since Jan. 16 when the high hit 52 in Boston.
Similarly, Philadelphia soared to 56, the mildest weather since the high hit 65 on Christmas. Across the interior, Pittsburgh rose to 63, the warmest weather since a high of 65 was recorded last fall on Nov. 11.
Following the warmth, a quick-hitting clipper storm traveled along the border of the United States and Canada into Wednesday night, triggering accumulating snow along its path in northern New England. However, the fast-moving system's primary role will be to drag chillier air southward across the Northeast late this week. Motorists and pedestrians should be on the lookout for icy spots where runoff from melting snow recently froze.
The burst of colder air could cause some new ice concerns as the next system arrives.
As has been the case with many storms this winter, it will be a two-part system that is projected to affect the region this weekend. The first and colder of the two storms is predicted to roll through Friday night into Saturday.
"Even though Arctic air is not returning to the Northeast until perhaps next week, the chilly air moving in through Friday may try to develop some shallow roots in the central Appalachians, the Piedmont and interior New England for a time," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson said.
The shallow wedge of cold air may get stuck in the mountains and valleys and lead to a period of freezing rain and drizzle in western Virginia, eastern West Virginia, western Maryland, central and northern Pennsylvania and western, central and northern New York state late Friday night and Saturday.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
"Warmer air will be streaming in aloft on strong winds, but near the ground, where winds may be light for a time and the cold air is not eroded fast enough, there can be problems with freezing or frozen precipitation," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Rob Miller explained.
The layer of cold air may be thick enough to allow wet snow to fall in some of the higher elevations from western North Carolina to Pennsylvania and New York state as well as northwestern New England at the onset of the storm.
For most locations in the Midwest and Northeast, the storm pair this weekend is forecast to drop mainly light precipitation. However, even a thin glaze of ice or a mere inch of snow can be dangerous and cause slippery travel conditions.
Motorists planning to venture on portions of the Pennsylvania Turnpike, the New York Thruway, the Massachusetts Turnpike, I-68, I-80, I-81 and I-99 should be prepared for slippery travel for a time during the first part of the weekend.
The setup for this weekend is not expected to bring snow and ice to the I-95 corridor from North Carolina to Massachusetts. Instead, rain will spread over these areas Friday night into Saturday. It's possible plain rain may fall as far north as coastal areas of New Hampshire and southern Maine as well.
The major cities along the I-95 have picked up their fair share of snow this season. In fact, Boston to Hartford, Connecticut, and New York City to Philadelphia have all experienced above-average seasonal snowfall to date.
The Big Apple picked up nearly double its normal snowfall for winter so far. The current tally for the city stands at 38.6 inches, compared to the normal of 20.5 inches from Oct. 1 through Feb. 25. Philadelphia has observed 23.9 inches of snow thus far this season, when the city typically receives 18.4 inches. Boston eclipsed its normal seasonal snowfall of 33.0 through Feb. 25 with a total of 38.4 inches of snow.
Farther west, the air is also expected to be too warm for snow or ice along the I-70 corridor and for areas farther to the south in the Midwest. There is the potential for a few hours of snow, ice or a wintry mix from the I-80 and I-90 corridors on north.
The second and milder of the two storms is likely to roll along from late Saturday night to Sunday night.
"The storm that will pivot through the Midwest and Northeast later in the weekend will not have much, if any, cold air to work with, so most areas from the Ohio Valley through the mid-Atlantic are likely to just have occasional rain or drizzle," Anderson said.
"Where the air remains chilly over the northern tier, there may not be enough moisture around for significant snow or wintry mix later this weekend," Anderson added.
Perhaps a more widespread travel problem, in addition to mainly wet roads will be the potential for areas of dense fog. Fog is likely to form in this situation due to mild, moist air passing over a cold ground and snow cover. The same effect can be visible on a warm, humid day in the summer when you open the freezer door and see the vapor that forms as the two batches of air mix and the moisture in the room condenses.
The pair of storms forecast to roll through this weekend will bring mainly light precipitation and the amount of rain that falls is not likely to add significantly to water released from melting snow. Between 2 and 8 inches of snow is expected to melt across the area that stretches from southern Pennsylvania to central New York state and central New England.
AccuWeather meteorologists do not expect a widespread major flooding event from the pattern this weekend as a result. Still, the overall higher temperatures can lead to some minor ice jams on the rivers in the northern tier, perhaps from northern Pennsylvania and upstate New York state into northern New England. Farther west, concerns for ice jam flooding could arise from the I-70 to the I-80 and I-90 corridors in the Midwest.
Sometimes when there is a surge of runoff from melting snow during a winter thaw, ice that breaks up on streams and rivers can get bottled up or jammed and cause water to back up and rise upstream from the jam, resulting in flooding.
As wet and/or sloppy as it may become across the Midwest and Northeast this weekend due to precipitation and melting snow, a lengthier period of wet weather is in store for parts of the South, where rounds of rain may persist well into next week in some locations. The wet pattern will first get underway on Friday or Saturday in southern areas.
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Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, Fubo, and Verizon Fios.
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