Midweek storm to bring swath of snow from Texas to Michigan
Yet another cross-country storm is expected to hit the United States next week, delivering another dose of wintry weather.
By
Courtney Travis, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Feb 12, 2022 2:16 PM EDT
|
Updated Feb 15, 2022 6:07 AM EDT
A cross-country storm is expected to push across the United States this week, delivering yet another dose of wintry weather for the center of the country.
Active weather has been a theme so far in 2022, bringing several storms to most parts of the country, including the Northwest, Northeast and the central U.S. The weather pattern is expected to change yet again this week as the jet stream dips southward across the Rocky Mountains.
The new jet stream configuration will pave the way for cold air to pour into the center of the country and a major storm to develop over the southern Plains and Rockies for the middle of the week.
"This storm is expected to bring a multitude of weather hazards, including snow and falling temperatures across the West and an area of steady snow from the Front Range to the Great Lakes," said AccuWeather Meteorologist Joseph Bauer.
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The storm is expected to continue diving southeastward across the Rockies through Tuesday night. In addition to bringing a wave of snow to the mountainous terrain of California, snow will accumulate across the Colorado Rockies. The storm is then expected to strengthen on Wednesday as it turns northeastward, tracking from northern Texas to southern Michigan. As the storm strengthens and begins to take shape east of the Rockies, it will pull in moisture from the Gulf of Mexico, helping to fuel the precipitation that will fall.
On the storm’s cold northwestern side, a stripe of moderate to heavy snow with difficult travel is likely to extend from near the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma to portions of Wisconsin and Michigan. This includes cities like Kansas City, Kansas; Des Moines, Iowa; Green Bay, Wisconsin and Chicago. Snow could lead to a zone slippery travel for these locations and in between, spanning portions of interstates 25, 35, 70, 80, 90 and 94. The winter weather could also impact shipping.
The stripe of heaviest snow, currently forecasted for portions of northern Missouri, eastern Iowa, northern Illinois and Michigan is where impacts to travel are likely to be the most widespread.
The zone of heaviest snow is very dependent on the exact track of the storm.
"If the storm were to track farther north, this scenario would bring heavier rain and higher temperatures farther north into the Plains and Ohio Valley," said Bauer. As a consequence, the band of heaviest snow would also shift farther northwest.
On the northwestern flank of the storm, heavy snowfall rates may coincide with strong wind gusts, creating limited visibility and possibly localized whiteout or blizzard conditions.
Meanwhile, a narrow zone or pockets of ice can occur just south and east of the snow area, especially from eastern Kansas to southern Michigan. However, a faster advancement of cold air is expected with this storm. So, unlike some of the other far-reaching winter storms so far this year, the ice is not expected to be extensive.
Bauer also explained that record-warmth forecasted ahead of the storm will allow temperatures to be high enough for much of the southern Plains and middle Mississippi and Tennessee valleys so that precipitation falls as rain rather than snow. However, these locations should not let down their guard with this storm.
In addition to a plethora of rain heading for these areas in just 24 hours, the clash of cold and warm air will also set the stage for severe weather. All modes of severe weather, from damaging winds and hail to tornadoes could be possible.
As the storm shifts even farther east Thursday night and Friday, the center of the storm is expected to continue northeastward through the Ohio Valley and the Northeast. While precipitation is likely to start out as rain from the Gulf Coast to New England, wet weather is likely to end as snow across parts of the Northeast before it dries out in time for the weekend.
For the latest weather news check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch the AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeather Now is now available on your preferred streaming platform.
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News / Winter Weather
Midweek storm to bring swath of snow from Texas to Michigan
Yet another cross-country storm is expected to hit the United States next week, delivering another dose of wintry weather.
By Courtney Travis, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Feb 12, 2022 2:16 PM EDT | Updated Feb 15, 2022 6:07 AM EDT
A cross-country storm is expected to push across the United States this week, delivering yet another dose of wintry weather for the center of the country.
Active weather has been a theme so far in 2022, bringing several storms to most parts of the country, including the Northwest, Northeast and the central U.S. The weather pattern is expected to change yet again this week as the jet stream dips southward across the Rocky Mountains.
The new jet stream configuration will pave the way for cold air to pour into the center of the country and a major storm to develop over the southern Plains and Rockies for the middle of the week.
"This storm is expected to bring a multitude of weather hazards, including snow and falling temperatures across the West and an area of steady snow from the Front Range to the Great Lakes," said AccuWeather Meteorologist Joseph Bauer.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
The storm is expected to continue diving southeastward across the Rockies through Tuesday night. In addition to bringing a wave of snow to the mountainous terrain of California, snow will accumulate across the Colorado Rockies. The storm is then expected to strengthen on Wednesday as it turns northeastward, tracking from northern Texas to southern Michigan. As the storm strengthens and begins to take shape east of the Rockies, it will pull in moisture from the Gulf of Mexico, helping to fuel the precipitation that will fall.
On the storm’s cold northwestern side, a stripe of moderate to heavy snow with difficult travel is likely to extend from near the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma to portions of Wisconsin and Michigan. This includes cities like Kansas City, Kansas; Des Moines, Iowa; Green Bay, Wisconsin and Chicago. Snow could lead to a zone slippery travel for these locations and in between, spanning portions of interstates 25, 35, 70, 80, 90 and 94. The winter weather could also impact shipping.
The stripe of heaviest snow, currently forecasted for portions of northern Missouri, eastern Iowa, northern Illinois and Michigan is where impacts to travel are likely to be the most widespread.
The zone of heaviest snow is very dependent on the exact track of the storm.
"If the storm were to track farther north, this scenario would bring heavier rain and higher temperatures farther north into the Plains and Ohio Valley," said Bauer. As a consequence, the band of heaviest snow would also shift farther northwest.
On the northwestern flank of the storm, heavy snowfall rates may coincide with strong wind gusts, creating limited visibility and possibly localized whiteout or blizzard conditions.
Meanwhile, a narrow zone or pockets of ice can occur just south and east of the snow area, especially from eastern Kansas to southern Michigan. However, a faster advancement of cold air is expected with this storm. So, unlike some of the other far-reaching winter storms so far this year, the ice is not expected to be extensive.
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Bauer also explained that record-warmth forecasted ahead of the storm will allow temperatures to be high enough for much of the southern Plains and middle Mississippi and Tennessee valleys so that precipitation falls as rain rather than snow. However, these locations should not let down their guard with this storm.
In addition to a plethora of rain heading for these areas in just 24 hours, the clash of cold and warm air will also set the stage for severe weather. All modes of severe weather, from damaging winds and hail to tornadoes could be possible.
As the storm shifts even farther east Thursday night and Friday, the center of the storm is expected to continue northeastward through the Ohio Valley and the Northeast. While precipitation is likely to start out as rain from the Gulf Coast to New England, wet weather is likely to end as snow across parts of the Northeast before it dries out in time for the weekend.
For the latest weather news check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch the AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeather Now is now available on your preferred streaming platform.
Report a Typo