Posted 10:30 AM Tuesday, January 9, 2021
Drier air working in from the south this morning will bring an end to light snow showers by mid/late-morning in the Valley. Locally, accumulation on the order of an inch or two materialized which fits nicely with yesterday’s forecast. Heavier amounts on the order of 5″ to 6″ fell in a tight band along I-70 with decreasing amounts north and south of that line.
Weak high pressure will build in this afternoon allowing for dry conditions this afternoon and tonight. Temperatures today will likely be the warmest of the week for us with most neighborhoods reaching 30°/32° this afternoon. Clouds could thin some and allow for limited sun in the afternoon and evening.
The next round of snow showers will arrive Wednesday evening as another wave of weak low pressure travels along the Ohio River Valley. Widespread snow showers will spread into east-central Ohio and continue into Thursday morning.
Currently, the models show additional light accumulation in our area with heavier amounts likely along I-70. As it was with last night’s snow, this feature will need to be monitored closely for a north movement that would shift the band of heavier snow north and into the Valley.
Snow showers taper off early Thursday morning before exiting east of the region by the afternoon. Weak high pressure will then allow for another brief period of dry weather.
FRIDAY THROUGH MONDAY
Model uncertainty continues to be problematic with regard to later forecasts. In general, the region will continue to see impacts from strong cold Canadian low pressure Friday through the weekend. Not only will temperatures remain cold but small waves of low pressure riding along the periphery of low pressure will bring occasional snow chances.
A slightly stronger low may develop and move into the Great Lakes region Saturday/Sunday. Run to run model depictions of this feature have been inconsistent but this system MIGHT support another round of snow showers over the weekend.
As the Canadian low pushes farther south into the Midwest, temperature profiles might prove to be conservative as we head into early next week.
Thanks for reading today’s Valley weather story. Be safe out there.
Joe. One site has a possible monster coming on Sunday. What’s your opinion?
Thanks
Hi John! The GFS looks like the most aggressive model with regard the Sunday system. The Euro and Canadian, not so much. Either way, the system is 5 days out yet and there are many chess pieces moving on the board. It’s something to watch at this point but don’t put much faith in any one model. Snow is tough to forecast much more than 36 hours out. – Joe
How much is possible? A “monster storm” sounds like a lot!
Hi Leeanne. ANY storm can be a ‘monster storm’ if you only pick a model depiction that fits your agenda 4 or 5 days out. Sites that post crazy snow totals this far out are just clickbait sites looking for lots of traffic and attention. It’s much more helpful and useful for people to rely on good solid data as a storm system develops over time. I’ll keep you updated but at this time the weekend system doesn’t look as if it’s going to be a hugely impactful event in our area.