A Little Snow...
It's been one very dry stretch of weather...the last time we saw measurable rain or snow was on the 13th of the month...two weeks ago! That will change tomorrow, for most, as a storm system will slide south of New England producing light snow and some rain along the South Coast.
There is a nice temperature contrast in the middle of the country where a storm is forming, it's development is aided by a 500mb shortwave rounding the base of the longwave trough in Eastern Canada. The trough itself isn't that deep and therefore the warmer waters off the SE US and in the Gulf of Mexico are not in play with this storm...it will be moisture starved until it gains strength a little too far offshore of Nantucket later tomorrow night. The limited moisture that is generated, will run into temps in the 20s and 30s here in Southern New England...sufficient enough for mostly snow through the event. The exception will be parts of the South Shore, Cape, Islands and Buzzards Bay where the relatively warmer ocean water will promote more of a wet mix. Snow will work in from the west tomorrow mid-morning and last off and on through the evening with one final burst of snow and rain late tomorrow night as the 300mb jet gets in a more favorable position to intensify the storm south and east of Nantucket. The result will be some more intense wrap-around rain and snow for SE Mass, especially the Cape and Islands, but the flare up appears to be slightly too late for areas from Boston to Worcester and all points north of that line. With that said, the final position of the wrap-around moisture will have to be watched closely as it may still back farther north and west and keep some snow going in the Boston area a bit longer.
With the trough remaining flat and not going negative until the storm passes us, the heaviest of the precip will fall south of the Mass Pike. There will be enough snow for coatings to and inch, maybe two in Interior SE Mass and some feathery dustings either side of the Mass Pike. This clearly isn't a lot of snow but with the recent cold outbreak, much of the ground has frozen up and coatings of snow should be expected on roads south of Boston for tomorrow evenings commute...especially the less traveled ones...so please drive safely.
The storm system will pull away early Wednesday morning with another blast of seasonably cold air to move in for the rest of the workweek.
By the way, join our annual WBZ Snowfall Contest...guess the amount of snow Boston will get this Winter and win a ski pass to Wachusett next Winter. Join at cbsboston.com/contests
