Snow returning to parts of Massachusetts Wednesday. Maps show what to expect in Boston area.

If you thought winter was over in Massachusetts, the weather forecast for the Boston area this week is a reminder that the snow is still very much here.

We are currently tracking several chances for snow and a wintry mix over the next seven days as a very active and stormy pattern is emerging.

Three chances for snow in Massachusetts

There will be three chances for wintry precipitation in the next five days, each of which will have a higher potential impact then the last. 

On Tuesday, there will be a very minor event with some scattered snow flurries and showers passing through in the morning. We do not believe this will have much, if any, impact on the Tuesday morning commute. Some widely scattered coatings are possible. 

The stakes are raised a bit more for an event Wednesday so, the WBZ-TV Weather team has issued a NEXT Weather Alert for Wednesday midday through Wednesday night.

Wednesday snow forecast

This is not a typical storm by any means. It will be more of a "strip" or "channel" of rain and snow that will extent hundreds of miles outward form the parent low pressure system in the upper Midwest. The trick to correctly forecasting this event will be to nail the location of the 100 mile wide strip of precipitation.

The precipitation will arrive in the late morning or midday on Wednesday with the northern half being snow and the southern half rain.

Currently, the odds favor areas north of the Massachusetts Turnpike for accumulating snow with mainly rain or a rain/snow mix south of the Pike.

The entire event lasts for about 12 hours, tapering off by midnight.

Who gets the most snow Wednesday?

Chances for plowable snow are highest along and north of the Mass Pike. 

Again, there will be a strip of snow between 50-to-100 miles wide (north to south) where most of the accumulation occurs.

Friday snow highest potential

Friday brings yet another storm threat, this one with the highest potential of the week.

While it is a bit too early for specifics, this one could be more of a "natural" New England coastal storm with impacts potentially including:

• Widespread, plowable snow
• Strong winds
• Coastal concerns

We will have more on this in the next few days. 

Also, some weather forecasting models are bringing yet another storm into our area Sunday and Monday. If all of these were to occur, this would be our busiest stretch of the entire winter.

The WBZ Weather Team will keep you updated every step of the way on WBZ-TV, CBS News Boston and WBZ.com