7:00AM-THURS: WIND CHILL WATCHES HAVE BEEN HOISTED FOR THE BERKSHIRES, WESTERN HILLTOWNS, ALL OF FRANKLIN COUNTY AND MUCH OF SVT FOR WIND CHILLS DOWN TO 35 *BELOW* ZERO VERY EARLY SATURDAY MORNING AS NORTH WINDS GUST TO 30MPH… VERY COLD SATURDAY… PICK OF THE WEEKEND FOR OUR SUNNY SUNDAY… SNOW, ICE, RAIN AND WINDY FOR VERY LATE SUNDAY NIGHT INTO MONDAY AFTERNOON AS AN EAST COAST STORM TRACKS INTO THE REGION…
Good morning folks, temps are in the 20s to start off our Thursday, and we could see a few light snow showers during the morning. We’ve got two big weather impacts in the upcoming period to discuss, but first I’ve got a note from our local and delicious sponsor, #TandemBagelCo, with a new location in West Springfield, MA.
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A NOTE FROM OUR SPONSOR:
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WEATHER BULLETIN:
–Good morning everybody, we have a weak wave moving through the region today which will keep us locked in with more clouds than sun, and highs in the upper 30s to low 40s
–This could spawn a few light snow showers or flurries this morning, which will dry up as we proceed to the noon hour… most will see nothing
–For tonight, clouds will thicken with lows dropping into the mid to upper 20s
–For Friday, an ocean storm will graze the Cape with some rain and snow showers, and our highs will crest up to about the freezing mark
–However, big changes are on the way! A cold front will be dragged through the region, as a massive and very strong 1042mb high pressure center pushes east toward Quebec Province, while our ocean low bombs out to a 970mb Nor’easter set to paste Nova Scotia
–This 72mb pressure difference will cause a sharp pressure gradient over the WMass region, which will cause north winds to increase to gusts over 30mph at times Friday later afternoon, night and into Saturday morning
–Once the cold front comes through, air temps will drop to the single digits below zero late Friday night, and wind chills by Saturday morning will be as low as 25 to 35 below zero
–If that trend continues then the Wind Chill Watches hoisted by the NWS overnight, will likely be converted to Wind Chill Warnings, with some Wind Chill Advisories needed as well for other parts of the WMass region
–Saturday looks very cold and breezy, with highs in the single digits to low teens under mostly sunny skies. Lows will drop to near 0º with clear skies and lighter wind
–Sunday is the pick of the weekend with highs in the low to mid 20s under mostly sunny skies, and then we look to our south-southwest
–I will be providing a comprehensive update on this system tomorrow morning, so look for that
–However, we have to start by saying that we will have antecedent Arctic air in place, and lows Sunday night will be in the low to mid teens
–It’s hard to scour out Arctic air once it is in place, but this kind of south to north storm track is notable for being most likely to do that kind of scouring, depending on the track of the storm
–Guidance is still all over the place, but in terms of an all-snow event I’m becoming concerned that this storm may phase too early too far south and west to induce the storm to track far enough east of the WMass longitudes to produce all snow here
–At this point, even though it’s a broadbrush statement, I think we’re more likely than not, for most in WMass, to see a snow thump late Sunday night with a change to ice and rain sometime on Monday morning
–Best chance for all snow would the Litchfields, Berkshires, and southern Greens and points west at this point
–Southeast winds are going to be ripping for some, especially at elevation
–Again, this is a progressive storm system even if it is tracking more south to north rather than west to east like most of our recent storm systems over the recent years
–This means it’ll keep on trucking and won’t be slowed by anything to the north or east of it
–So, obviously lots of uncertainty remains about our storm 4 days into the future, and I will stay with you the whole way through, no matter how it evolves
Have a great day, stay tuned for updates, and I hope things go your way today!