Tracking snow showers, poor road conditions through late tonight
TONIGHT: Rain and snow, becoming all snow after sunset. Accumulation between 1-3" with lows hovering near 32. Slick roads possible before precipitation slows down and changes to rain after midnight.
TOMORROW: Snow showers return by mid-morning, bringing another 1-3" of accumulation. Highs in the lower 30s with strong wind gusts up to 30 mph.
EXTENDED: Snowfall rates could exceed 1" per hour by 5-6:00 p.m. with temperatures falling a bit more. We'll likely see slick and slushy roads through the evening commute, with mainly snow falling for much of the area through midnight or so. From there, drier air moves in from the southwest, pushing snowfall farther north and allowing for light rain. Areas north of Highway 24 will see snow through much of the overnight and into the morning, while the next band for the rest of Mid-Missouri doesn't arrive until about 8-9:00 a.m. Snow will be lighter tomorrow but more widespread, leaving another inch or two of accumulation by the time it exits between 6-8:00 p.m. We'll be left with a storm total of 3-5" in Columbia and around 2-4" in Jefferson City. Any untreated roads will be slick as temperatures drop back down into the upper teens to around 20. Visibility will be low through much of Tuesday as winds could gust between 30-35 mph. Wednesday and Thursday are looking dry and seasonable with highs in the upper 30s, but our next low pressure system sliding by to the south will bring rain and perhaps a wintry mix to much of the area on Thursday night. Colder air pushes in from the northwest on Friday, changing precipitation to snow as temperatures only make about 30 degrees at the warmest. This system has the potential of bringing more snowfall accumulation that would prompt a Weather Alert Day, but we'll need to know the track a little better before issuing. A Weather Alert Day will likely be issued for dangerous temperatures and wind chills over the weekend as lows will likely fall into the single digits Saturday and Sunday nights with wind chills below zero. We could possibly see yet another round of snow on Sunday.
