2/21: Thursday’s Winter Storm

***6 PM THU UPDATE***The heaviest precipitation has moved out of the area but some light snow showers or freezing drizzle are possible Thursday evening and overnight with up to an inch additional accumulation north of I-70. Temperatures will stay in the 20s through Friday with wind chills in the teens.***10:30 PM Wed UPDATE***The strong winter storm is still on track to bring significant snow and sleet to Mid-Missouri. Light snow will develop in southwestern Missouri 6-8 a.m. spreading northeast, increasing through the morning with pockets of moderate precipitation at times. Accumulations will be highest from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Precipitation will be mainly snow north of I-70 and a mix of snow with sleet at times south of I-70 to the Lake of the Ozarks where more sleet than snow is expected, cutting down on accumulation. There is also the possibility of freezing rain, which looks more likely closer to Interstate 44 where a tenth to two tenths of an inch of ice is possible. Precipitation will decrease by early evening with pockets of light snow continuing overnight mixed with freezing drizzle.Travelers should expect road conditions to worsen quickly Thursday morning with snow covered roads likely along with the possibility of some ice. Expect slow travel through Thursday night as temperatures remain below freezing.***ORIGINAL STORY***A strong storm system will track across Missouri early Thursday morning through the day, bringing measurable snow, sleet and possible ice from freezing rain. Light snow will develop in southwestern Missouri 4-7 a.m. spreading northeast. Snow and sleet will increase through the morning with pockets of moderate precipitation at times. Precipitation will be mainly snow north of I-70 and a mix of snow with sleet at times south of I-70 to the Lake of the Ozarks where more sleet than snow is expected. There is also the possibility of freezing rain, which looks more likely closer to the Lake of the Ozarks and Interstate 44. Precipitation will decrease by late afternoon from south to north as drier air aloft moves in. However, some freezing drizzle is possible on the back side of this system Thursday evening along with some light snow north of I-70 which could produce up to an additional inch of snowfall.Travelers should expect road conditions to worsen quickly early Thursday morning with snow covered roads likely along with the possibility of some ice. Expect slow travel through Thursday evening as temperatures remain below freezing.There are some factors which could change our forecast snow, sleet and ice amounts. A warm layer of air around 5 to 10 thousand feet moving in Thursday morning will cause snow to change to sleet. However, if that layer is colder, the storm would produce more snow than sleet and measurable amounts would be higher. We will be watching the path of the storm and the forecast atmospheric profiles closely and will update Snow Tracker if needed. Please check back for updates.