Tracking the onset of our winter storm

TONIGHT

With temperatures in the 50's as I write this, one might not expect the drastic change we are about to undergo tonight. Winds will start to pick up as a front moves through, knocking temperatures back into the 30’s by this evening. At the same time, showers will begin to overspread the region. Cold air will continue to push in tonight, changing showers over to a mix of sleet and freezing rain north of I-70 by midnight. Snow will mix in overnight and begin to accumulate for most by sunrise Wednesday.

WEDNESDAY

Snow will carry on for most of Wednesday. There is potential for a bit of a lull in snowfall around the afternoon to evening hours, but a second round will follow Wednesday night, picking snowfall rates back up. Snow fall may briefly come to an end, but IF that happens, it will be short lived. Effectively, you should expect snow to fall all day on Wednesday. While snow will fall for most of us, a wintry mix is expected close to I-44, where icing is more of a concern.

EXTENDED

As mentioned, another wave of snow will move through Wednesday night into Thursday, leading to additional accumulations. Some areas will be looking at close to a foot of snow by the time this system wraps up Thursday, around midday. Temperatures will hold in the 20’s on Wednesday, before falling into the teens on Thursday. We’re down to the single digits Thursday night before recovering with some sunshine Friday, back into the upper 20’s. We’ll step into the 30’s this weekend.