To all of you who thought that maybe the groundhog got it right and this winter was over....sorry! Mother nature clearly has other ideas. That quick spring preview last week was nice but unfortunately it was just a cruel joke. Although for those of you who want to continue skiing or boarding, this is just what the snow doctor prescribed.
As this system moves its way through New England it will be bring snow, sleet, freezing rain, rain, and high winds. Here in northern New Hampshire it should stay all snow. Already we have about 6 inches here in Plymouth and the snow will be intensifying later this afternoon, coming down at more than one inch an hour!
http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/md/md0142.html <--current mesoscale discussion in regards to heavy precip moving into the Eastern VT to the coast of Maine later this afternoon. Total snowfall amounts for Plymouth should be around 8-10".
Back in my hometown of Rochester, NY the system is beginning to move out of the region leaving behind 7" (10" along Lake Ontario) of fresh heavy, wet snow. Unfortunately for them, this system moving out will initiate a strong westerly flow as the system moves out over the Atlantic, which will in turn initiate the Lake Effect snow. Rochester, which already has around 102" on the year should expect another 10"-12" (and possible more along the shore of Lake Ontario) from this storm. But many in Rochester I'm sure will just say '110"?...that's nothing!'
Here's a great image I found posted on NOAA's website http://www.nnvl.noaa.gov/imageoftheday.php. You can see the swath of snow reaching from New York to Maine and the rain and clouds stretching all along the eastern seaboard. You can also depict the dry slot trying to work its way into Pennsylvania and the Southern Tier in NY.
Fueling this storm is some intensely warm, moist air coming right off the Gulf of Mexico and some very cold and dry arctic air moving down from central Canada. As the system moves across the Appalachians it should re-intensify a little while it moves up the coastline from NJ to Maine. (Surface analysis as of approx. 1pm-http://www.hpc.ncep.noaa.gov/sfc/namussfcwbg.gif). Tonight will be quite cold after this system moves out of the Northeast around 7-8pm. Lows across the region will be around 10 above, putting wind chills below zero with winds around 20mph and gusts as high as 40mph.
Overall this will be a pretty decent storm all around. A winter storm warning remains in effect until about 5-7pm this evening across the Northeast so if you must drive give yourself plenty of time and be safe!
