This is the second storm in a series of moisture rich storms coming off the Atlantic Ocean. The precipitation started as rain this morning in the French Alps, quickly spreading east into the Swiss and Italian Alps, and finally the Austrian Alps by Thursday morning. Temperatures remain warm as a cold front slowly approaches the Alps, but snow levels should lower to between 2100 - 2500 m in France and Switzerland by Friday morning. 

Due to an atmospheric river (shown below) and a strong fetch of moisture off the Atlantic, moderate rain and high elevation snow will continue through Saturday, before turning more showery for the rest of the weekend.

Initially, winds will be out of the southwest, favoring the French Alps. As the storm moves east, the wind will shift more southerly, resulting in the best orographics for the southern side of the Swiss, Italian, and Austrian Alps. In the precipitation forecast below, you can see the greatest amounts in these areas.

Snow levels will be a bit higher in Austria, between 2400 - 2700 m. Still, moderate accumulations are possible above that elevation. Check out the forecast from the European model below.

After the storm tapers off on Sunday, we should see a short break for the Alps. Another storm is likely Monday night into Tuesday, bringing another chance for snow. Right now, this looks a bit colder, so we could see snow accumulations lower down in the Alps. I'll keep an eye on this one and provide another update soon.

Thanks for reading the Europe daily snow! Follow me @lstone84 on Instagram to track and chase storms all (North American) winter long!

Luke Stone
Forecaster, OpenSnow