Europe Daily Snow

Heads up, there may be fresher snow! Read the latest Europe Daily Snow

By Luke Stone, Forecaster Posted 9 months ago March 21, 2024

Two Solid Storms Lined Up

Summary

Active weather continues in Central Europe with two storms headed for the Alps over the next week. Another round of snow showers will move through on Thursday ahead of the first storm starting on Saturday. The latest long range guidance keeps storms coming through the end of the month.

Short Term Forecast

An active March continues across the Alps with more showers followed by more storms. The first storm will favor the northern Alps from northern France through Austria while the second will favor the southwestern Alps in Italy and France. Neither storm is a blockbuster but will provide decent powder days over the next week.

A quick round of snow showers will keep the flakes flying in the northern Alps on Thursday, generally bringing 5 - 10 cms to the northern Alps. 

The next storm will move in from the northwest on Saturday around midday. While temperatures will start out warm, a cold front will quickly move through the Alps, crashing snow levels overnight. 

Moderate to heavy snow will fall in the northern Alps through Monday morning. There won't be any huge overnight totals but conditions will be soft with refills at times. Expect 15 - 30 cms across most of the northern Alps, deepest in the northern French and Swiss Alps. The eastern side of the southern Alps will get in on the action as well, as the storm track will bring a period of southwest winds on the southern side of the Alps.

The latest snow forecast from the European model is below.

A short break is expected from mid-morning on Monday through the early evening. The next system quickly moves on Monday night with snow starting to fall in the southwestern Alps. This storm will take its time moving through southern Europe, resulting in a more long-duration event that won't finish up until Friday night. 

This storm will arrive from the West and ultimately track south of the Alps, as you can see below.

This will bring in some warmer temperatures, allow the Pyrenees to get in on the action, and favor the southern side of the Alps. Below is an early look at snow totals for this storm. These totals will be adjusted as we get closer.

Extended Forecast

More active weather is possible next weekend and beyond. We're still dealing with a ridge in the eastern Alps with an upper-level low to the west. We need some more to determine how close this upper-level low will get to the Alps.

Thanks for reading the Europe Daily Snow!

Luke Stone
Forecaster, OpenSnow

Announcements

NEW: Snow Ratio Forecast

You can now get a good idea of the upcoming snow quality for the next storm via our new "Snow Ratio" forecast for any location in OpenSnow.

When we talk about snow quality, such as “light and fluffy” or “heavy and wet”, we are talking about the snow-to-liquid ratio. The higher the snow-to-liquid ratio, the lighter the snow quality, and vice-versa.

  1. Go to any location screen and tap the "Snow Summary" tab.
  2. Scroll down to the 5-day hourly or 10-day forecast section.
  3. View the 5-day hourly or daily "Snow Ratio" forecast for the next 10 days.

10:1 will be fun but will feel a little heavy. 15:1 will offer some faceshots and feel pretty light. 20:1 will be incredibly light, almost like skiing through nothing but air.

This new feature is currently available with the latest version of the OpenSnow iOS app installed (App Store > OpenSnow > Update) or on the OpenSnow website (OpenSnow.com). It will be available in the OpenSnow Android app soon.

View → Snow Ratio Forecast

About Our Forecaster

Luke Stone

Forecaster

Luke Stone earned his M.S. in Atmospheric Sciences from the University of Utah, with a research focus on seasonal forecasting. Luke has scored deep days around the world, including coast-to-coast across the United States, Canada, and Europe.

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