Powder days for the East 

The East Coast is finally getting in on the action this winter with a nice 'powder' day on Monday and more snow in the forecast Wednesday and Thursday. Several resorts have reported over a foot of snow from the last storm, like Magic Mountain in Vermont reporting 21 inches over the past 5 days.

Forecast for Wed, Jan 25 – Thu, Jan 26:

Another strong storm will affect the East on Wednesday and Thursday. New England will see colder air and thus more snow than the Mid-Atlantic. This storm will have a large warm sector, which will change snow to rain/mixed precipitation in the Mid-Atlantic and the southern half of New England. Backside lake effect and upslope snow showers will add light snow on Thursday into Friday. 

Northwest flow in western North America will continue to add snow showers throughout the Rockies from Alberta to northern CO. Some snow will extend into New Mexico but be light and scattered. Storms will continue to impact Alaska and Coastal BC as well. 

Forecast for Fri, Jan 27 – Sat, Jan 28:

Two weak storms will track through the Midwest and bring some freshies to resorts. Lake effect snow showers will fall across the Great Lakes and will extend into the Mid-Atlantic. 

A stronger storm system than in weeks past will make its way through the Pacific Northwest and northern Rockies. Northern Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, and northern Colorado will see some nice totals with this storm, just in time for the weekend. Temperatures will be dropping quickly during this storm, which should make for some higher snow-to-liquid ratios out there. 

Forecast for Sun, Jan 29 – Mon, Jan 30:

A second storm system will impact the Pacific Northwest and swing south into the Sierra Nevadas, continuing through the Wasatch, Central Rockies, and Southwest. These will not be the atmospheric rivers we have seen during January and these storms will have less moisture with them. Plenty of cold air and some added upslope moisture will still bring decent snow totals. There is model uncertainty regarding how much moisture will make it into the Southwest. 

A weaker storm will move through the interior Mid-Atlantic and New England on Sunday that will continue the trend of initial snow changing to rain and mixed precipitation, with backside lake effect and upslope snow showers. Monday clears for most areas with lake effect snow around the Great Lakes. 

Outlook for Tue, Jan 31 – Sat, Feb 4:

The active storm track will continue across North America as we end January and begin February. A storm will impact the East around Wednesday, February 1st, and likely track through the Northeast, which means another mixed precipitation event. There is still a lot of model uncertainty regarding the exact storm track. Lake effect snow could be the main story, with cold air and favorable winds potentially bringing widespread snow totals. 

The West will become more active as rounds of storms move off of the Pacific Ocean with several track options. There is a lot of model uncertainty about whether these storms will track through the Pacific Northwest, California, or both. This will impact how far south moisture can reach in the West. The West will be colder than average during this period as well, which means snow levels should be low. 

Thanks so much for reading, have a great day, and the next update will be on Friday (Jan 27).

Zach Butler, OpenSnow Meteorologist