Utah Daily Snow
By Evan Thayer, Forecaster Posted 3 years ago January 25, 2021
One for the South
Summary
Snow today will fall in southern Utah mountains. Significant accumulations likely. An atmospheric river will hit California this week and Utah will see scraps.
Short Term Forecast
Southern Utah is the target of today's snowfall. Brian Head resort already picking up 3" and it should snow there most of today into tonight. 8-16" total is likely. Lesser amounts farther north at Eagle Point. And maybe a few snow showers in Northern Utah tonight and Tuesday but accumulation is unlikely.
We can see on the map, the heavy snowfall amounts for southern Utah:
I would likely be chasing down there early this morning for a powder day if it weren't for being on kid duty today and tomorrow. I would also be looking into doing a trip into Zion. If you've never seen Zion NP covered in snow, it's absolutely breathtaking. I would highly recommend a Tuesday visit to Zion!
Northern Utah could see a few snow showers, mainly tonight and Tuesday, but accumulations will be 0-1".
On Wednesday, an atmospheric river begins to impact California. Utah will be too far inland to see the brunt of this moisture. But models have a moist SW flow bringing precip to the mountains of Northern Utah late Wednesday thru Thursday. At this point it's really difficult to get a handle on it, but it appears as if a few inches of snow could be possible in the high elevations on Thursday.
Then, eventually the trough is going to move inland in a much-weakened state. That could bring additional moisture this weekend. Models are all over the place right now, so confidence is low in exact timing or details, but Friday-Sunday there should be chances for snow, particularly in Northern Utah. We will have to just wait until we get more agreement before getting into details.
Extended Forecast
Early next week we should have another system that will be more progressive and move inland with more ease. The hope is this will lead to a better organized system for Utah.
Eventually, a ridge is going to build off the west coast and the main trough will shift to the central US. Utah could continue to get clipped by storms, or we could see a break, depending exactly on where the ridge/trough setup.
Evan | OpenSnow