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Turning From White to Wet

Another fun morning in the weather department. Forecasts  for heavier bands of snow in S. VT., S. NH, and N. MA  were underestimated in some cases. Instead of 4-5" in isolated spots...it became 6" in a bunch of spots thanks to a slow moving band in SNH and NE MA. It looked like a mini NorLun trough tried to set up which is infamous for surprise heavy snows. Can't say this was much of a surprise though as there were plenty of signs for this slightly heavier snow to occur in these exact spots yesterday.

Portsmouth, Lawrence, Methuen, Haverhill, Peabody, Pepperell, Atkinson, Goffstown, Stoneham...all reporting 5-6+" of snowfall this morning. Most other areas are checking in with 2-4" of snow this morning. Luckily, it is a light fluffy snow inland which is easy to clean off. A heavier pasty snow is at the coast...where we will likely mix over to a few rain drops and drizzle at the coast as the snow begins to taper off.

The snow is really winding down in intensity this morning. this trend will continue as dry air from the midlevels moves in. Plenty of low clouds will remain locked in with light NE winds with the potential for scattered light rain/snow showers at the coast with drizzle. Breaks of sun will be possible out west in the afternoon away form the marine air. Temps will recover this afternoon with some of the snow melting with temps back into the 30's to near 40 in SE MA.

A lull in the action tonight with clouds filling back in with temps even rising a bit in the overnight. High pressure in the maritimes will provide just enough cold low level air that our next batch of precipitation could start out as a brief icy mix. Western new England has the best chance of dealing with some icy issues with a mix of sleet and freezing rain early tomorrow morning for the AM commute. This brief mix will be lifting north to the MA border by mid morning. The low levels will begin to warm quickly so by 9-10 AM most of southern New england will see plain rain . the cold will hold a bit longer in S. VT and S. NH before eventually retreating by late morning.

A warm front will be lifting north through the morning with a cold front push through by evening. Breezy SW winds will pump in warmer air into southern New England with temps in the 40's. The low is coming from the SW through the Ohio valley and tracking through far Northern New England. This track will make it a balmy rainfall with some areas along the south coast near 50. Another wave of low pressure may track along the cold front to help enhance some rain late in the day into the early evening...maybe even a thunderstorm. The front will push off the coast tomorrow night with drier weather for the midweek.

We continue to dodge the flood threat as we have seen a perfect pattern for breaking down the record snow cover which was in place. Before this mornings snow fall some were starting to see bare ground! Recent warmth and rainfall has done wonders. This next round of rain and warmth will likely come with another .50-1.5" of rain. Perfect! Nothing too warm...nothing too wet! I am not expecting any big problems with our next rainfall tomorrow. Nothing more than a bit of street flooding with small streams and rivers rising a bit heading into next week. Here is a look at the the current river conditions at the Northeast River Center.

Colder drier air will be on the move behind this front Tuesday with gusty winds from the north. Seasonal temps near 40 with sunshine. Winds will make it feel colder. Wednesday will climb to the mid 40's ahead of an approaching arctic front. It looks like a dry frontal passage...but you can't rule out a brief snow shower or squall in the NW later in the day.

Cold Canadian high pressure will build in to end the week making a cold sunny brisk Thursday in the 20's. As the high pulls off the coast, warming SW winds will allow for a warming trend into the weekend with temps climbing back into the 40's. We will have to watch a cold front passage for the second half of the weekend which could be delayed depending upon the strength and placement of the high offshore.

March promises to have plenty more up and downs...typical for the month. The cold I was watching for March 8th..today looks like it waits a bit to return to the Northeast...and remains in the Plains. Somewhere around the 11th-14th may be safer bet for a brief cold shot. Looking forward to some warmth..it's out there in little pieces to enjoy.  Florida and the south are basking in the heat in the 80's.  This heat will help to trigger sever storms as our next storm approaches the coast tomorrow. On this final weekend in February...it is nice to know there will be many more signs of spring to come in the coming days. The Vernal equinox is March 20th! Think spring!

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