Low impact FLX weekend weather but stormy next week

Light snow showers Friday and Sunday will have little impact on day to day activities, but the weather may turn stormier next week.

Lake Effect Snows Into Saturday

A cold air mass has settled over in the Finger Lakes in the wake of yesterday’s cold fronts.

As expected the Great Lakes have responded with some lake effect snow. While very heavy snow is falling across the Tug Hill off Lake Ontario and along the shore of Lake Erie, some lighter snow is extending across the Finger Lakes.

This snow is mostly across a west to east area stretching roughly from Dansville to Penn Yan to Ithaca and Cortland. On and off flurries and brief squalls will continue in these areas for much of the day with an inch or two of accumulation possible.

Late this afternoon, that area of snow will sag south towards the Southern Tier before falling apart this evening as winds turn more northwesterly.

Lake snows off of Lake Ontario will drop south as well, but should only clip northern Cayuga County and primarily stay north of Syracuse in Onondaga county. Snow will persist in those areas into Saturday morning before the lake effect moves north and dissipates completely.

Outside of the lake effect, skies will be mostly cloudy with a few glimpses of the sun.

Look for high temperatures on Friday to be in the low 20s with high Saturday into the upper 20s.

Weak System Sunday

A weak weather system will pass across southern Canada on Sunday. This system will have two impacts on the Finger Lakes.

First, winds will become southerly out ahead of the disturbance. This is what will ultimately end the lake effect snow on Saturday, but it will also provide a boost to the temperature.

High temperatures on Sunday should climb above freezing with highs in the mid 30s for most areas.

Secondly, this system will spread some light snow showers across the region throughout Sunday. Accumulations should remain under an inch, and with temperatures pushing above freezing, roadways should remain just wet.

Some lingering snow showers will be possible into Sunday evening for Super Bowl Sunday, but generally speaking, the weather will not cause any travel delays.

Stormy Week Ahead

After another quiet day on Monday, it is looking likely that the weather will take a much stormier approach for the middle part of next week.

We are close enough to this event now to have some certainty that a strong storm system is likely. The details, however, will have to continue to be worked out.

There is a decent agreement in the weather models that a strong storm system will develop over the Midwest before lifting into the Great Lakes and southeastern Canada.

Given what typically occurs in such a storm track, it is plausible to think that a wide variety of weather conditions will be possible next week, including rain and a period of very strong winds.

Continue to check back for details as they become more clear over the weekend and into early next week.

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