Remaining cold in the Finger Lakes

Another Frigid Day in the Finger Lakes

Clouds and widespread snow kept temperatures from falling last night across the Finger Lakes, but do not expect much warming during the day today, either.

Light snow remains scattered about the region this morning in the wake of a passing weather system that brought widespread snow overnight.

The snow this morning is mostly lake effect as cold north-northwest winds flow over Lake Ontario.

In the frigid air, the snowflakes this morning are small and the precipitation rates are light. Very little accumulation is therefore expected before the lake effect gradually dissipates this morning.

By this afternoon, much of the Finger Lakes region should be done with the snow and some periods of sunshine may even work out.

Lake effect will continue, mostly from extreme northeast Wayne County into northern Onondaga County off of Lake Ontario and possibly into Wyoming County off of Lake Erie late in the day.

Temperatures will only manage to rise a few degrees with highs this afternoon in the upper teens.

Winds may gust to 30 mph again at times, particularly for areas east of Cayuga Lake. This will keep wind chills in the single digits and near zero throughout the day.

More Squalls Late Friday into Saturday

Winds tonight and into Friday will gradually swing from the northwest around to the south out ahead of the next small weather system approaching the area.

These south winds will keep lake effect out of the area on Friday and may even manage to push temperatures into the mid 20s Friday afternoon.

However, as the weather system moves in, flurries and squalls, both from the system itself and from lake effect, will return.

There is some question as to how much snow will accompany the weather system, but there should be at least a small band of snow that crosses the region Friday evening with a cold front.

Lake effect will develop east of Lake Erie following the frontal passage for Friday night into early Saturday.

At this time, the most persistent squalls look most probable across the Southern Tier.

Winds will turn more northerly on Saturday, sending the Lake Erie snow into Pennsylvania, but bringing some transient squalls from Lake Ontario into the picture. These should die off in the afternoon as high pressure builds in.

Temperatures Bottom Out, Then Moderate

High pressure will bring clear skies to the region Saturday night, resulting in some very cold temperatures.

Sunday morning lows could drop below zero in some of the typically colder locations of the Southern Tier and Central New York. Temperatures in the heart of the Finger Lakes will stay just above zero, with morning lows closer to ten degrees right along the shores of Cayuga and Seneca Lakes.

The next weather system will start to approach on Sunday with increasing clouds after a sunny start. How much warm air moves in during the day ahead of this system is questionable, but temperatures should continue to rise Sunday night.

By Monday morning, temperatures could be in the 30s with scattered rain and snow showers. High temperatures Monday will reach the upper 30s as all precipitation turns to rain.

Rain showers will continue into Tuesday as temperatures remain in the upper 30s Monday night and rise into the 40s Tuesday.

Temperatures then look to be more seasonable, with highs mostly in the 30s along with some spikes into the 40s in the days leading up to Christmas.