Midweek Weather
The next couple of days will be on the quieter side before the next larger weather system rolls in Friday evening.
A weak impulse of energy in the atmosphere will pass through the area today. Between the late morning and early afternoon, an associated area of showers will move into the Finger Lakes.
Most areas will see scattered precipitation for an hour or two. Most of this will fall as rain, but some snow may mix in at times, particularly across far eastern areas of the region. A few lingering stray showers or flurries may persist into the later afternoon and early evening.
Winds today will be from the southeast at up to 10 mph, then will turn to the south with speeds closer to 5 mph for the nighttime hours.
These winds will bring in some milder air, with highs today mostly in the low and mid 40s. A few western areas, such as Dansville, will probably reach the upper 40s this afternoon. Nighttime temperatures will only fall into the mid 30s.
Another weak system will move in after midnight, spreading some more rain showers through the area. These will be most likely across the southern half of the region, and outside of a localized, brief downpour, should amount to little rainfall.
A few lingering showers or flurries may be possible early Thursday, but for the most part it will be a quiet, dry day. Skies will have plenty of clouds, but some sun should poke through.
Northwest winds will develop on Thursday and increase to speeds over 10 mph with a few gusts reaching 30 mph.
Temperatures will thus be coolest near and downwind of Lake Ontario, where mid and upper 30s are likely. Most of the Finger Lakes should make it near or just above 40 degrees, while the Southern Tier reaches the mid 40s.
Friday-Saturday Wintery Weather
A winter weather event continues to look likely as we close out the week and details are gradually coming into better focus. The models, as a whole, continue to trend later and warmer with this system.
Most of Friday is now looking dry with increasing clouds. Precipitation may not arrive until around or after sunset. When it does arrive, it will likely start as some snow, but that period may be brief.
Ahead of the precipitation, the daytime hours Friday will be mostly cloudy. Southeast winds will result in afternoon highs around 40 degrees. Evening temperatures will drop back into the low and mid 30s, but much of the area looks like it may stay at or above freezing.
As warmer air moves in aloft, snow will turn to sleet, rain, and pockets of freezing rain. While there are still a few models holding onto significant snow amounts, this seems very unlikely at this point.
Precipitation duration and intensity remain uncertain as energy from a decaying low pressure over the Great Lakes transfers to a developing low pressure along the New England coast. Enough warm air should move in so that, by Saturday morning, only rain showers remain in the Finger Lakes.
Total snow and sleet accumulations will probably be less than 4 inches and almost certainly less than 6 inches. More fine-tuning of these details will take place over the next 48 hours.
This system may have some gusty winds, especially Friday evening, when southeast winds could gust over 40 mph at times. Winds will eventually turn to the northwest late Saturday, leading to some snow showers toward the end of the day.
Lingering lake-enhanced snow showers may persist into Sunday morning before dissipating. Snow amounts on the backside of this system will also be low, with most areas seeing less than an inch.
Temperatures will continue to hover around or above 40 degrees into early next week. A small system will bring some rain and snow showers in on Tuesday.
Colder air will move in behind this, with several days with highs near or below freezing. These temperatures should persist through the mid-point of March.
More Information:
» Finger Lakes Weather Radar
» Zip Code Forecasts
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This graphic represents an average over the entire Finger Lakes region. Localized variations should be expected. Don’t Miss an Important Update
