Storm System Continues
Rain continues to fall across much of the Finger Lakes region this morning as a large and powerful coastal storm moves through the region.
The further east, the heavier the rain, with flood warnings in place along the I-81 Corridor in the southeastern Finger Lakes.
To the west, the rain is more showery and will come to an end before too long this morning. The western edge of the rain shield will slowly but steadily make progress eastward, and by the midday hours, most areas should be out of the steady rain.
During the afternoon, there will still be some occasional rain showers, but the steady, heavy rain will be over. There could even be a few brief glimpses of sun.
Northwest winds will be blustery with gusts of 25-30 mph. Cool air will build in on those winds, with temperatures losing several degrees over the course of the day. By the early evening, 30s will start to become widespread and the rain showers will start to turn over to snow showers.
A second area of precipitation will then spiral into our area late this evening through the overnight. Most of this will fall as snow, with some enhancement southeast of Lake Ontario.
Higher elevations will have the best chance for accumulations. The Bristol Hills in Ontario county and the higher terrain across Cayuga, Onondaga, Tompkins, and Cortland counties could see several inches through Tuesday morning. A couple inches may also fall north of I-90 where the lake enhancement will be greatest, but lower elevations away from Lake Ontario will probably see an inch or less.
The snow will end from southwest to northeast Tuesday morning, though a few lingering flurries may last into the afternoon for northern Cayuga and Onondaga counties.
Temperatures will fall to the mid and upper 20s overnight, then remain steady in that range throughout the daytime hours on Tuesday. Northwest winds will blow at speeds up to 15 mph with peak gusts around 35 mph.
Extended Dry Weather
Once this storm system pulls away on Tuesday, high pressure will build in and dominate our weather for the foreseeable future.
Mostly sunny skies are expected on Wednesday. Winds will be light, starting from the southwest, then gradually turn to the west, then northwest.
Temperatures will get a boost about a ten degree boost from the sun and wind shift for afternoon highs in the upper 30s.
Winds will turn to the north-northeast Wednesday night, leading to a few lake effect clouds over the western half of the region. These may linger into early Thursday, but the rest of the region will be sunny.
Slightly cooler air will seep in, with highs in the low and mid 30s on Thursday. Friday will be similar, with some clouds in the west joined by some thin clouds elsewhere. Highs will again be in the mid 30s.
A dry weekend with increasing temperatures should squash any hopes of a White Christmas. Saturday, Sunday, and Monday all look to have a good deal of sunshine with some passing clouds. Highs will be near 40 on Saturday, into the low 40s on Sunday, and the mid 40s for Christmas Day itself on Monday.
The weather may start to become more unsettled in the days following Christmas toward the middle and end of next week, but it remains too early to identify any single precipitation event. Whatever does fall will likely at least start as rain with mild air in place.
More Information:
» Finger Lakes Weather Radar
» Zip Code Forecasts
» Get the FLX Weather Mobile App
This graphic represents an average over the entire Finger Lakes region. Localized variations should be expected.
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