Mid-Week Lake Snows
Cold air has returned to the Finger Lakes leading to some areas of lake effect snow.
With a westerly flow today, much of the Finger Lakes will actually end up without much in the way of snow. However, a band of snow off Lake Erie will wobble around the southern parts of the region.
These flurries and squalls will mainly stick to the counties bordering Pennsylvania, but may swing north at times, potentially impacting Schuyler and southern Tompkins counties for brief periods.
Most of the Southern Tier will only see a coating to an inch during the daytime hours today, but a few locally higher amounts will be possible.
To the north, snow will be limited to a stray flurry here and there. More likely than snow will be some breaks of sun from time to time.
High temperatures today will mainly be in the low and mid 20s, with a few higher elevations failing to get above 20 degrees.
Winds will be breezy with some occasional gusts eclipsing 30 mph.
The wind direction will turn more northwesterly this evening, removing Lake Erie snow from the area but introducing Lake Ontario snow instead.
Through midnight, most of the snow will be restricted to areas north of I-90, though occasional snow showers and a few heavier bursts will become increasingly likely to the south as the evening goes on.
The evening snow may produce a couple inches north of the Thruway with localized amounts of an inch or so to the south.
Overnight, the band will sag south of I-90, then dissipate and reorganize as a spray of snow focused on the eastern Finger Lakes. This, too, however, will be short-lived and should steadily shrink in coverage and decrease in intensity Wednesday morning.
Snow amounts overnight and Wednesday morning will be 1-3 inches with locally up to 4 mainly for Cayuga, Onondaga, Cortland and portions of Tompkins and Tioga counties. Other areas should see up to an inch.
Winds will shift again by Wednesday afternoon, becoming more southwesterly. This shift will bring a third lake into the picture as a narrow band all the way from Lake Huron crosses the western and northern portions of the region late in the afternoon and early in the evening.
This band may bring a localized inch and could lead to some brief travel issues, but all in all should have minor impacts.
Temperatures on Wednesday will start out ranging through the 10s with a high reaching the mid 20s for most areas. Winds gusts may still reach 30 mph from time to time but should generally be a touch lighter than today.
Temperature Fluctuations
Southwest winds will establish themselves Wednesday night, then become more southerly on Thursday. This will keep lake snows out of the area, but clouds out ahead of our next weather maker will be plentiful.
That system will arrive Thursday afternoon with some widespread snow as warmer air pushes toward the region.
The snow may encounter dry air that is hard to overcome and may dissipate to stray snow showers by the evening hours. Accumulations should be limited to around an inch.
Despite the southerly flow, morning lows will again range through the 10s with afternoon highs in the mid 20s. Thursday night, however, will only drop to the low 20s as the warmer air starts to move in.
A few snow showers may linger Friday morning, but most of the day should be dry and quiet. Temperatures will jump up about 10 degrees with highs in the mid 30s.
Another weather system will move in on Saturday with snow and perhaps some rain mixing in. Morning lows will be near 30 and afternoon highs in the mid and upper 30s. This system will bring a cold front through late in the day.
Temperatures will tumble behind the front with lows Sunday in the 10s and highs in the mid 20s. Monday will be colder, with lows in the single digits and highs only in the mid 10s. Some areas will approach or slip below zero degrees by Tuesday morning with highs struggling into the low 10s.
Scattered lake effect snow showers will be possible Sunday, Monday, and early Tuesday, but generally look minimal at this time.
If the lake effect moves out and skies clear Tuesday night, widespread sub-zero temperatures will be possible Wednesday morning. However, temperatures should begin to slowly moderate thereafter.
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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