In the summer there’s always a week of very hot weather, usually in July, but sometimes in August. In a typical winter there’s always a week or two of cold. It often comes in January, but sometimes waits till February.

Next week, I see the coldest air of the season so far coming to Maine. Before it gets here we will experience two precipitation events. The first will be a storm arriving in the early hours of Saturday and then ending by early afternoon. The second will be a smaller one with some snow showers Sunday night ending Monday afternoon.

Nice Work Week Finish
This afternoon is a seasonable one with lots of sunshine and light winds. If you are a skier, it will be a nice day to be on the slopes. Clouds will increase this afternoon, and as a coastal low takes shape snow will overspread the area before sunrise Saturday. This is a very complex storm system with warm air getting pulled into the storm at higher levels. This means a change to sleet, freezing rain and rain, depending on where you are.

Along the immediate coast, enough warm air should work in to change any snow to a mixed bag and eventually all rain. This means accumulation will be on the lighter side. As one moves progressively further north and west away from the coastline the period of snow will last longer before any change or mixing occurs. This means plowable snow.

A shift of the warm tongue of air could allow more snow along the coast or less inland. The map below gives a general idea of where the heaviest snow will occur.

If you are headed to Foxborough for the Patriots playoff game, there will be a rainstorm but the precipitation should be finished in time for tailgating and certainly the game itself.

Timing
The precipitation will be underway before sunrise Saturday in Maine. This means travel tomorrow will be slowed by snow and mixed precipitation. The storm winds down Saturday evening with clearing skies late at night and a pleasant winter day on Sunday.

Sunday is another nice day with a blend of clouds and sunshine and once again seasonably cold air. Sunday night a weak storm will cross the Great Lakes and bring a period of snow showers lasting into MLK day. After this system passes, arctic air will infiltrate all of New England and keep temperatures below average for the rest of the week. It’s possible this ends up being one of the coldest weeks of the winter, but we won’t know that for sure until late February. Have a great weekend.

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