Recent Stories with tag convergence zone

Our Whidbey Island correspondent provides this winter wonderland view, confirming this Seattlepi.com story, "Whidbey Island faces snow days." Islanders are expecting between "1 and 3 inches of snow" to accumulate today, with perhaps another inch coming Thursday.

Here in Seattle, roadways are mostly bare and wet--after graupel yesterday and some wet snow for the commute home, we're in a snow shadow cast by the Olympics. In this morning's post, the UW's Cliff Mass suggests that while snow is on the way, at least today it won't be cold enough to freeze during the afternoon commute: 

The models indicate that during the day the flow approaching the region will weaken and turn more southerly....that will open Seattle to snow showers, and as the low moves south, northerly flow will push southward. But not yet. Last night the NWS was going for a hard freeze of this stuff later today during the commute home. Looking at the situation now I believe that is highly unlikely.... (more)

Last Friday, the UW's Cliff Mass was running the models and snow kept popping up: "The model forecasts for next Wednesday and Thursday would warm the heart of a polar bear. You want a high amplitude trough, well positioned to bring in cold air...you got it." 

But the models have forecast snow before, and the key elements have skittered around enough in the intervening days that nothing much has appeared. "I won't get too excited about this until Monday," wrote Mass.

Now it's Monday, and KOMO's Scott Sistek sounds pretty confident in flakes for the week ahead: "Snow chances begin as early as Monday night, but low elevation areas don't really have potential to see any accumulations until at least Tuesday or Wednesday." 

Tuesday there'll likely be a convergence zone playing impishly with where winter weather appears in force, but, says Sistek, "Wednesday midday through Thursday morning is our best chance of lowland snow of the week, with greatest chances for getting snow and accumulations north of Seattle." Here's the updated National Weather Service forecast for the week, also picking on Wednesday as a good snow day: ... (more)