After some spotty showers around the metro area this morning and afternoon, skies have partially cleared across most of the Sound, with the exception of that oh-so favored area between Seattle and Everett, where a Puget Sound Convergence Zone is raging tonight.
Temperatures at 8 p.m. were anywhere from 36 to 38 degrees in cities currently under the Zone’s wrath (namely Everett, north Bothell, Mill Creek, north Woodinville and Monroe). Webcams in the area show wet roads–no flakes dancing through the air just yet–but with colder temperatures and the darkest hours of night to come, I wouldn’t be surprised at all to start seeing reports of wet snow filtering in from the general south Snohomish/north King County area.
 |
| Radar showing Puget Sound Convergence Zone over southern Snohomish County Monday night |
For the rest of us, it’ll be a partly- to mostly- clear night, which will allow overnight lows to fall into the mid-30s in the city, and likely below freezing in some of the outlying areas. More showers are possible tomorrow, but really only to the north of Seattle, meaning that the immediate metro area has a decent chance at a partly sunny and dry day.
Temperatures will be quite cold, with highs only in the mid 40s, before a dramatic warm-up takes place on Wednesday with the arrival of a strong warm front. Highs on Wednesday will surge into the mid-50s under warm southerly winds (think gusts to 40 mph again) and moderate rainfall.
Once Wednesday’s warmth subsides, temperatures will fall back into the lower to mid-40s for the latter part of the week. Current models indicate that by Saturday, high temperatures will struggle to get past 40 degrees, with a showery air mass in place. It goes without saying that a few of these showers could be somewhat snowy in nature, but such showers will be the exception, rather than the rule. In short, a widespread snowfall remains unlikely for the metro area.
Why? This weekend’s air mass is only marginally cold for snow, especially for the Seattle area, where the prevailing winds will come off the ocean. Up around Bellingham, where colder winds from the east are likely to dominate, it could be a far different scenario–an inch or two of snow is not out of the question.
That said, we’re still four to five days away from any sort of snow event, so a lot can change between now and then. Even the smallest change–i.e. a stronger system than the one currently modeled for Friday night making landfall 100 miles further south–could tip the scales widely in favor of a Seattle snowfall.
Bottom line: don’t count the Emerald City out just yet.
