There are no monster storms on the horizon this weekend, but snow is in the forecast, says AccuWeather
AccuWeather.com reports folks wanting a big snowstorm in the Northeast will have to wait a while longer. However, there will be enough cold and snow for skiing will continue through the extended Dr. Martin Luther King weekend.
The weather pattern into the start of next week will favor episodes of spotty snow and flurries, produced by weak storms originating from Western Canada. These storms are called Alberta Clippers.
While these can cause minor travel problems at the local level, widespread disruptions from heavy snow are unlikely through Monday. Some roads will be coated with snow from time to time.
One such episode is taking aim on the central Appalachians Friday night.
The snow would reach some of the coastal areas of the mid-Atlantic and New England late Friday night into Saturday. The snow could coat the ground around Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and New York City. A few inches of snow can fall on the Pocono mountains of northeastern Pennsylvania.
A few inches of snow is forecast to fall on parts of upstate New York and New England on Saturday as the weak storm makes a northward turn and attempts to throw moisture from the Atlantic Ocean onshore.
Winds will kick up enough in the wake of the clipper storm to cause blowing and drifting of the small amount of snow that falls.
A third episode of spotty snow is possible on Sunday over the Northeast region.
Waves of cold air will continue to move out of Canada into early next week but will first have to cross the Midwest and Great Lakes, where it will moderate.
The pattern into next week will allow some temperatures swings from one day to the next, but ski resorts will be able to keep snow on their slopes and make more snow at night, if necessary. The clipper storms will deposit a small amount of natural powder on the slopes from time to time.
Later in the month, the pattern is forecast to change to more persistent cold and perhaps more intense cold like that of early in January.
During this transition to more noteworthy cold, one or more significant storms with snow can come about, the details of which are not yet clear..
By Alex Sosnowski, Expert Senior Meteorologist for AccuWeather.com
___________________________________________________________________________