Fun times.
.NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/...
Christmas comes early for snow lovers as a Norlun trough
impacts Maine and New Hampshire tonight. Snow continues to
spread from west to east during the late afternoon and evening
hours. By late this evening and through the overnight hours, an
inverted trough is expected to become stationary across the
MidCoast, likely reaching westward into Casco Bay. This serves
as a focus for heavy snowfall overnight, with high ratios and
ideal dendritic growth conditions supporting higher snow
totals.
With this update, confidence has increased in much of the
MidCoast experiencing the heavy snowfall, which likely reaches
into the western Maine mountains and into the eastern Whites.
Winter storms warnings have been expanded another tier of zones
inland, where high ratios should help support higher totals.
Closer to the coast, high ratio and fluffy snow is still
expected, but surface temperatures around freezing likely cause
the snow to become a bit stickier and settle more once it`s on
the ground. In all these areas, 6-12 inches of snow is expected.
Locally higher amounts are possible, and would most likely
occur just back from the coast where surface temps in the 20s
limit settling, and in areas of increased elevations, even if
only by a few hundred feet. The heaviest snowfall rates are
expected through the overnight hours, with 1-3 in/hr at times in
the heavier snow bands. Reduced visibility and difficult travel
conditions are expected overnight.
&&
.SHORT TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT/...
Snow continues into the morning hours through much of Maine.
Heavy snowfall rates of 1-3 in/hr continue into the early
morning commute along the coast, and then ease through the late
morning and early afternoon hours. Winds increase toward the end
of the snowfall event, with gusts of 20-30 mph likely to cause
some blowing and drifting snow into the afternoon hours
tomorrow. Temperatures also fall on the backside of the system,
with temps spending most of the day in the 20s.
Temperatures fall into the teens across most of the region for
Christmas Eve. Then, clouds begin to move in overnight as the
next shortwave moves in on northwesterly flow. Snow showers
spread southeastward after midnight, likely reaching into
central locations by daybreak on Christmas morning. Snowfall
amounts from this would remain light, but a coating to an inch
of snow is possible by daybreak across the mountains and
foothills.