Could the snow make for a white Christmas tonight?

SYRACUSE, NY – It was a mild start to the week, with almost all of the snow still on the ground in central New York having melted. However, we’ll say goodbye to this warm weather pattern later today as widespread rain turns to snow this evening. After that, it’s time to get your winter coat out again as freezing winter air blows into the region!

Widespread rain showers and wet snow will begin at higher elevations this afternoon. That evening everyone sees it snowing before the storm passes at midnight.

You might want to get the snow shovel ready! Syracuse could see T-1 inch of snow accumulation, and a few inches could be possible at higher elevations. Most of the accumulation will occur on colder surfaces as the ground is still relatively warm due to mild temperatures over the past few days. Here’s a look at the accumulation map until tomorrow:

As the main snow moves away tonight, colder air moves in and central New York will see some lake effect snow showers tomorrow morning. More widespread, light snowfall will occur in the late afternoon and evening through Friday. At this point the ground will be much colder, so the falling snow will stick!

After that, temperatures this weekend will be almost 15 to 20°C below normal. Brrr! This comes just in time for the first day of winter on Saturday – the shortest day of the year. Due to the cold, the snow that falls over the next few days is likely to stick around for a while; maybe it will even make it to Christmas next Wednesday.

White Christmas is not unlikely this year! Historically, most of Central New York has snow 50-75% of the time at Christmas. It’s almost a guarantee for the Tug Hill and Adirondack Mountains, but it’s a little more difficult in the southern Finger Lakes.

As of now, temperatures are expected to rise above freezing again on Christmas Eve as another system moves in. White Christmas all depends on how much these temperatures actually warm up. It also depends on the type of precipitation from this Christmas Eve storm. If it’s mostly rain, the snow on the ground might melt, but if it’s mostly snow, it could well create a winter wonderland for everyone who wakes up on Christmas morning.

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