Snow is expected during the weekend in Philly, but how much is up in the air
Snow would come from two different systems — or not.
Some snow is possible in the Philly region during the holiday weekend, but about the only thing certain is that schools will be closed until Tuesday.
Snow — not a whole lot of it — is expected Saturday morning, and possibly again during the day Sunday.
“Definitely something,” said Ray Martin, a lead meteorologist at the National Weather Service Office in Philadelphia, “maybe not a lot of something.”
In short, he added, expect a “100% chance of forecast uncertainty.”
How much for Philly?
It is highly likely that Philly will get enough snow to measure Saturday and Sunday, with an outside shot that two inches fall upon the city. Even three isn’t entirely out of the question, said Martin.
Snow would come courtesy of two very different weather features, and it remained unclear which one could end up being the more significant snow-maker in the Philly region.
Snow accompanying a weather system from the west was forecast to start in the early morning hours of Saturday, possibly mixing with rain during the day as temperatures creep toward 40 degrees.
On Sunday when it will be colder, the source would be a coastal storm that has been befuddling computer models the last three days. On Wednesday, the U.S. model was seeing a significant snowstorm for the I-95 corridor. On Thursday, it said never mind and fell in line with other guidance that kept the storm offshore.
On Friday, models were bringing the storm closer to the coast, and the forecasts may well continue to be moving targets Saturday and Sunday.
Said Martin, “It’s always tricky with these offshore lows. It’s also possible that both systems pass us and we get basically nothing.”
Far more certain is a rather big chill
That the region was about to experience its coldest weather of the season to date was all but certain.
Temperatures on Monday, Martin Luther King Day, won’t get much above freezing and no higher than the low 20s Tuesday and Wednesday, forecasters say.
Overnight lows are due to tumble into the teens, with wind chills approaching zero early Wednesday.
No more precipitation is forecast at least through Thursday, but with odds favoring continued below normal temperatures through Jan. 29 and above-normal precipitation, it should be a robust period for virtual snow threats, if not actual snow.
“Even if nothing really happens this weekend,” said Martin, “there’s always next weekend.”
AccuWeather does have snow in the long-range forecast for Groundhog Day, but one uncertainty at a time.
This story will be updated.