Yes It is Cold

You have probably heard that from a lot of people the past few days. And you know what? They are correct. Temperatures are going to be averaging a good 5-10 degrees below normal for the next week or so. This is not what early December should feel like. In fact, this is what mid January feels like. The culprit? Take a look for yourself below. 500mb temperatures are readings from a few thousand feet up in the atmosphere but it is a crucial number since this is where all of our steering patterns, aka jet stream, reside.

It doesn't take a genius to see that a cold pool of air is just sitting over the northeast and it won't move for the next 5 days. During that period, expect just cold but sunny conditions for us here in the Boston area. Northern New England is going to get hit with a fairly potent early season snow storm, one that is actually backing into the gulf of Maine moving east to west! Ski areas will be happy for sure. Below is the expected snowfall totals, including totals from lake effect snow which will also be very active this week.

Our weather pattern gets a bit more active towards Friday night. A small little clipper system will move in during this period and could drop a quick 1-3 inches of snow over our area, with higher amounts likely in some areas. No consensus yet on how if any impact there will be but with such a strong cold air mass in place, snowfall is likely to happen at some point. Right now Friday night looks like the best shot. These clipper storms move very fast so there is no time for intensification. Anything more than a few inches of snow would be surprising.

Stay tuned and stay warm!