By: Jordan Wolfe
An expansive weather system and likely winter storm is set to move
across the Midwest and Ohio River Valley late this weekend into Monday,
which could bring some impressive snow totals for some. But take any
snow maps with a big grain of salt, as the disturbance producing this
weather system is still over 2,000 miles away as of Thursday evening.
As
the wave moves onshore and through the Central U.S. over the weekend, we
will get a better grasp as to the exact trajectory of the system and
associated components that will determine where the heaviest snow will
fall.
As of now, this system looks to produce the heaviest snowfall across
Missouri into Central Illinois and Indiana. South of that snow axis,
significant icing may occur as well. The exact locations of the
precipitation types and rates will depend on the track of the weather
system, so any recent snow maps and forecast models are subject to a lot
of change based on small wobbles in the track. Northern Illinois,
including Rockford, will likely miss out on the worst of the system but
could see some minor accumulating snow Sunday into Monday morning.
Winter storm watches have been issued Thursday well ahead of the storm’s
arrival, given the possibility of higher impacts. The watch officially
calls for six or more inches of accumulating snowfall, but the forecast
will become refined as better data arrives in the coming days. Stay
tuned to your local forecast for updates!
