Two Upcoming Systems...

For fans of snow in SE Michigan, you will likely finally get the snow you have been hoping for in the next week. Two systems will likely affect the area...

System one is going to be a clipper system that will come out of Canada and then track through ND, MN, WI, and Northern MI. However, SE Michigan will definitely see some snow out of this system on Thursday Night & Friday Morning. It is not going to be a particularly strong system, and at this time it looks as if it will not have access to moisture from the Gulf of Mexico, so I don't believe this will be a very high impact event for SE Michigan. Right now I think around 2-4" of snow are likely on Thursday Night & Friday Morning. This is not enough snow for a snow day, but will be enough to cause disruptions to the Friday Morning commute, so be prepared for that. For being 4.5 days out, I have fairly high confidence that SE Michigan will see snow from this system, but I do not believe it will be a high impact event.

System two is the system that you will have to keep your eyes on w/ regards to snow days. There is good support among the models for a strong low pressure system to affect the Eastern U.S. around next Sunday or Monday. Depending on what happens in the upper levels of the atmosphere (and I will likely explain this further in the next few days), this storm could affect a variety of different places. The only real agreement among the models at this time is that there will be a strong storm somewhere. Some of the models have the storm mostly affecting the NE and missing SE Michigan. Some of the models have the storm cutting into the Great Lakes, which is a good storm track for SE Michgian. Another possibility is that the storm track could be too far to the west for SE Michigan to receive any significant snow, with most of the precipitation falling as rain. I am not confident enough to favor any of these scenarios at this time. While I do believe it is likely that someone in the Eastern U.S. will see a good snow event around next Sunday or Monday, I am not willing to make a prediction as to which areas will be affected.

As always, feel free to ask me questions or leave comments in the comments section.