Winter Weather Advisory for Friday

Our regional weather experts (NWS Albany) have issued a Winter Weather Advisory for Friday. The advisory calls for 1-3 inches of snow between 4 am and noon. 

Predicted snow totals this low don't usually warrant Winter Weather Advisories, but because there are so many leaves still on the trees, there will be higher chance of downed branches, power outages and other associated peril. Plus, people are out of practice driving in the snow so it's better to be a little cautious with with the Advisory for the first snow of the season. 

FYI, in the yearly battle of the models--US vs Euro--we are rooting for the Euro for this round (if you are pro-snow, which, duh, you should be if you're reading this post). The Euro is predicting 2-3 inches for most parts with 4-5" possible on the east-facing slopes of the Berkshires. The US model has upped its snow prediction slightly today and now has 1-2 inches in most places with 3 inches on those slopes facing the Pioneer Valley. That they've come into closer agreement today makes a 1-2 inch covering of snow during the Friday morning commute almost a certainty. Or so we think.

From CBS Channel 6 in Albany

One other thing--the temps will not need to get below freezing for the rain to change to snow. Because the coldest air is aloft and not at ground level, we'll see snow begin to fall with temps in the mid-30s tomorrow morning.

We'll bump the Confidence Meter a smidge to reflect that chance for some delays tomorrow. Candidates with a higher chance for a delay tomorrow would be Central Berkshire, Clarksburg, Florida--the usual suspects for elevation-dependent storms.