The long-expected cold snap is arriving in the Northeastern United States late this week, and it will not relent for a while. We have had some mild Decembers lately, but this one will very likely go in the books as colder and snowier than normal in Southeastern New England.
The first chance of snow is Saturday afternoon and night. It’s a close call with an offshore storm. Right now, it looks like a minor accumulation for most of RI and SE MA, with the best chance of 2-3″ along the coast. A slight shift in the track makes the difference between a relative non-event with no accumulating snow, and a moderate 2-5″ snowfall. A second disturbance could bring a few snow showers or flurries on Sunday, with no accumulation.
Quiet weather is likely on Monday before an Arctic front approaches on Tuesday. The front will likely spin up a developing storm near New England on Tuesday. It’s early, but the potential exists for more snow/mix/rain followed by a flash freeze late Tuesday. I expect the coldest weather since at least late last winter to arrive Tuesday night into Wednesday. Look for highs in the 20s on Wednesday.
Further down the road, there is another snow threat late next week. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if there was a storm on the weekend of December 16-17. The pattern continues to be ripe for cold and snow chances leading up to Christmas. While every potential snow event may not materialize or hit Southeastern New England, I still think this will be the snowiest December since at least 2013, and possibly since 2009.
