


Quantitative Precipitation Forecast
Issued by NWS
Issued by NWS
162 FOUS11 KWBC 050732 QPFHSD Probabilistic Heavy Snow and Icing Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 332 AM EDT Sat Apr 5 2025 Valid 12Z Sat Apr 05 2025 - 12Z Tue Apr 08 2025 ...Southern Rockies and the Southern High Plains... Day 1... A 700mb low tracking across southern New Mexico this morning has all the necessary ingredients at its disposal for a classic April winter storm in the southern Rockies and High Plains. Modest 700-300mb moisture aloft will overrun an air-mass that is becoming increasingly colder through two methods: CAA in wake of the cold frontal passage, and the other being dynamic cooling aloft within the developing deformation axis. The mountain ranges of the southern Rockies (Sangre De Cristo, southern Front Range, San Juans, Sacramentos) will see the heaviest snowfall rates which can surpass 2"/hr in some cases through this morning. As the 700mb low emerges over eastern New Mexico, periods of heavy snow and gusty winds will produce hazardous travel conditions across the High Plains of eastern New Mexico, southeast Colorado, and the Texas Panhandle through Saturday evening. There could be instances of >1"/hr snowfall rates over eastern New Mexico and the Texas Panhandle during the day. Snow should taper off across West Texas Saturday night, while a brief burst of snow over central Oklahoma could produce a swath of light snow as far east as southwest Missouri. WPC snowfall probabilities show moderate-to-high chances (50-80%) for >8" in terrain from the Raton Mesa on south along the Sangre De Cristo and all the way to the Sacramentos which have 50-70% chances for >12". Much of east-central New Mexico along I-40 shows moderate-to-high chances (40-70%) for snowfall totals >4"with low- to-moderate chances (20-50%) in portions of the Texas Panhandle between Amarillo and Lubbock. The WSSI shows a large footprint of Moderate Impacts from the Southern Rockies and eastern New Mexico to the Texas Panhandle with the Snow Amount and Blowing Snow impact criteria being the primary drivers in the WSSI algorithm. Expect hazardous travel conditions in these area today and into parts of tonight. ...Northern New England... Day 1... Today, another round of wintry weather arrives from the White Mountains of New Hampshire through western Maine that will continue through Saturday night. The airmass is not as cold as the more recent winter storm that took place earlier in the week, but high pressure over Quebec will anchor a weak source of sub-freezing boundary layer temps. As 850-700mb WAA and 300K isentropic ascent amidst brisk SWrly flow aloft increases, a ribbon of 850-700mb areal-averaged FGEN will support a band of moderate-to-heavy precipitation that runs over the marginally cold air-mass in northern New England on Saturday. Precipitation may briefly start out as snow (staying all snow longest over northern Maine), but the burgeoning nose of >0C temps at low-levels will inevitably switch any snow to a sleet/freezing rain mixture from the Whites to western Maine Saturday afternoon. A weak CAD signature will linger longest along the Maine/Quebec border through Saturday night. By Sunday morning, the warm front lifts far enough north to have plain rain be the primary precipitation type. WPC probabilities show moderate-to-high chances (50-80%) for ice accumulations >0.1" from the Whites through western Maine with up to 40% probs for >0.25" in the Presidential Range of the Whites. The WSSI is depicting moderate impacts from this icing event within the hardest hit areas of the Whites and western Maine. ...Michigan... Days 2-3... A vigorous 500mb vorticity maximum originating out of the Arctic Circle several days ago will track south from southern Canada towards Minnesota Sunday night. A 250mb jet streak oriented N-S will place its divergent left-exit region over the Midwest Sunday night and aid in the development of low pressure along a strengthening 850mb front. A narrow band of moderate-to-heavy snow will manifest itself on the northern periphery of the developing storm system as it tracks across Michigan`s Mitten early Monday morning. In addition to the primary band of snow, CAA via brisk northerly winds will trigger lake-enhanced snow showers over Michigan`s U.P. and the northern-most portions of Michigan`s Mitten through Monday afternoon. Snow should finally taper off by Monday evening as the storm races east. WPC probabilities show low-to-moderate chances (20-50%) for snowfall accumulations >4" in northern Michigan through Monday evening. The wave of low pressure will continue its eastward progression across the Great Lakes Monday afternoon and along the Northeast U.S./southeast Canada border Monday night. Periods of light snow are possible from the eastern Great Lakes to the northern Appalachians Monday night and into Tuesday morning. Light accumulations between a coating to as much as 2" are possible with the highest elevations of the northern Appalachians having the best odds of seeing the higher end of those snowfall accumulations. Mullinax $$