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A Wet Weekend Ahead And Possibly More Snow On Monday

Rachel La Corte
/
AP Photo
Snow is seen falling outside the Washington state Capitol on Thursday, Dec. 8, 2016 in Olympia, Wash. Other areas that saw snow in the Pacific Northwest included Vancouver, Wash. and Portland, Oregon.

The winter weather system that covered the Puget Sound region in several inches of snow overnight transitioned to rain as expected on Friday morning. More rain is in the forecast for the weekend, but then another tricky forecast is ahead for Monday, with the possibility of snow once again, says knkx weather expert Cliff Mass.

Wet Weekend

Mass expects Friday's snow will melt by mid-day, especially on the roadways. And he says rain is in the cards for most of the weekend.

“Right now, warm air is surging in above us, so temperatures are going to get up into the mid- to upper 30s very quickly over most of the region and so today we’re going to see rain,” Mass said on Friday morning. “I’m looking at the radar and I see showers coming in off the Pacific.”

On Saturday, he says another weather system will be approaching that will bring more showers during the day, with temperatures around 40 degrees.

“And actually, a low-pressure system that might produce some wind will pass north of us, later in the day on Saturday, so it could be gusty, but it won’t be cold,” Mass said.

Showers are expected on Sunday, with temperatures again around 40.

“But then it gets more interesting,” Mass said.

Snow Possible Monday

It’s another tricky forecast with lots of uncertainty, but Mass says another snow event is possible as the weekend wraps up.

“We have to watch this very carefully,” Mass said.

He says another batch of cold air will start moving southward late on Sunday evening into Monday, with a weather disturbance approaching at the same time, meaning that cold air will be coming in along with some lift and some precipitation.

“So there is the potential for more snow on Monday,” Mass said. “But this is going to be even harder than [Thursday’s] forecast because the cold air and the precipitation will be coming in at the same time,” he said. “So we’ll have to watch that very carefully.”

To hear the forecast along with Cliff’s discussion of this week's snow event and why it was hard to get right, you can click on the “play” icon at the top of this post.

The weekly knkx feature 'Weather with Cliff Mass’ airs every Friday at 9 a.m. immediately following ‘BirdNote’, and twice on Friday afternoons during ‘All Things Considered’. The feature is hosted by knkx environment reporter Bellamy Pailthorp. Cliff Mass is a University of Washington professor of atmospheric sciences, a renowned Seattle weather prognosticator, and a popular weather blogger. You can also subscribe to a podcast of ‘Weather with Cliff Mass’ shows.

Bellamy Pailthorp covers the environment for KNKX with an emphasis on climate justice, human health and food sovereignty. She enjoys reporting about how we will power our future while maintaining healthy cultures and livable cities. Story tips can be sent to bpailthorp@knkx.org.