Rounds of snow and extremely cold temperatures are in the forecast for this week. We can expect three rounds of snow (Monday Morning, Tuesday morning, Tuesday evening). We can also expect wind chills to stay below 0° on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.
MONDAY’S FORECAST
Monday’s snow will focus on areas, mainly along and north of I-70.
Snow is expected to start around sunrise and continue into mid-Morning before it comes to an end by early afternoon.
Temperatures will start in the low 10s and warm to a range in the afternoon with 10s across northern Missouri and highs closer to 30° near the Ozarks.
MONDAY’S SNOWFALL TOTALS
Total snowfall on Monday is expected to be from 1-3” for areas north of I-70. Areas along and south of I-70 are only expected to pick up a dusting to an inch of snow. Not everyone in the dusting to an inch range will pick up a dusting, as snowfall will be very patchy on the southern extent.
The KOMU 8 Storm Mode Index will be at a 2 (0 to 5 scale) for this event because there could be issues and you’ll want to stay updated. Any travel concerns would likely be north of I-70 during the morning through the late afternoon.
TRACKING TUESDAY’S SNOW
Two rounds of snow are expected on Tuesday. The first will start overnight into early morning and be on the lighter side. This is expected to linger into the day and become scattered snow showers. Some dry time is possible during the day.
By late afternoon moisture will be surging into the region and that will bring the next wave of snowfall. This wave will primarily be focused on the southern half of the region and for southern parts of Missouri. Snow is expected to be moderate to heavy at times and accumulate quickly through the evening. Snow will come to an end overnight.
TUESDAY’S SNOWFALL TOTALS
We are expecting a wide range of totals across the region from the snow on Tuesday. Areas near Highway 36 will pick up light totals of a dusting to 2”. The cut-off from higher totals to lower totals will be rather sharp.
Between I-70 and Highway 24 we expect 2-5” of snowfall. Snowfall totals will continue to increase farther south with 3-6” of snow possible from I-70 to Highway 50.
The heaviest of the snow is expected to fall south of Highway 50 where 5-9” of snowfall are possible.
The KOMU 8 Storm Mode Index is at a 3 ( 0 to 5 scale) for this round of snow because we expect issues and hazardous travel is possible.
This round of snow is one we will continue to monitor closely. Dry air goes hand in hand with arctic air, and I expect this will play a role. Snow ratios will be high with this system, meaning that 0.1” of liquid can produce closer to 2” of snowfall (normally it’s closer to 1).
There are some rather hefty snowfall maps online of raw model data, it’s likely these will trend down as the system gets closer. We are trying our best to capture the uncertainty, but any shifts in the storm track could impact this forecast.
TRAVEL IMPACTS
Monday we should expect a few slick spots to develop for areas north of I-70, particularly on highway 63, highway 24, and Highway 36…