More Snow to Close Out March in Midwest,Northeast

By Kristina Pydynowski, Senior Meteorologist

March 29,2015; 10:55PM,EDT

 

 

Winter will continue to hold its ground by allowing some snow to fall across parts of the Midwest and Northeast as March comes to a close.
Saturday's snow was not be the last of the season in the Northeast as a pair of storm systems will sweep in from the Midwest in the final days of March.
Each system will not go down in history books as a major winter storm, but will still create issues for travelers and wintry scenes in some communities.
The first system will track from the Midwest to the Northeast through Monday with gusty winds and rain and snow showers.

Wind gusts on Sunday in the Midwest will howl between 40 and 50 mph, threatening to trigger flight delays and sporadic power outages.
Snow will fall across the northern and eastern Great Lakes and eastward to the northern and central Appalachians.
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Most of what will dot the Northeast's I-95 cities will be spotty rain showers. However, snowflakes or ice pellets could briefly be seen in some northern and western suburbs.
The greatest opportunity for the snow to accumulate a couple of inches, mainly on grassy surfaces, will be from around Lake Superior to the St. Lawrence Valley. This includes Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, and Quebec City, Canada.
Elsewhere, enough snow could fall to coat the ground in some of the heavier snow showers.

On the heels of this system will be another set to spread a quick-hitting band of snow from the Upper Midwest to southern parts of the Northeast Monday through Tuesday night.
The storm will ride the boundary between stubborn cool air to the north and spring warmth set to pour across the Lower Midwest states and southern mid-Atlantic.
The potential exists for this snow band to sweep from northern Minnesota to northern Michigan to the higher elevations of Pennsylvania through Tuesday. This will be a narrow band of snow, producing a coating to two inches along its path and creating hazards for some travelers.
It is possible that enough snow to coat the ground streaks eastward to a portion of New Jersey or far southern New England Tuesday night.
Due to the stronger late-March sun, any snow that falls from each storm system will struggle to stick to roads during the midday and afternoon hours.

However, snow that falls heavily can overcome the March sun and create slushy and slippery spots. Similar issues for travelers may arise where the snow falls at night or first thing in the morning.
AccuWeather.com meteorologists are closely monitoring the system's track for any potential shift in its expected track. A shift 50 to 100 miles in one direction could mean the difference between an area seeing snow or dry weather.
A farther north track would also allow milder air to make more northward progress, while a southern shift would prevent some areas near the Mason-Dixon line from getting as warm as currently expected. Even if the latter scenario unfolds, the air near the Mason-Dixon line would likely remain too warm for snow to accumulate outside of the mountains.
A significant cold blast will not follow the snow at midweek. Instead, a surge of warmth is in the works for Thursday before yet another shot of cool air arrives by Easter weekend.