Is Climate Change Shifting Where Dangerous Ice Storms Set Up?

Lewis County, Tennessee after the late January ice storm
Research suggests that climate change might be making
ice storms more common in the South, but more research
is needed to confirm that. Photo from Tennessee 
Valley Weather/Facebook

Are ice storms moving to different and potentially more dangerous places? 

Some scientists are beginning to think so, and that could lead to more frozen disasters like the one that blasted Mississippi, Tennessee and other southern states in late January

 Drawing on long term records, computer modeling and new measurement, scientists in Texas concluded that a warming world isn't making freezing rain go away. It's just changing where it falls and when in the winter it occurs. "

Zong-Liang Yang, an earth systems scientist the University of Texas at Austin and postdoctoral researcher Chenxi Hu looked into this. According to science.org:

"To see how these changes might be playing out in the ground, Yang and Hu turned to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations Storm Events Database, which compiles weather phenomena reported by individuals and vetted by the National Weather Service. 

When the researchers analyzed county-level  records from 1996 to 2025, they saw an emerging trend: More events along a band from eastern Texas to western Pennsylvania, as well as along the Appalachian Mountains, where low, cold air can get trapped. The timing of freezing ran events also shifted from December to February."

The locations Yang described here almost exactly match the zone affected by the disastrous late January ice storm,. 

Freezing rain is thankfully a bit hard to come by compared to other forms of precipitation. Snow needs to change to rain on the way down. Those raindrops must then encounter subfreezing air just before hitting the ground as liquid, which freezes into a glaze of ice upon impact.

If the cold layer near the ground is too thick, the rain will freeze into sleet, or little balls of ice on the way down. Sleet is a pain in the butt, of course, but at least it doesn't pull down trees and power lines. 

Also, freezing rain is often transitory. It'll hit briefly as an interlude between the time snow goes over to rain as temperatures warm. The warm/cold battle of air masses must more or less stay put to create a dangerous ice storm. 

Not everyone is buying the idea that climate change is shifting the places where ice storms are most likely - at least not yet

Esther Mullens, a climatologist at the University of Florida, told science.org that it still could be just natural variations that move ice storms around, or create trends in ice storms.

In 2025, Mullens looked at ice storms over the past 80 years and concluded that natural climate variations might explain the uptick in southern freezing rain storms. She concedes it could be that the jet stream is getting wavier than it used to be. 

A wavier jet stream is more likely to bring Arctic air blasts further south, which could increase the chances of freeing rain. But climatologists are still debating whether climate change is seriously messing with the jet stream like that. 

Still, there is a pretty compelling argument that the warming of the Arctic might be creating a wavier jet stream.  A wavier jet stream is more likely to create the right conditions for freezing rain than a flat west to east upper air flow.  

Another potential effect of climate change is it might affect how heavy the precipitation is. Even with a warmer world, it still very often gets below freezing in the mid-latitudes of the northern hemisphere during the winter. 

A warmer world, though, is a wetter world.  A hotter atmosphere can hold more water that a cooler one. Storms like the one that hit in January draw moisture from warmer places like the southern Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean or Caribbean.  That moisture slams into the cold air further north to fall as snow, sleet, freezing rain or a combination of all three.

Since the January storm was wetter than it would have been before climate change began in earnest, it was probably able to dump more ice and snow on the eastern U.S. that the same storm would have a generation or two ago.

The heavier the freezing rain, the more weight you get on trees and power lines. Snow in some storms might be deeper than it otherwise might be. We have anecdotal evidence of that right her in Vermont.Burlington's weather data goes all the way back to the late 1880s. Yet, 11 of the city's 20 biggest snowstorms all came in the past quarter century. 

You get the point. Winter storms can be counterintuitively worse in our era of climate change.  

Climate change can even make lake effect snowstorms worse. Lakes would be slower to freeze during warmer winters, so they'd have more opportunity to dump heavy snow downwind of the lakes on the days it does turn cold.

The data the Texas researchers used was based on reports by humans, who sometimes under-report or over-report the amount of ice during a freezing rain event. 

NOAA is working on a new tool that uses radar, rain gauges and an ice model to map freezing rain in real time, science.org says. 

The new tool would make an analysis like what Yang and Hu did more accurate, as we'd have more precise information on how much ice accumulated and where. 

All this shows that climate change isn't just about heat waves and warmer winters. Under the right conditions the warming world can make the rare wintry intrusions much worse. Worse, even, than what your grandparents remember when they walked through feet of snow to and from school, uphill both ways.   

For Parts Of Vermont, The Snow Just Kept On Coming Since Yesterday Morning

Check out the size of the snowbanks along Route 242 up in
Westfield from all the snow that area has gotten
this winter. Web cam grab from is from this morning. 

 As of 8 a.m. it was still snowing here in St. Albans, Vermont.

The main storm had passed 24 hours earlier, but light snow and flurries have been almost continuous since. An additional four inches of snow has fallen atop then 3.8 inches we got from the "main" storm Tuesday and Tuesday night.

The snow that fell since yesterday morning is much, much fluffier than the stuff that we got Tuesday night, so the freshest snow will pack down. But there's now a LOT of snow on the ground here.

Burlington collected 1.7 inches of fluff atop the 3.8 inches of snow (and a little freezing drizzle) from Tuesday and Tuesday night.  

 I don't have many reports quite yet of overnight snowfall elsewhere in Vermont. But judging from the way weather radar looked yesterday, last night and early this morning, I'm guessing the western slopes and summits of the central and northern Green Mountains did really well. 

We're getting some clues from northern Vermont ski areas, who must be ecstatic heading into the President's Day holiday. Jay Peak says they got 8 to 10 inches of snow since yesterday for a two-day total of 16 inches, and a total for the season of 338 inches. Stowe Mountain Resort reports 11 inches in the past 36 hours. 

In both places, it was still snowing a little as of early this morning.

FORECAST

Lots of traffic heading up Route 108, the Mountain Road
heading to Stowe Resort. Great conditions, perfect weather'
and the Presidents Day weekend will surely bring
crowds to the resorts over the next several days 

Very little new snow is coming for the next several days, but this will be an exquisite next few days for winter sports types. 

 The weather pattern has changed to a somewhat warmer one. Yesterday was the first milder than average day in Burlington since January 22. That's almost three weeks ago.

Temperatures will be near average for the next few days, then it will go a little above normal next week. 

No more frostbite and hyperthermia after just 10 minutes outdoors. You will actually be able to enjoy the days playing in the snow. 

That means for today through Sunday daytime high temperatures will be in the mid 20s to low 30s. Tonight will be an exception as it actually looks like it will get pretty cold. A fresh snow pack, mostly clear skies and light winds will bring us down into the single digits, with a few below zero readings in the colder spots. 

Following that, most overnight lows through the weekend will be in the upper single number and teens.

Through yesterday, Burlington was at 20 consecutive days of subfreezing temperatures. It's possible they could finally get barely above freezing Saturday or Sunday, but next Monday looks like the most likely date.

At least the first half of next week should feature above freezing temperatures for most of us. The next chance of any substantial precipitation would come along next Wednesday, but it's too soon to figure out how much and what kind of stuff falls from the sky. 

For those of you who want to hang onto winter, this does not look like it will be any kind of mega-thaw. It'll be awhile yet before we see bare ground. In fact, some (but definitely not all!) computer models want to keep us relatively cool through the end of February. Not frigid like it's been lately, but not exactly springlike, either.  

Peaceful Tropical Vacations Blasted By Wild Hawaiian Storm

So much for peaceful, tropical vacation.

Damage in Hawaii from an intense storm
that hit over the weekend and Monday. Image
from Hawaii News Now/Facebook

Residents and vacationers alike in Hawaii last weekend and early this week endured a storm that packed winds as high as 70 mph and dumped up to 30 inches of rain in at least one spot. 

As AccuWeather tells us:

"Winds gusted over 70 mph on the islands of Maui and Molokai, with gusts over 60 mph on Oahu, Lanai and the Big Island. Rainfall amounts exceeded 30 inches at Laupahoehoe on the Big Island, with 23.22 inches at Waikamoi on Maui." 

Needless to say, there were lots of power outages, along with property damage, torn away roofs  and flooding on the islands.

The storms brought widespread problems to Honolulu. "The Honolulu Fire Department reports that since Saturday, they responded to nearly 100 calls, with 60 of them for downed tres, 22 for blown roofs and 1 for downed power lines," Hawaii News Now reports. 

An apartment building was one of the structures that lost its roof. That incident displaced 12 people. Elsewhere in Honolulu, video captured winds tearing the roof off of a house. Luckily, the house was vacant, so nobody was hurt or displaced.  

In Manoa, near Honolulu, residents said downslope winds were "far, far worse" than a hurricane. In immense, ancient tree in one neighborhood was uprooted.

Elsewhere, a large landslide shut down a major highway on Maui .

A storm south of Hawaii and high pressure north of the islands created an atmospheric squeeze play that created the strong winds. 

The storm began in earnest Sunday and continued Monday. The state of Hawaii basically shut down as schools, the courts, libraries and many businesses closed. The State Legislature opted not to meet on Monday.

Tourists had to hunker down, too as parks camping areas, zoos, botanical gardens and other attractions all shut down. 

The storm had eased by Tuesday so most offices and businesses were reopening.  Breezy, unsettled weather will continue in the Hawaiian islands for at least the next week or so, but no more extremes seem to be in the islands' immediate future. 

Video:

News account of the strong winds and damage on Oahu. Click on this link to view, or if you see the image below, click on that. 

 

Thump Of Vermont Snow Long Gone, Light Snow To Continue; Arctic Air Disappears

Traffic got backed up on Interstate 89 southbound
in Colchester due probably to lingering snow and slush
on the road causing a slide off or two. More light
snow is expected for the rest of today. 

 Last night's storm is mostly over in Vermont, aside from a bit of last hurrah coming this afternoon and evening. 

But the effects still linger. For instance, I noticed Interstate 89 near Milton was a parking lot for awhile this morning due to slide offs or crashes or, whatever went on along that slushy stretch of highway. 

The traffic trouble along the Interstate looks like it improved by around 8 a.m., but I'm sure there will be trouble here and there.

Traffic cams as of 8 a.m. were showing most roads across Vermont were slushy. Some were still snow covered.  A little light snow was still falling around the state, but that bigger thump of snow from last night is long gone. 

Judging by preliminary reports, it looks like accumulations were in line with expectations. Burlington reports 4.1 inches of snow so far.  My  place here in St. Albans had received 3.8 inches of new snow as of 8 a.m. and it was still snowing lightly.  Most of the few reports that have come across so far seem to be in the three to five inch range.

As I mentioned last evening, the bulk of the snow was driven by a surge of warm air coming from the west in tandem with the storm system itself.  As expected, nobody to my knowledge in Vermont got above freezing, like places western New York did. 

But the warm air aloft over performed a bit. Some areas in eastern New York and Vermont had a little freezing rain or drizzle after the band of heavy snow passed by after 10 p.m. last night. There was a thin ice layer in the snow outside my door when I checked this morning. I also notice Burlington reported a little freezing rain around 2 a.m. today. 

REST OF THE DAY

Any risk of freezing rain or sleet is definitely over. As expected, the original storm that came in from the west is fading or has gone away in favor of a new storm off the Maine coast. Because of this, winds have shifted into the north. 

As we go through the day, that offshore storm will get a little better at pulling moisture from the North Atlantic, southwestward across Quebec, then southward down on northern New England. 

That means the snow will pick up a little in intensity this afternoon and early evening, at least in some parts of Vermont. 

This will deposit another one to three inches of snow in most of northern Vermont, and along the Green Mountains all the way down to the Massachusetts border. The Connecticut River valley and valleys in southwest Vermont will see less than an inch. 

All this is basically a heads up that chances are, you'll hit some snow covered or slippery roads once again on your trip home from work or school today. 

THURSDAY AND BEYOND 

The weather actually looks boring for the next several days. Which means it'll be the peak of awesomeness for people who want to go outside and enjoy winter. This might have been the "crown of winter" storm, in the valleys at least. Crown of winter storms are the ones that bring the deepest snow cover of the winter. They usually come shortly before a thaw that starts to reduce the snow pack. 

We're having a decent snow year, especially in the mountains. In the valleys, it's OK, too. Through yesterday, Burlington has had 62 inches of snow for the season, which is 8.5 inches ahead of normal for the date. 

There's lots of snow outside to play in, and for once temperatures will be comfortable enough to enjoy it Daytime highs should be in the mid-20s to low 30s daily Thursday through Sunday. 

That's the sweet spot: Mild enough to not kill yourself from frostbite, chilly enough to keep the snow nice and powdery and sweet. The only bummer is that last night's snow buried some absolutely perfect smooth skating ice on Lake Champlain. 

If you're a winter lover,  all good things must come to an end. If you hate your fuel bills, all bad things must come to an end. 

By that I mean our long stretch of below freezing temperatures will probably concluded on Monday.  Q

As of yesterday, Burlington had been through 19 consecutive days in which the temperature stayed below freezing. That's the longest such spell since a 27 day stretch in January an February, 2015. I'll  have more on this in a separate post. 

It looks like a small pocket of fairly cold air will sweep down from James Bay to somewhere near Maine by early Sunday morning. We'll be on the western edge of that, so Vermont will actually just have some average February weather that day with highs in the 20s to near 30.

But that's OK, because that pocket of cold air will kick off a new storm that will hit Canada's Atlantic provinces. 

Meanwhile, another storm will be developing Sunday in the southeast U.S.  Earlier this week, we thought that storm might come up the coast to give us another slap of snow or mixed precipitation. 

It turns out that newer  Canadian storm will probably deflect that southeast U.S. storm to our south.  We originally thought that southern storm might spread some snow or ice our way Sunday and Monday. Now, it tentatively looks like we're in the clear with that one.  We'll keep you posted if there are any changes, but for now, don't worry about it.

It's a little too soon to know how far above freezing it'll get next week and how long that would last.  Early guesses are the next shot at any substantial precipitation after day won't come along until at least the middle of next week. 

Big Snow Thump Hitting Vermont This Evening

At 4 p.m., Interstate 89 in Williston the pavement was dry
and it wasn't snowing yet, but..........

 As expected a burst of snow was moving into Vermont as I wrote this around 4:30 p.m. The roads should start getting snow covered and slick, if they aren't already.  

 If  you weren't home by 4 p.m. in western Vermont and if you're not home by 5 p.m. in the Connecticut Valley,  you'll deal with the snowy roads. 

The overall forecast hasn't changed much since the morning  Which means it will get worse as we head into the evening as the heaviest band of snow will come through west to east. During the peak of this, snow will come down at a rate of one to one and a half inches per hour. 

At that rate, the plows won't be great at keeping up with the snow, so it might not be worth it to wait the snow out before going home. Unless you want to wait until 9 or 10 or 11 tonight before driving home.  By then, it probably won't  be snowing as hard. 

Since this storm means road conditions will go from great to bad pretty quickly, I think some people might be caught off guard. Which is why for the next few hours, you might get stuck behind some slide offs and wrecks and fender benders and people whose vehicles have bald tires. 

Though this will storm will be poorly timed and fairly intense while people are driving home for the day, this is no blockbuster. 

By 5 p.m., that same stretch of Interstate was getting 
covered with snow and traffic was starting to back up

Considering this is a rather fluffy snow, and will only amount to 3 to 6 inches of new snow for most of us. The mountains might get a bit more. We're basically just getting our snow cover freshened up a bit. 

Our evening burst of snow in Vermont is being created in large part by a squirt of warm air that is approaching us, drawn northward by an Alberta clipper storm heading in from the west and northwest.

 It got up to near 40 degrees in Buffalo, New York today and 55 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania today. The abrupt shove of warm air is rising up and over a mass of chillier air. Moisture in the rising air condenses and falls out of the sky as snow

Hence the thump of snow we're getting. 

That warm air west of us will get cut off at the pass before it can ever make it to Vermont. 

 The storm that's helping cause this snow is still going to fade away over northern Vermont, or nearby overnight. A new storm will takes its place off the Maine coast. That'll ensure the winds shift to the north before the warm air can get here. It'll shunt that hint of spring to our south instead. 

During the period early tomorrow morning when the original storm is fading and the new one off the coast of Maine hasn't gotten its act together yet, we'll see a lull I'm the snowfall.  It might even stop for awhile in the morning. You might still want to get an early start tomorrow morning as roads could still be on the iffy side. 

The snow will probably blossom out again a little bit tomorrow afternoon and evening, mostly across northern Vermont. By then, the storm off the coast of Maine will have matured.  That storm will be strong enough to pull some moist air down from the North Atlantic Ocean via Quebec. You'll probably be driving around on some snow a slush in many areas tomorrow afternoon and evening, too.

By contrast, southeastern Vermont will probably be mostly done with this storm by tomorrow morning. 

We are also done with the subzero cold for at least a week, and probably longer than that. Above freezing temperatures might arrive as soon as this Sunday. I'll have more on that in  my morning report. 

Western Snow Drought. Florida Snowier than Utah. But Is Relief Finally Coming To Rockies?

Judging from the white residue on the rock in the top
photo, Lake Powell was already very low several months
ago. Bottom photo is a recent picture. A Year Without
a Winter is creating dangerous water shortages
in much of the West 

While the East is having the kind of bitter cold and winter storms not seen in years or even decades, the West is enduring the Year Without A Winter. 

And that's getting worrisome. 

 Most of the Rocky Mountains are already in drought. This winter out west has been anything but wintry. The region has experienced springlike temperatures all season and it has barely snowed. 

Unless it snows hard and soon, the ground will dry out quickly in the spring, setting the stage for a horrific fire season.  Reservoirs and other water sources could get critically low. 

Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Idaho and Colorado have all been running at least six degrees warmer than average this winter.  

Precipitation  is also running below normal this winter through most of the Rocky Mountain region. 

Much of what little has fallen came as rain, instead of the snow that normally falls. You need that deep mountain snow cover to feed reservoirs and to keep the forests fairly moist heading into wildfire season.  Thawing has been seen at elevations of 10,000 feet this winter, a time of year when snow should be continuously piling up on the mountaintops

Salt Lake City, Utah only had a trace of snow during January.  Marianna, Florida had 1.3 inches of snow in January. Snow flurries fell as far south as Sarasota, Florida.  

It didn't rain much in Utah either. Salt Lake City had 0.42 inches of precipitation in January, compared to a normal of 1.43 inches. On Sunday, SLC  tied their record high for the date at 64 degrees.

 As the  Washington Post tell us: 

Jon Meyer, the assistant state climatologist in Utah, said that Utah is 'officially in uncharted territory' in terms of the low snowpack,

It's even weirder than you'd think in Utah. Usually there's little evaporation during the winter in Utah as the landscape is normally mostly frozen or covered in snow. Oddly warm temperatures have left bare ground, and that is driving up evaporation rates, making drought worse. 

The snow pack in Washington State was just 26 percent of normal as January closed. The state was slammed by atmospheric rivers in December But those storms were so warm that rain fell almost all the way to the summits of the Cascades and volcanoes in the Pacific Northwest. 

In Colorado, snow cover as of February 1 was the lowest on record for the date, if  you measure through federal satellite data that began in 2001. Most snow monitoring stations in Colorado with records stretching back to the 1980s are at record or near record low levels, Colorado Public Radio reports. 

The lack of precipitation this winter in the headwaters of the Colorado River is the worst in the region. The Colorado River water ends up in Lake Powell, which stores \water for millions of people. Lake Powell water is also released to generate hydropower. The reservoir is the second largest in the United States.

So yes, Lake Powell is pretty damn important, and it turns into a crisis if it empties out too much. Which it is poised to do. 

Lake Powell is only about 25 percent full, and the water supply flowing into Lake Powell will be just 38 percent of normal through July, if current projections hold. 

In California, the winter got off to a pretty good start with some heavy storms depositing inches of rain and feet of snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains. But that moisture supply shut off in January. Statewide, snow water equivalent was only about 59 percent of normal as of January 30. The Sierra snowpack supplies about 30 percent of California's water needs.

Luckily, reservoirs in California are still full because the previous three winters were on the wet side. California is not in drought, though abnormally dry conditions crept into the extreme northwest corner of the state recently. 

The ski industry has taken a hit out west, too.  Vail in Colorado, for instance, is enduring a 20 percent drop in skier visits this winter. 

It's usually the western ski areas that are buried deep in snow while the east struggles. Usually, it's the western resorts that enjoy a few hundred inches of snow per winter. Not this year.  Mount Baker which has a national record for most snow in one season, with 1,140 inches, in Oregon, had only 280 inches of snow through the final days of January.

For perhaps the first time in memory, it's an eastern ski area that was, at least at the end of January, leading the charge. By the time January closed out, Jay Peak in northern Vermont had already collected 300 inches o snow. 

 SOME RELIEF

The persistent high pressure over the western U.S. that blocked storms from affecting the western third of the United States is breaking down, and storms are finally starting to move in. Forecasts give almost everyone in the Rocky Mountains region some precipitation over the next week.

Some areas of the Rocky Mountains are in for more than a foot of snow. The Sierra Nevada in California might see a few feet of new snow in the coming 10 days or so.

Any rain or snow will be welcome, but it's unclear how much precipitation will drop and how long the stormier pattern might last.

Still, the West needs much above average precipitation before the winter and early spring rainy season peters out. So far, at least, none of the storms in the forecast look exceptionally large .

The West might be looking at a long, hot, dangerous summer. 

 

  

 

Decent Thump Of Snow In Vermont/New England Later Today. Evening Commute To Snarl

Latest National Weather snow prediction map, covering
this morning through Thursday morning. Most of us
are in for 3 to 6 inches of snow, maybe more in the
mountains, a little less extreme southeast. 

 Our little Alberta Clipper storm coming into Vermont today looks like it might over-perform.

The National Weather Service is calling for a general three to six inch snowfall across the Green Mountain State and surrounding areas. 

Winter weather advisories are up for all of Vermont except the western parts of Addison and Rutland counties, where they might be just under the amount of snow needed to trigger the advisory. 

A tiny section of the immediate lower Connecticut Valley south of Springfield is also exempt from the advisory. 

It doesn't really matter, as it's going to snow everywhere in Vermont. Most of the snow will come down in a big thump late this afternoon and evening. 

THE DETAILS:

We're starting the day off cold once again, but not nearly as bad as it was 24 hours earlier. The coldest I could find in Vermont Monday morning was 29 below at East Haven. St. Johnsbury takes the prize for most dramatic warmup. The temperature there went from 20 below to 24 above within about 10 hours. That's a rise of 44 degrees, which is really impressive. 

Temperatures this morning were mostly back down in the single numbers above zero at dawn. An exception is Plattsburgh, New York that got to at least 4 below. Burlington was right at 0,  which was a bit chillier than many places around the region. 

An interesting thing happens when Lake Champlain is frozen or mostly so. Places like Burlington and Plattsburgh, New York stop being the warm spots in the region because we've lost the influence of the relatively warm water. It's now sealed under ice. 

Until the ice melts, the only way the Champlain Valley would be warmer than elsewhere only if there's south winds. The south winds funnel easily northward between the Adirondacks and Greens, ,so balmier air brought by the south winds reaches the valley first. 

The lake isn't going to help. In fact, as we head into late winter and spring, wind coming off the frozen lake, or very winter-chilled lake water once the ice breaks up, will make places along the immediate shore of Lake Champlain often much chillier than places further away. 

Basically, Lake Champlain has turned into a gigantic beer cooler. 

Anyway, back to today. 

THE STORM 

It's going to warm up nicely - at least by our standards - everywhere this afternoon as the snow approaches. We should get well into the 20s.  Any sun you see this morning will quickly fade behind clouds as our Alberta Clipper rapidly approaches. 

The best guess is the snow coming in from the west will reach Champlain by roughly 3 or 4 p.m. today and quickly cross the rest of the state in the hour or two after that. 

Once it arrives, the snow will go from flurries to heavy snow very, very quickly. Most of the storm's snow will come in the initial three to four hours of this episode. This evening's dump will probably go at a rate of an inch per hour,  which is pretty fast. 

That means, unfortunately, on your drive home from work or school late this afternoon and this evening, you're going to run into rapidly deteriorating road conditions, bad visibility and the maximum amount of idiots surrounding you since the 4-7 p.m. time frame will be the busiest on the roads.

Unfortunately, I have an important appointment in Burlington today at 3 p.m., which means I'm going to spend my entire evening parked on a snarled Interstate 89.  I'll wave to you if you're one of the hundreds or more people stuck with me. 

The snow will tend to lighten up later tonight, leaving behind a general three to five inches of new snow. If it's still snowing at dawn, it'll barely be flurries in many areas. 

But for some of us, anyway, that won't be the end of it.  The Alberta Clipper will tend to fade out somewhere near or over northern Vermont late tonight, to be replaced by a new storm that will crank up east of Maine.

That offshore storm will strengthen, creating winds from the east that will blow into Quebec, then southward over Vermont. The moist air will wring out additional snow, especially over much of western Vermont and the Green Mountains. Those areas can expect another one, two, maybe even three inches of additional snow over those areas.

As mentioned, the total snowfall from today through Wednesday evening, as mentioned, looks like it'll amount to three to six inches for most of us. 

The western slopes and summits of the Green Mountains will do the best in this episode with several ski resorts likely seeing eight, nine or even ten inches of total accumulation. The western slopes of New York's Adirondacks and the White Mountains over in New Hampshire should be just as deep in the snow by later tomorrow. 

This has been the best winter for skiing and riding in Vermont I've seen in years. We've never gotten any extreme snowstorms, but the conditions have been great most of the time really since mid-November. 

This will be a pretty fluffy snow, so I'm not worried about the weight of snow on trees and power lines. And we won't be trying to clear wet cement from our driveways tomorrow. 

BEYOND WEDNESDAY

Finally! I'll be quiet and warmer for a few days at least. By "warmer" I don't exactly mean beach weather. Wednesday through Saturday should bring highs mostly in the mid and upper 20s and lows in the single numbers to low teens.

We have a shot at going above freezing on Sunday. If that happens, it would be the first time since January 22 we've cracked 32 degrees.

There also might be some sort of coastal storm toward Sunday and Monday. The computer models are still all over the place with this thing. Given the limited and conflicting information we have now, that storm could bring us in Vermont a snowfall, an ugly mix or absolutely nothing at all. As always, stay tuned!