DAYS 1-5 (DECEMBER 6-10)
The pattern during the next 5 days will feature several quick-moving, generally weak low pressure systems to have minor impact overall (in terms of precipitation) but some notable temperature swings with the overall pattern being colder than the long-term average for this point in the season. The first such system is a low pressure area passing well to our south today but its large cloud canopy making it mainly overcast. A northward-extending trough from that low will cause a few snow and rain showers in the region this morning until about midday. The next system will be a clipper-style low passing just to our north Sunday night. This low will have a snow area with it but its track keeps it mainly north of the WHW forecast area, with just a few snow showers occurring mainly to the north of I-90 on Sunday night. Another weakening system flies north of the area Tuesday evening with a remote chance of a snow shower that will favor southern NH with less chance to the south. A slightly more formidable low pressure area, again clipper-style, will head our way via the Great Lakes on Wednesday. The early indications on this are a track to the north, enough to pull milder air into the region making the precipitation, still minor, more likely to be rain showers than snow showers for our region.
TODAY: Mostly cloudy. Scattered snow showers I-90 region northward and mix / rain showers south of I-90 until midday. Highs 35-42. Wind variable up to 10 MPH becoming mainly W.
TONIGHT: Clearing. Lows 18-25. Wind W up to 10 MPH becoming calm.
SUNDAY: Sun followed by clouds. Highs 34-41. Wind SW 5-15 MPH.
SUNDAY NIGHT: Mostly cloudy. Scattered snow showers southern NH and northern MA, isolated snow showers to the south. Lows 13-20. Wind shifting to NW 5-15 MPH with higher gusts.
MONDAY: Mostly sunny. Highs 25-32. Wind NW 10-20 MPH, diminishing.
MONDAY NIGHT: Clear. Lows 8-15. Wind NW under 10 MPH.
TUESDAY: Sun followed by clouds. Highs 28-35. Wind N up to 10 MPH.
TUESDAY NIGHT: Mostly cloudy. A snow shower possible favoring southern NH. Lows 20-27. Wind SW 5-15 MPH.
WEDNESDAY: Mostly cloudy. Increasing chance of mix to rain showers. Highs 38-45. Wind S 5-15 MPH.
DAYS 6-10 (DECEMBER 11-15)
Reinforced cold arrives to start the period along with wind. Watching one or two clipper-style low pressure areas for mix/snow chances mid period before dry, cold weather returns at end of period.
DAYS 11-15 (DECEMBER 16-20)
Guidance trends have been wish-washy the last couple days – basically no help for this period of time. Expectations for indices that tend to control the pattern as well as little use of forecast persistence (old forecast tool I learned as a novice) leads me to not change things too much at this point. I’ll watch for a potential low into the Great Lakes and a brief warm-up, then the region near a battle zone between mild air to the south and cold from Canada, the latter of which probably ends up winning out, and not without a precipitation potential before the end of the period. Lots of time to solve the pattern puzzle here…
Thanks TK.
We have a good dusting of snow this morning and moderate snow falling right now.
The snow from the previous storm is holding up amazingly well for this time of year:
https://ibb.co/gLPDxKq8
I got Worde in 3 today.
I knew for certain you would have it in 3. I SHOULD have joined, but I screwed up. Nice job!!
What is snow?
We have MODERATE NOTHING!!!!
We have a dusting too. They just treated our roads. Nice 3.
3 here also
Wonderfull
So far 2 3s and 2 4s
Thanks TK
Waking up to a sugar coating of snow this morning.
Good morning and thank you TK
31 here after low of 27 which was shortly after midnight as the temperature slowly climbed all night long.
Ocean: 48 (Boston Buoy)
I think TK described my feelings about the upcoming weather:
WISHY WASHY!! Not impressed with anything. and the cold, what there is of it, has NO lasting power at all. All this talk of the polar vortex has been a joke as far as I am concerned.
The cold of yesterday, although cold for sure, was extremely short lived. Polar Vortex, is that all you can do. WIMP!!
And the parade of clippers, must they ALWAYS pass NORTH of our area. Seems that way, even though on occasion they pass South of us. WHY, oh WHY can’t we have one of those? I guess it’s not in the cards, not yet anyway. We shall see down the road.
Wordle: 4 I wasted a guess on guess 3. Should have had it in 3 as guess 3 didn’t provide any more information.
They are not all going to pass north of the area. The next 3 are. There are several others in the pipeline after that with a pretty strong indication that the track is not going to stay where it will be the next 5 days.
That’s good news. Thank you.
Current radar
https://radar.weather.gov/station/KBOX/standard
IF any moisture gets here it will be in the form of RAIN later on today. π π π
Wachuset Mountain web cams showing some light snow
https://www.wachusett.com/the-mountain/media-center/webcams/#nastarCam
Nice! The snow falling looks much like it does here. That’s not surprising since it’s just 11 miles from me.
Too bad you don’t ski or do you?
We’re more into the cross-country phase now.
Thanks TK.
1,380 βοΈ
Thanks TK !
Wordle: 4
Nice. Welcome to the club car.
Excellent Tom and JPD
Thank you, TK. A lot warmer last night with a low of 24. Up to 27 with a sugarcoating here also. I like that term.
What’s the difference between sugar coating and feather dusting?
Is sugar coating just a wee bit thicker??? π
No idea. I just like the term. But in this case it look
A bit granular like sugar
Up to 32 here.
Paying closer attention. E wants snow please π
Wordle in 3
excellent. Score: 3 3s and 2 4s
Excellent Julie.
I will appeal to mother nature to deliver some snow for Miss E. π
Thanks TK! My daughter landed in Sydney, Australia this morning where temps have been in low 90s in their late spring. A line of heavy storms had just gone through leading her plane to circle for awhile. Now they have a cool SOUTH wind coming in that will lower temps for the week. She will be there the next 7 months long enough to see Australia play the US in the World Cup. How lucky is she that they ended up in the same pool!
Wow. Wishing her a very happy time in Australia!
She would only be a little more than 500 miles from Matt
and My Niece who lives not far from Matt.
Very cool! She will be heading to Perth later this week and she will be staying in Bussleton for three months working Caves Resort
Thank you TK!
Wordle 3
Another 3! excellent
Now 4 3’s and Tom and I taking up the rear with 4s. π
Awesome Sue!
Worcester, Holy Cross web cam
https://portal.hdontap.com/s/embed/?stream=dinand_holycross-CUST
OR THIS!!!!
https://www.holycross.edu/visit/webcams
Been reading about the Siberian snowpack this year. I have also looked at climatology maps and even watched some videos.
It looks like the snowpack is advancing more rapidly and sort of more aggressively than it has in a few years. September is often seen as a critical month and the snowpack was growing and moving southward at that point. It continued into October. Sometimes the September-October period gives us an indication of our winter weather in New England which from the looks of it will be colder and snowier.
A discussion of the Siberian snowpack and its effects could be a lengthy one. The bottom line seems to be a better potential this winter for a more persistent trough in the Midwest and East. With it comes more cold air and volatility.
TK’s winter outlook was very much an in-depth and thoughtful piece obviously. But I always like to look at the Siberian ingredient.
I’ve never been too trusting of this indicator. Siberian snowcover is correlated to the cold are stores up in that region, which is great, but you still need the right pattern to get the cold air in the right place at the right time to result in above normal snowfall for New England. That requires a series of things to line up enough times to say that our reason for the snowier conditions was largely based on how much snow was on the ground in Siberia and when it started to accumulate. To me that’s just not a strong correlation. I think when it was first noted, it was vastly overrated.
Thank you TK, I thought that might be the case. Most interesting.
I would never think of the Siberian snowpack as being a sole reason for snowier winters. That would be ridiculous.
Don’t tell Mr. Cohen that! π
Streaming the remaining 4 HS football super bowl games today while I work on my to-do list.
Game 1, underway now, is the Division 8 Superbowl between Randolph & West Boylston. My pick is Randolph.
Game 2, Division 4, is Scituate & Tewksbury. Scituate is the #1 seed, but Tewksbury will take the game.
Game 3, Division 2, Catholic Memorial will defeat Bishop Feehan, IMO.
The 4th game, the Division 1 match-up between St. John’s Prep and Xaverian Brothers, is the finale of the 3-day series of game. St. John’s is a slight favorite, but I think “The Brothers Xaverian” will take the trophy.
Good luck to all!
Clipper Brigade
https://www.pivotalweather.com/model.php?m=gfs&p=prateptype_cat-imp&rh=2025120612&fh=75&r=conus&dpdt=&mc=
I was about to say that this first one passed to the North, but more it dissipated. π
https://www.pivotalweather.com/model.php?m=gfs&p=prateptype_cat-imp&rh=2025120612&fh=87&r=conus&dpdt=&mc=
And there it is, another one passes to the NORTH!!!
https://www.pivotalweather.com/model.php?m=gfs&p=prateptype_cat-imp&rh=2025120612&fh=105&r=conus&dpdt=&mc=
Where will the next one go? Let me guess…. um um um…
To the North maybe?
https://www.pivotalweather.com/model.php?m=gfs&p=prateptype_cat-imp&rh=2025120612&fh=105&r=conus&dpdt=&mc=
Not that the next one is a true clipper… but no matter, dollars to donuts, it passes to the North of us.
hmmm, maybe not.
500 mb
https://www.pivotalweather.com/model.php?m=gfs&p=500wh&rh=2025120612&fh=111&r=conus&dpdt=&mc=
Hmmmhmmm. Clipper brigade. I was wondering what to call if. Quick but the second leaving a trace to replace the first thst had pretty much melted
And every time I think itβs stopped, it starts up again
Still LIGHT TO MODERATE NOTHING here!!!!!
Well, well, well….
Finally, something passing to our South. REMEMBER, this is the GFS. Please take with a whole convoy of salt trucks. π
https://www.pivotalweather.com/model.php?m=gfs&p=prateptype_cat-imp&rh=2025120612&fh=144&r=conus&dpdt=&mc=
24 hour Snow for this event
https://www.pivotalweather.com/model.php?m=gfs&p=snku_024h-imp&rh=2025120612&fh=162&r=us_ne&dpdt=&mc=
This is the 13th? Taylor swifts birthday π
She plans to get married in Watch Hill, RI In June.
June 13th, to be precise. π
Waves of snow showers passing by my location with burst of large festive flakes. I have a time lapse video running to capture some of it from the 3rd floor and a long view to the west.
Some minor accumulation occurring.
0.5 inch of new snow has fallen at Fitchburg today.
We have a FOOT of NOTHING here. π π π
I can vouch for that! π
Thanks, TK.
I echo JP Dave. I was NOT impressed by the short-lived cold. I liked it, but it dissipated so quickly. And while we’ll have some cold days and nights, it does NOT look like December 1980.
It’s nice to have it feel like winter for a change in December with some below normal temps, but at least here in Boston I am far from impressed (also looking ahead at the immediate and mid-term future). And I really can’t stand the PV and SSW talk which is rampant on social media and so full of overblown hype.
As far as snow chances in Bostonare concerned, we’ll see. I am not counting on it.
Our colder pattern so far this month is a result of a PV stretch.
The short-lived more intense cold shot was expected to be exactly that – short lived, so it lived up to expectation.
As far as snow chances, you know I never hype those up. I take each system the correct way, based on how far away the threat is.
Far fewer surprises (or disappointments for snow lovers) this way. Yet the general population (not this blog’s population – we know better) falls into the hype trap on an annual basis, which I still don’t quite understand, when there’s more sound information available at the fingertips. It’s just a matter of clicking the correct links. π
Joshua and I have no issues whatsoever on anything you posted on the PV. I for one, was addressing the overall media HYPE bullshit!!! One would think we would have been transported to SIBERIA!!!
ha ha ha
It’s Meteorological Winter. Sometimes it get really cold. Big woof.
This next batch looks like it might get here. Temperature is 37 here. 850 and 925 MB temperatures are well below freezing, so I would hope any precipitation that makes it here would still fall as SNOW. We shall see, that is IF it gets here.
https://radar.weather.gov/station/KBOX/standard
As stated in my discussion, the rain showers are expected well to the south, not in this area. You’ll have snow showers if the precipitation crosses your location.
Due to the thermal profile, that is what I was hoping. Don;t even want it to start as rain and that is still a possibility.` Still 38 here.
Now up to 38 here. I fear when the precip gets here, it will be in the form of rain, but even so, hopeful it will quickly turn to snow with the Aloft temperatures still cold. We shall see.
Division 8 Super Bowl Final Score…
Randolph 21
West Boylston 0
π
Thanks, TK!
Happy St. Nicholas Day!
Remembering the nor’easter that was raging 22 years ago (December 5-7, 2003). It stands as the greatest snowfall at the NWS Norton/Taunton (est. 1996) at 25.9″. Only the Blizzard of 1978 (38.5″) brought Taunton more snow in our weather history.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_2003_nor%27easter
I am enjoying your MIAA Super Bowl commentary, TK.
Middleborough High won the 2017 Super Bowl at Gillette. I swear half of the town was in the stands that morning. What an event for the kids, staff, school and community!
The Krafts make sure the whole week is first-rate and classy for all involved: the players, coaches, refs, bands, cheer teams…
As a teacher, I was a proud fan to watch my students and schools (between Middleborough High and the Catholic school that I taught at prior) win a state football championship, a state softball championship, two state baseball titles, a girls state basketball championship and a ice hockey title. Middleborough High won the 2003 state Drama Festival, too!
There’s nothing that builds up school spirit more than a deep playoff run!
I was track coach at Coyle and Cassidy in 1991 when I coached the state decathlon champion in track and field!
Excellent!!!
We have FLAKES in JP and I mean in addition to me to borrow a line from Capt. π
YAY!!!
We have calm wind and very large snowflakes falling here – it’s like snow globe snow at the moment.
Same here.
We have a calm wind and very large NO-flakes here in Quincy.
According to Jacob this morning, more sustained cold coming next weekend. His exact words.
Of course even if we get the sustained cold, as soon as a system heads our way, warm air arrives ahead of it and we rain anyway.
Only in New England.
Worcester 3.9
Boston 0.0 (T)
Thanks TK.
Brightening skies here now but we also had a period of light snow earlier that coated the ground. We have a few small trees that lose their leaves late in the Fall every year and I was going to pull the tractor out today to mow them up with the bagger but that will have to wait till tomorrow. Need to let things melt and dry up a bit.
12z GFS has some support from the 12z Canadian for a system passing to our south next Friday and delivering snow to SNE. It’s there on the 12z Euro as well, but weaker and a miss to the south. Something to watch….
https://www.pivotalweather.com/model.php?m=gdps&rh=2025120612&fh=150&dpdt=&mc=