Weather Whiplash: Light snow Monday morning to 60s Thursday afternoon

Parts of the area pick up less than an inch of snow before midday Monday

Snow accumulation forecast through Tuesday

ROANOKE, Va. – The official start to winter is just two weeks away, but we’re getting a little taste of it Monday morning. A weak system along the coast is teaming up with energy above us to produce light snow accumulations in parts of the area through about 9 or 10 a.m.

This could lead to some slick spots, even outside of the mountains, during the Monday morning commute. Things improve by the afternoon, but may refreeze/get slick again overnight as temperatures drop to 25-30°.

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Commute impacts for Monday, 12/7/2020

The wind will pick up once this system passes too, with wind gusts of 25-35 mph possible Monday afternoon into Tuesday as well.

Monday's wind speed and wind gust forecast

This, combined with the incoming cold, will make it feel pretty uncomfortable Tuesday morning. Wind chills will drop into the teens and 20s for many of us, with afternoon highs in the 40s.

Lowest wind chill by Tuesday morning, 12/8/2020

We expect more sunshine Tuesday as well.

Eventually, that sunshine will go along way. With the jet stream retreating north mid-week, temperatures will gradually climb. By Thursday (the first day of Hanukkah), high temperatures will rise into the upper 50s and lower 60s.

Upper air pattern by Thursday, 12/10/2020

Our next storm system arrives Saturday, but we’ll be warm enough to keep that all in the form of rain.


About the Author:

Meteorologist Chris Michaels is an American Meteorological Society (AMS) Certified Broadcaster, forecasting weather conditions in southwest Virginia on WSLS 10 News from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. weekdays on Virginia Today.