I have good news and bad news. Good news is that there is snow in the forecast (although for some, this may be considered very bad news). Bad news? Not everyone will see it. In fact, about 98% of Western Washington will not see it.
For tonight, it will stay mostly clear, allowing temperatures to fall into the low 30s. A low pressure system spinning off to our west will be sending a system through our neighborhood overnight and into the morning hours Saturday. That low off in the Pacific will pull air from the high pressure in eastern Washington, through the mountain passes and create some wind issues for the foothill communities. A HIGH WIND WARNING is up for the western slopes of the Cascades, Friday night thru noon Saturday. Winds 20-40mph and gusts up to 65+ will be impacting places like Enumclaw, North Bend, Gold Bar, and Cumberland, but this system could also affect lowland areas like Issaquah, Black Diamond, Eatonville, and Sultan if wind is carried a little further. The warning also encompasses the west entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca, including Neah Bay. These winds will have the potential to knock down some significant trees, especially since the ground is still saturated from last weekends’ rain. For the Puget Sound areas, it may get a little breezy but not terrible with gusts in the 15-25mph range.
As for moisture, rain will move in by early morning. With low snow levels (500-1000ft) and these east winds, a process called “evaporative cooling” may induce some snow showers along the Hood Canal and western parts of the Kitsap Peninsula. 1-3” of wet snow may accumulate in these areas. A rain/snow mix may also show up in the higher hilltops North and East of Seattle but for everyone else, Saturday will just be filled with rain and showers in the afternoon. Temperatures will remain cool with highs in the 30s and low 40s.
The mountain passes will be very gusty as the winds whip through on their way down to the lowlands. No major accumulation are expected but around 2-5” of snow could fall. Mid 20s will be the high temperatures for Snoqualmie and Stevens passes.
Eastern Washington will see a few snow flurries and they will increase throughout the day Saturday. Highs will be in the 20s and low 30s.
Showers will be around Saturday afternoon through Sunday for Western Washington as unstable air moves in behind the incoming system. Sunday will also be cool with temperatures only in the low 40s.
Next week leading up to Christmas is looking showery but not extremely wet. The jet-stream will be aimed more to our south into Northern California which will leave the brunt of the storms for them to deal with. That leaves us with unstable air and showers with snow levels around 1000-2000 feet.
Ok, so I lied. I may have some more bad news. For those of you who may have been wishing for a white Christmas, you may need to take a trip to Leavenworth or a nice ski resort because models don’t suggest any white stuff for the near future. Right now, it looks like we will have our ole fashioned Northwest green Christmas, which consists of some gray skies and showers.
Aaron Hill
KOMO4 Weather Intern
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