Area Forecast Discussion
Issued by NWS Pittsburgh, PA
Issued by NWS Pittsburgh, PA
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326 FXUS61 KPBZ 300806 AFDPBZ Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Pittsburgh PA 306 AM EST Sun Nov 30 2025 .SYNOPSIS... Light snow overspreads the area tonight and transitions to rain after sunrise Sunday. Minimal accumulation is expected for most, though totals up to 4 inches are possible along the I-80 corridor. More widespread accumulating snow is expected with another system on Tuesday. && .NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/... KEY MESSAGES: - Snow transitions to rain this morning - 1-2 inches north of I-80 - Glaze of ice accumulation possible in ridges of SW PA and northern WV, where a Winter Weather Advisory is in effect from 3am until Noon. --------------------------------------------------------------- Light snow has finally started to fill in across the area this morning as the lower levels continue to slowly moisten. However, more widespread precipitation shield is already quickly coming to an end as the back edge nudges into Western PA. Some additional development is expected along and just ahead of the cold front later this morning. Evaporative cooling will initially help delay changeover to rain until after sunrise, but temperatures have been steadily rising through the overnight and are mostly in the upper 30s southwest of I-76. Average onset temperature drop has been 3 to 5 degrees at the surface. Though snow onset was several hours earlier along the I-80 corridor, accumulations so far have been light and snow has barely reduced visibility. Dewpoint depressions in that region remain around 10-15 degrees. The best chance for another 1-2 inches this morning now hinges on cellular snow cell development along and just ahead of the front later this morning. However, warming temperatures may overcome this development, quickly dropping snow-to-liquid ratios and possibly transitioning the I-80 corridor to all rain before the cold front arrives. A second concern is the potential for a light glaze of freezing rain mixing in with snow along the peaks of the Laurels and Allegheny Mtns early this morning. An Advisory remains in effect through Noon for those areas. Widespread precipitation should end though the afternoon as the cold front crosses. Lingering rain and snow showers, favored north of Pittsburgh, will transition back to all snow as temps cool behind the front towards sunset this evening. Any additional snowfall amounts would be light, but up to an isolated inch is possible north of I-80. Overnight temperatures drop back into the low/mid 20s as PoPs diminish. && .SHORT TERM /MONDAY THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT/... KEY MESSAGES: - Dry and cold Monday - POPs rise again by Monday night ---------------------------------------------------------------- Short-lived high pressure will build across the Ohio Valley on Monday, keeping dry and cool conditions in the forecast through the day. Some broken sunshine may be seen Monday morning before clouds fill back in ahead of our next system Monday night and Tuesday. Yet another shortwave will cross into the Great Lakes by Monday evening, eventually crossing to our east by Tuesday afternoon. Meanwhile, a surface low will develop along the Gulf Coast and transition up the East Coast on Tuesday. Precipitation associated with this should begin to overspread our area from the west Monday night. Models have continued to trend farther south with the low track, and our position on the far northern edge of this system will keep most p-type as snow for much of the region. However, strong warm advection up the ridges will likely bring a period of mixed precipitation and possibly freezing rain for areas south and southeast of Pittsburgh early Tuesday morning. This would also reduce snow accumulations for lowlands southeast of Pittsburgh. Elsewhere, initial predictions point to a widespread 3-4" with highest amounts in NW PA and in the ridges. A Winter Weather Advisory will likely be need for much, if not all, of the area. Probabilities for Warning criteria snowfall remain low. Low pressure will shift off the New England coast by Tuesday evening, bringing an end to most precipitation in our area as high pressure begins to build. Overnight temperatures will drop into the teens and lower 20s, aided by cold advection and lingering snow pack. && .LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/... KEY MESSAGES: - Active pattern continues - Snow and rain return Tuesday, Thursday, and into the weekend - Below normal temperatures through the period ------------------------------------------------------------------- High pressure briefly returns dry conditions on Wednesday, but the active pattern continues. By Wednesday afternoon, surface low pressure will deepen over the Great Lakes and cross from Ontario into Quebec. This will eventually bring another trailing cold front an snow chances to the region on Thursday. Better synoptic support with this system will remain north of the area and so PoPs will be highest north of Pittsburgh. Thermal profile support all snow except possibly some wintry mix in the Mon Valley by Thursday afternoon. High pressure looks to quickly transition across the area Thursday night into early Friday with an even briefer bout of dry weather. Long range ensembles then indicate yet another Gulf to Coastal low will impact the area late Friday into Saturday. The track of this system will ultimately determine how much of little snow for our area. Temperatures are likely to remain below average through the period, favoring daytime highs in the low to mid 30s. && .AVIATION /06Z SUNDAY THROUGH THURSDAY/... With dry low levels, precipitation is still having a hard time reaching the ground across the Upper Ohio Valley. It will take a few more hours for most terminals to start to see light precipitation, and at present, most south of I-80 will likely see little meaningful visibility restriction through the morning hours. FKL/DUJ have the best chance of seeing MVFR/IFR visibility at times from snow through 14Z or so. Any precipitation will mix with and eventually change to rain, with the change moving from south to north between 08Z and 15Z. Ceilings, however, will show a downward trend as the column moistens from the top down. Initial VFR ceilings should drop into the MVFR range late tonight, and generally stay at that level through the remainder of the TAF period. Southeast wind will veer towards the south overnight and become gusty, with peaks between 15 and 25 knots. Increased mixing during the daylight hours will lead to gusts in the 20 to 30 knot range as veering towards the southwest continues. Any precipitation largely ends by the early afternoon, although MVFR ceilings will linger. Another round of snow showers may show up near FKL towards midnight Sunday night. Outlook... VFR returns to the area on Monday as high pressure moves across the area. This is quickly followed by yet another low pressure system, which moves into the area and brings another round of wintry precipitation and associated restrictions on Tuesday. && .PBZ WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... PA...Winter Weather Advisory until noon EST today for PAZ074-076. OH...None. WV...Winter Weather Advisory until noon EST today for WVZ512-514. && $$ SYNOPSIS...Rackley NEAR TERM...Rackley SHORT TERM...Rackley LONG TERM...Rackley/AK AVIATION...CL