Quantitative Precipitation Forecast
Issued by NWS
Issued by NWS
922 FOUS11 KWBC 052051 QPFHSD Probabilistic Heavy Snow and Icing Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 351 PM EST Wed Nov 5 2025 Valid 00Z Thu Nov 06 2025 - 00Z Sun Nov 09 2025 ...Pacific Northwest through the Central Rockies... Days 1-3... At the start of the forecast period, a remnant atmospheric river plume will continue to migrate inland, spreading precipitation into the Northern and Central Rockies late tonight and Thursday. The mild nature of the eastern Pacific airmass spilling into the West will maintain high snow levels around 7000-8000 ft with this initial round, above pass levels. By tomorrow afternoon, another compact closed low is forecast to pivot around the offshore mean trough and usher in another atmospheric river, albiet weaker. While WAA associated with this activity will result in gradually rising snow levels throughout Thursday, impactful mountain snowfall is still expected across the higher mountain passes in the Northern Washington Cascades Thursday night into Friday. Eventually, a shortwave translating eastward will once again shift mountain snowfall chances into the Northern and Central Rockies. WPC probabilities on D1 and bleeding into D2 depict a high likelihood of 12+ inches (75-90%) of snowfall in the peaks of the northern Washington Cascades. As the activity shifts eastward, 60-90% probabilities of exceeding 6 inches are noted in the higher elevations of the Wyoming Tetons. ...Northern Plains and the Upper Midwest... Day 3... Emerging clipper system is forecast to eject across the Northern Plains as the aforementioned Rockies shortwave phases with a disturbance in the Canadian Prairies. By Saturday, modest frontogenetic snowfall is expected to develop along the northwest flank of the surface low center as it dives southeastward across the Northern Plains and Upper Midwest. Overall accumulations should be quite low with this event (WPC probabilities of 1" are around 50%), but locally hazardous travel conditions could materialize owing to strong gradient winds on the periphery of the low and some areas experiencing their first snow of the season. ...Northern New England and the Adirondacks... Day 1... Forecast reasoning remains unchanged as a rapidly intensifying clipper-type low pressure will move progressively E/SE from Ontario, across New England, and then out to sea south of the Canadian Maritimes by Thursday afternoon. This low will spread significant moisture eastward on robust low- level FGEN leading to a pronounced TROWAL pivoting across Northern New England. The accompanying WAA will help spread significant moisture into the area, but the WAA will also drive snow levels up to 4000-5000 ft, suggesting that except for the highest peaks of northwest Maine, the pre-low precipitation will be all in the form of rain Wednesday afternoon. However, as the low tracks towards the New England coast, rapid CAA in its wake, aided by impressive isallobaric flow into the deepening system and topographically- enhanced upslope flow, will cool the column dramatically, reflected by snow levels falling to 500-1000 ft by 12Z Thursday. This results in a period of moderate to heavy snowfall in the higher terrain, with light snow gradually spreading into the lower elevations of VT/NH/ME and Upstate NY before the DGZ dries and precipitation dissipates Thursday afternoon. The heaviest snowfall is likely to unfold above 2000ft in the Adirondacks and Whites, although some moderate accumulations are also likely in the highest Greens. This is reflected by WPC probabilities which still indicate a moderate risk (50-70% chance) for more than 4 inches of snow, with locally as much 8 inches in the highest Presidential Range peaks. Light accumulations of a dusting or more are likely elsewhere from Lake Ontario through central Maine, except across the Champlain Valley, resulting in the first notable snow of the year in some of the lower elevations of northern New England. The probability of significant ice across the CONUS is less than 10 percent. Asherman/Mullinax $$