As colder air streams into New England, it's grabbing many of us with a winter chill that feels frigid – the ironic part of this is the air really isn't too much colder than normal for this time of the year.
In fact, some communities are actually registering warmer than normal average temperatures today! This winter of discontent for the season's lovers has spared New Englanders from the typical annual hardening of our populous, making even a day like today – with temperatures near 40 south and 30s north and wind chill values about 10 to 15 degrees colder – feel like a significant winter chill.
Ocean-effect - or, more accurately, sound-effect snow showers on a westerly wind carrying air much colder than water temperatures in Long Island Sound blew across Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Friday morning, while a lake-effect snow band originating in the Upper Great Lakes but picking up moisture while moving over the Eastern Great Lakes found new life in the northern Green Mountains early Friday morning, and will likely find another pulse Friday afternoon into evening, likely in the northern Green Mountains around Montpelier and Morrisville, then carrying east through the Great North Woods of New Hampshire and even across Maine, weakening from a few inches under the heart of the snow pulse in northern Vermont to a coating in central Maine.
Skies clear for all but the far north of New England Friday night with lows around 20 degrees and the wind quieting noticeably after dinner but still at least a perceptible breeze through the night and through Saturday.
An upper-level disturbance Saturday will aid in developing bubbling clouds Saturday late morning through the afternoon with a few flurries, while Sunday looks to be sunny for nearly all.
Clouds increase Monday well ahead of a developing storm center over the Central U.S. that will deliver first showers either late Monday or Monday night.
Tuesday and Wednesday bring a surge of southerly wind that should bump temperatures well above normal again as the chance of rain showers increases – though snow showers will be possible early on in the northern mountains – then even as cooler and drier air moves in for next weekend with another nice weekend, we'll still be fairly close to our normal high temperatures for the first week of March.
