I too am liking the situation. The weather channel has just changed our forecast for sunday and monday to snow.
This is what Herb Stevens has to say:
Mid Atlantic snow on Thursday...
Weather discussion 2/23/05
If you don't get out and enjoy the snow in the eastern part of the country, you're nuts!!!! I had to get that off my chest right away. The conditions are out of this world in eastern Pennsylvania, New York and New England, following the President's Day storm, plus a trailing impulse that produced snow on Tuesday in many of the same areas that got hit on Monday. Not only were the snow totals solid...a general 6-12 inches at most areas...many places in northern New England got snow the consistency of champagne powder! Temperatures are comfortable this week, so make the most of it!
As for the future...the pattern is a very active and energetic one, to say the least. The anchor trough off California has sent out another batch of energy and it will form a low in the southern plains today, and that low will head east northeastward toward the mid-Atlantic coast. It will encounter the base of the upper level trough that is sitting over the eastern third of the country, and that upper level trough will help to strengthen the surface system. The result will be one of the better snowfalls in the mid-Atlantic region this winter. Earlier this week I mentioned that the core of the accumulating snows would be about 150 miles south of the President's Day event, and that will be pretty close to true, although if we're splitting hairs, (which I can ill afford to do!), I guess the centerline might be closer to 20- miles further south. I'll use Interstate 66 as my centerline for maximum snow from this system. I-66 runs west out of D.C., over toward Front Royal, VA. Most of Virginia, West Virginia, and up to extreme southern Pennsylvania should see 4-8 inches from this storm, with lighter amounts in the rest of PA. Southern New York and southern New England will see an inch or two, with a little more on the beaches...what a waste of snow that is!!! In the mountains of North Carolina, a mixed mess of precipitation types will end as an inch or two of snow.
In the west, the resorts of southern California continue to get absolutely bombed with snow, with snow levels around 5500 feet or so. Moisture has reached far enough north the past two days to produce a moderate snowfall in the Tahoe region, as well. The passing east of energy from the California trough means that the next several days will continue to be snowy in the mountains of Arizona and New Mexico, as well as Utah and Colorado, particularly in the southern portions of those two states.
Once the eastern storm moves offshore, colder air will follow the system, so look for packed powder to rule all the way down the Appalachians this weekend. Another northern branch system will spread light snow into New York and New England over the weekend, and right now that doesn't look to big to me...1-3 inches of topdressing ought to do it.
Next week, as I suggested in my Sunday discussion, I think that the threat of a major east coast storm next week is a real one. Energy from the west trough would once again move east, but this time, a short wave in the northern branch would "phase" with the southern low, and the result would be a much stronger surface system, one which form in the Gulf of Mexico later this weekend and then head up the east coast. Right now, I would favor a track that hugs the coast, which would mean snow to rain in the major cities, but heavy snow inland, particularly in the Appalachians, from North Carolina northward. If the low stays too close to the coast, it could eventually mean a track over part of New England, which would imply a changeover to rain for a portion of the storm that far north. On the backside, the upper low will remain over the east, and it will have swallowed the polar vortex, which would mean a very cold week in much of the region, once the surface low moves away. It would also mean another late season outbreak of lake effect snow off of Erie and Ontario.
In the longer range, it appears to me that the upper level trough is going to remain over the east until further notice, and I also believe that the upper low off California is going to be re-energized after a lull of several days in SOCAL. Having those two players on the table suggests that any major storm in the east next week probably isn't the last one of that breed. With the NAO (North Atlantic Oscillation) looking as though it will remain very strong in the foreseeable future, I can say with some confidence that winter weather will dominate in the east through much of March. Let me remind you once again, that this winter is playing out in a fashion typical of weak El Nino's...back loaded snow and cold in the East...something I alluded to back in November. With longer days, higher sun angles, and glorious snow likely to hold for several weeks, make your skiing and riding plans now...cuz you sure ain't going to play golf any time soon!!!
I love to see all the golfers and spring lovers suffer
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