Lowland snow possible prior to Christmas Day
Dec 22, 2016, 10:15 AM | Updated: 10:17 pm
Sorry folks, the chance for lowland snow around Seattle remains historically slim on Christmas Day despite cooling temperatures that could bring flurries Friday and Saturday.
A cold front moving north will bring “cold, raw rain,” on Friday, according to the National Weather Service. Daytime temperatures will be in the mid- to upper-30s.
The system could bring snow to the Cascade foothills during the day and to the Greater Seattle area Friday night, according to KIRO 7 Meteorologist Kelly Franson.
Related: SDOT, King County winter service maps
Even though it will be chilly on Friday, Franson says the warmer temperatures throughout this week will make any type of accumulation somewhat unlikely. The ground is relatively warm, she says. If snow showers are heavy enough, accumulation could occur, but mostly on grassy areas and in the foothills of the Cascades.
The National Weather Service reports Friday night will be the best chance to see snow stick. Up to a half-inch of lowland snow accumulation will be possible along, and east of, the I-5 corridor, the Weather Service reports.
Luckily — or unfortunately, depending on your view of snow — things will begin to dry out on Christmas Eve (Saturday). The Weather Service says flurries with little or no accumulation is expected.
“Could we hold onto moisture Saturday morning? Possible,” Franson said. “But we run out of moisture quickly.”
That means Christmas Day will likely be sunny and cold. The National Weather Service expects a “hard freeze” for most of the area by sunrise on Christmas morning.
The forecast goes hand-in-hand with historic data, which shows a slim chance of snow around Seattle. The historic probability of at least 1 inch of snow falling during the holiday in the Greater Seattle area is about 10 percent or less. This year, it’s about 5 percent.
Cities around Seattle are in the same boat. Even the South Sound, which has seen quite a bit of snowfall recently, is in the 0-to-10 percent historic probability of snow.
