Forecast

A Parade Of Snowy Systems This Week Brings Snow, Wind And Extreme Cold Across The East

Three systems will push across the northern tier of the country this week, bringing heavy snow to the Great Lakes, Ohio Valley and Northeast.

A Chilly Rain Expected For I-95 Corridor

Winter’s snow machine continues for the Northeast and Great Lakes this week as a series of systems pulls across the region.

Not only snow, but Arctic air will surge southward as well, causing temperatures to dive across the eastern half of the country. This, along with strong winds, will create dangerous wind chills for millions.

Round 1: Through Thursday

The first system will begin diving into portions of the Midwest and Great Lakes to bring a round of snow Tuesday through Wednesday, bringing a quick shot of snow to the upper Midwest and Great Lakes. Then will bring lingering snow into the interior portions of New England on Thursday.

While the heaviest snow will be downwind of the Great Lakes, we could see some decent snow totals for portions of the Appalachians. And more snow will add to these totals later in the week.

More widespread snow amounts will be in the 1- to 3-inch range, from the Midwest, through the Ohio Valley and into Interior New England.

Models are keeping the snow well away from the I-95 corridor with this round.

Round 2: Thursday - Saturday

Models have been going back and forth on whether a coastal low will develop off the Northeast on Friday. While the forecast is still a little uncertain, right now, that scenario is unlikely.

What we do know is that many areas will see additional snow, very cold air and strong winds from this system.

The snow will arrive in the Midwest and Great Lakes on Thursday before pushing eastward. Many of the same areas that see snow from the first system would receive snow from this one, adding to those snow totals.

However, as this system potentially makes its way to the Northeast and New England late Friday, into Saturday, we could potentially see accumulating snow for the I-95 corridor. This could make for messy driving conditions and possible airport delays.

It's too early to know how much snow there will be at this point, as models are still trying to come together. Needless to say, confidence is still low on how that piece of the puzzle plays out.

Either way, we could still see some lingering snow across portions of the Northeast through Sunday.

Confidence is high that temperatures will tumble. Highs on Thursday will be in the teens across the Great Lakes, 20s for the Ohio Valley and not even getting out of the 30s for portions of the Southeast.

Not only will temperatures plummet, but strong winds behind the cold front will send wind chills to dangerous levels for some locations. We could be talking about wind chills as low as 20-30 degrees below zero for portions of the Northern Plains.

Round 3: Sunday

Mother Nature isn’t finished yet! By the end of the weekend, a third system will once again reinforce those chilly temperatures and bring another round of fresh snow for yet again, the Midwest, Great Lakes and Northeast.

I know it seems like a lot, but it’s not uncommon to see storm systems take similar tracks this time of year.

When it’s all said and done, some areas across the Great Lakes could pick up as much as 18 inches of snow for the week, with more widespread areas seeing at least a foot.

Also, take notice of the decent swath of snow stretching down the Appalachian Mountains. The higher elevations could pick up more than a foot of snow in some places.

We will keep fine-tuning these details as the week goes on, so check back often for updates.

Jennifer Gray is a weather and climate writer for weather.com. She has been covering some of the world's biggest weather and climate stories for the last two decades.