All eyes on New Year’s Day winter storm

SNOW STARTS EARLY NEW YEAR’S DAY

Temperatures turn colder on the night of New Year’s Eve. Low temperatures on Saturday morning will be in the single digits. However, it will also be windy! The gusty winds will allow for wind chill values to drop to near -20° in Lincoln!

In addition to the bitter cold, we’re also tracking a winter storm that’s slated to drop several inches of snow across southeast Nebraska. The highest totals will fall in the southeast corner of the state.

One nuance to the forecast is that a few snow bands are expected to develop, which will result in higher snow totals within those bands. This means that there will be locally higher snow accumulations outside of the forecasted ranges!

For those celebrating on New Year’s Eve, you’re unlikely to see snow at midnight in Lincoln. Those in Lincoln will have to wait until the New Year before the onset of the snow. If you live farther west, perhaps closer to the Tri-Cities, you may start to see some snow falling either shortly after, or a few hours after midnight.

By far, the heaviest snow will occur from about 6AM onward through around lunchtime. That’s where we will observe the most accumulation.

BLOWING SNOW IS LIKELY

Wind speeds will also be very gusty. That, coupled with heavy snow on Saturday morning will result in blowing snow that reduces visibilities. Stormcast suggests that visibilities may drop below one mile in most locations for a good portion of the morning.

SNOW ENDS ON SATURDAY EVENING

After lunchtime, the snow should let up in intensity. We’re expecting snow showers to last through the late afternoon, before tapering off in the evening. It’ll be cold and windy on New Year’s Day, with high temperatures topping out in the single digits.

We remain cold overnight Saturday and into Sunday morning as low temperatures drop to near 10 degrees below zero! Although we’re expecting clear skies on Sunday, highs will be stuck in the teens. So any snow that accumulates on Saturday may stick around for some time.

Meteorologist Malcolm Byron

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Twitter: @mbyronwx