Rain This Afternoon Turns To A Little Bit Of Snow Late Tonight Across Western & Central Mass

This Afternoon: An area of low pressure is expected to move from the Ohio Valley into the Mid-Atlantic states this afternoon. This storm will bring rain to the entire area throughout this afternoon with much needed amounts of one quarter to one half of an inch expected. Temperatures this afternoon will be between 45 and 50 Degrees. Tonight Through Friday: That low pressure system will head off of the Mid-Atlantic coast tonight and will pull a cold front across the area later this evening. This means that rain will continue this evening and will gradually change to a little bit of snow from north to south across the area. It appears the changeover from rain to snow will first occur in the Berkshires and along and north of Route 2 between 8 pm and 10 pm. The changeover line from rain to snow is then expected to reach the Mass Pike region, including Springfield and Worcester, between about 11 pm and midnight. It is likely that all areas of Western and Central Mass will be snowing briefly by just after midnight. This snow is expected to be short-lived and will come to an end first across the Berkshires and the upper Pioneer Valley of Western Mass by about 1 am. The snow will then come to an end across the lower Pioneer Valley of Western Mass and across northern Worcester County by about 3-4 am. Southern Worcester County will be the last to see the snow end and that should occur by about 5-6 am. Overall, snowfall amounts tonight will be minimal with most areas receiving around one inch of snow. The exception may be some of the area in the Worcester Hills where up to 2 inches of snow is possible. More importantly later tonight will be the potential for some icy conditions as temperatures falling to 25 to 30 Degrees by late tonight. This means that the water and moisture from the rain will likely freeze up and any snow that does accumulate will hide the ice. This all means that roads, sidewalks, driveways, parking lots and other surfaces will be very icy after about 4 am Friday morning. So, use extreme caution for Friday morning’s commute. Friday looks like it will start out cloudy with skies becoming partly sunny by afternoon. High temperatures Friday will be between 35 and 40 Degrees. Weekend Weather Forecast: A sunny weekend is expected across Western and Central Mass with both Saturday and Sunday seeing lots of sunshine. High temperatures Saturday will be between 50 and 55 Degrees. High temperatures Sunday will be near 55 Degrees.