Today, New Jersey sang in the rain. For the first time in almost three months, heavy rain fell. Almost every community north of Route 72 received at least a half-inch of rain. The southern zones of Atlantic, Salem, Cumberland, and Cape May counties received far less rainfall. The central and northern zones received between 1 and roughly 2 inches.
Has the drought officially ended? Not. We still need to add another 9 to 11 inches over the next 90 days before we can finish this dry chapter in New Jersey’s weather history. And that does not appear to be the case, even though the weather pattern is becoming more active and colder. Snow? Speaking of snow, residual rain showers will begin to turn into snow showers.
The snow will occasionally fall quickly. This will continue to cool the column of air, potentially allowing more communities to become involved in the snowy situation. The National Weather Service issued a winter weather alert for the first time in 276 days, on February 19, 2024.
When winter weather threatens to make conditions slippery, an advisory is issued. Accumulations will be small and mostly limited to cooler surfaces, like your front stairs and sidewalk. Local streets, as well as important roads, should be kept clear of snow.
Colder surfaces, such as lawns, decks, patio furniture, and grassy areas, may absorb a wet/slushy snowfall. The first of the season. The majority of the snowfall will fall in limited bands. If the bands pivot over elevated places.
At an elevation of 800 feet or greater, 4-6 inches are expected to accumulate. The majority of the advisory area will receive 2 inches of slushy precipitation. The rest of the state north of Interstate 78 will most likely see the snow splatter on their windshields while driving around. I prefer to refer to them as festive flakes.
The pattern remains cool over the weekend and into next week. Computer guidance detects a weather signature that could indicate a more substantial storm, with a greater wintry impact on the region near the holiday. It’s still some days away, a meteorological lifetime.
Let us be patient. Let’s not get too enthusiastic about the overzealous “social media meteorologists” publishing every snow map available without context. Things may and will change. For now, we will wait and observe what is ahead of us. If you’re seeing flakes, enjoy the first snow.