A (Sort Of) Sign Of Spring WIll Lead To Messy Weather In Vermont

On Thursday, a surge of warm air will bring temperatures
in the 70s as far north as Kentucky. But cold air
will hang on over New England, setting the stage
for a potentially very messy storm. 

Starting in February, usually a bit later than this, the forces of spring begin to stir in the Deep South.

Surges of warmer, more humid air begin to have an easier time working their way northward into the southeastern United States.

Meanwhile, the forces of the Arctic keep coming on strong, often leading to big temperature contrast in parts of the nation.

The result is a lot of storminess, which is why February and March are famous for big snowstorms, blizzards, icy messes, flooding rains and severe weather.  

What is arguably the first sneak peek of spring-ish warmth is pushing into the Southeast this week, which could spell trouble for us Vermonters.

Especially since the storms that have been coming ashore in California lately are making their way across the U.S., ready to feed on that southern warmth and humidity to give icky winter weather for us northerners.

The first little wave of this went through yesterday, but it was harmless. It tossed a one to three handful of snowflakes down on northern Vermont and surrounding areas, and then zipped on away.

Another disturbance comes in today and tonight in the form of a warm front. Fairly toasty air for this time of year is going to go up and over the chillier air we have in our backyards now, leading to a little snow, then sleet and freezing rain later today and tonight.

There won't be a lot of it, and it will be focused on northern areas. It will still be enough to maybe make some slick conditions later today and tonight. That could possibly last into the morning east of the Green Mountains.

Then, Vermont briefly gets into the warm air. We'll have a February thaw starting late tonight or tomorrow morning. It will last until Tuesday afternoon or evening, depending upon where you are.

Monday will be balmy, with highs well into the 40s, especially west of the Green Mountains. If Burlington gets to 45 degrees, as expected, it would be the warmest day since December 29.

After some rain showers, changing to a few snow showers Tuesday, we'll get back into the winter chill Tuesday night and Wednesday. It won't be anything extreme. Just lows in the single numbers and highs in the teens to low 20s.

But that surge of warm air will really take hold in the southeast. For instance, Atlanta, Georgia should get into the low or mid 70s on Thursday, which is 20 degrees above normal for them.

Meanwhile, the cold air to the north will be reluctant to let go. A storm crossing the nation will take hold of that spring air in the south, and once again make it ride over the cold air over and north of us.

It looks messy later Thursday through Friday, but it's still too early to say what exactly will happen around here. But there's a decent chance Vermont will face sleet, freezing rain, and maybe some plain rain or snow, depending on how much warm air gets into this storm.

Precipitation will be heavier than the light stuff coming through tonight and again on Tuesday. So whatever happens, it will be more challenging at the end of the week than it will be at the beginning.