Snow showers are moving across Western Washington this afternoon, with stronger, more organized bands of moisture focused south of I-90 and around Mt. Hood. Weak convergence bands have come and gone near Snoqualmie Pass and Stevens Pass. East of the Cascade Crest, conditions are mostly dry, aside from some moisture reaching the Salmon la Sac area. The convective nature of these showers is producing shorter periods of heavy snow in localized spots, but it's tough to pinpoint where they will occur exactly. Overall, this type of snowfall will continue into tonight, with a gradual decrease in moisture.
On Thursday, the center of the low-pressure system will shift east across Washington. High pressure will build in behind it, bringing northerly flow and colder air into the region. By Thursday morning, most of the snow will have tapered off, leaving mostly clear skies with some low-level clouds lingering near the Crest. Expect cold morning temperatures, followed by a more noticeable warm-up as sunshine returns. Winds will remain elevated through the mountain passes and along the east side of the Cascades.
The drying trend continues Thursday night into Friday, with another round of cold overnight temperatures followed by stronger daytime warming. High thin clouds will begin to drift over the region on Friday afternoon.
Weather Forecast
Olympics
West North
West Central
West South
Stevens Pass
Snoqualmie Pass
East North
East Central
East South
Mt. Hood
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Wednesday
Night
Chance of light showers in the early evening, then partly cloudy.
Thursday
Mostly clear, with low-level clouds in the afternoon.
Wednesday
Night
Chance of light showers in the early evening, then partly cloudy.
Thursday
Mostly cloudy, turning partly cloudy by mid-morning. Low clouds around the Crest.
Wednesday
Night
Light snow showers, tapering off through the night. Low clouds, turning partly cloudy.
Thursday
Slight chance of snow showers. Mostly cloudy, turning partly cloudy in mid-morning. Low clouds around the Crest.
Wednesday
Night
Light snow showers in the early evening, turning partly cloudy overnight. Light to moderate ridgeline wind.
Thursday
Fluctuating cloud cover, with frequent sun breaks and filtered sunshine.
Wednesday
Night
Light snow showers, tapering off overnight. Light to moderate ridgeline and W wind at the Pass.
Thursday
Slight chance of snow showers. Low-level clouds with clear skies at upper elevations. Light to moderate ridgeline, and W wind at Pass level.
Wednesday
Night
Light snow showers, tapering off overnight. Light to moderate ridgeline and W wind at the Pass.
Thursday
Slight chance of snow showers. Low-level clouds with clear skies at upper elevations. Moderate to strong ridgeline, and W wind at Pass level.
Wednesday
Night
Chance of light snow showers, turning partly cloudy overnight. Light to moderate ridgeline wind.
Thursday
Partly cloudy, with clouds hanging near the crest. Light to moderate ridgeline wind.
Wednesday
Night
Slight chance of snow showers in the early evening, turning partly cloudy overnight. Light to moderate ridgeline wind.
Thursday
Partly cloudy, with clouds hanging near the crest. Moderate to strong ridgeline wind.
Wednesday
Night
Slight chance of snow showers in the early evening, turning partly cloudy overnight. Light to moderate ridgeline wind.
Thursday
Partly cloudy, with clouds hanging near the crest. Light to moderate ridgeline wind.
Wednesday
Night
Snow showers, tapering off through the night. Low-level clouds turning partly cloudy. Moderate to strong ridgeline wind.
Calm, dry weather is in store for Friday and Saturday. Seasonable temperatures return to the region, with daytime highs climbing a little higher each day. High clouds build up on Saturday, ahead of a low-pressure system positioned off the coast.
The NWAC program is administered by the USDA-Forest Service and operates from the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Seattle. NWAC services are made possible by important collaboration and support from a wide variety of federal, state and private cooperators.
The 5000’ temperature forecast does not imply a trend over the 12 hr period and only represents the max and min temperatures within a 12 hr period in the zone. The 6-hr snow level forecast, the forecast discussion, and weather forecast sections may add detail regarding temperature trends.
The snow level forecast represents the general snow level over a 6 hr time period. Freezing levels are forecast when precipitation is not expected.
*Easterly or offshore flow is highlighted with an asterisk when we expect relatively cool east winds in the major Cascade Passes. Easterly flow will often lead to temperature inversions and is a key variable for forecasting precipitation type in the Cascade Passes. Strong easterly flow events can affect terrain on a more regional scale.
Ridgeline winds are the average wind speed and direction over a 6 hr time period.
The wind forecast represents an elevation range instead of a single elevation slice. The elevation range overlaps with the near and above treeline elevation bands in the avalanche forecast and differs per zone.
Wind direction indicates the direction the wind originates or comes from on the 16-point compass rose.
Water Equivalent (WE) is the liquid water equivalent of all precipitation types; rain, snow, ice pellets, etc., forecast to the hundredth of an inch at specific locations. To use WE as a proxy for snowfall amounts, start with a snow to water ratio of 10:1 (10 inches of snow = 1 inch WE). Temperatures at or near freezing will generally have a lower ratio (heavy wet snow) and very cold temperatures can have a much higher ratio (dry fluffy snow).