Saturday Snow Update
Saturday Late-Morning:
Currently, a strong arctic cold front is moving into northwestern Texas and has moved through much of Oklahoma. This front will continue to advance towards the south and move towards the Texas Coast by late in the day. Temperatures behind the cold front will range from the single digits in the Oklahoma Panhandle to the 20s throughout the rest of Oklahoma behind the front, while temperatures ahead of he cold front (southern and central Texas) will get into the 70s and 80s. Parts of northern Texas have dropped into the 30s already, and the remainder of northern Texas will fall into the 30s by early afternoon. Windchills will range from below zero in western Oklahoma to the teens in northern Texas.
The majority of precipitation will not develop until the afternoon hours; however, light freezing mist is possible over the next hour or two in northern and central Oklahoma. The low-levels will significantly dry out thus decreasing the freezing mist potential by the afternoon hours.
NAM Composite Reflectivity: Saturday Morning
Saturday Afternoon-Evening:
Snow will begin to develop behind the cold front in northwestern Oklahoma as well as the Texas Panhandle as energy associated with the upper-level trough creates an area of lift. This thin band of snow will move towards the I-35 corridor in Oklahoma by the evening hours. The snow will begin to lessen in magnitude as it moves towards the southeast, but flurries are possible as far south as I-20 (DFW area) in northern Texas by Saturday night.
NAM 500mb Vorticity Map: Saturday Afternoon
NAM Composite Reflectivity: Saturday Afternoon
NAM Composite Reflectivity: Saturday Evening
The snow amounts will generally remain light for Texas and Oklahoma. Parts of northwestern Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle may see upwards of 3” while the rest of Oklahoma sees .5-1.5” with a dusting for the Red River Counties (and flurries down towards the DFW-Metro).
Forecast Snowfall Totals: Saturday-Sunday Morning
Along with the cold temperatures and snowfall, the winds will be a big issue gusting upwards of 30mph. This will lead to windchills will be in the single digits, and below zero in some areas, as well as blowing and drifting of snowfall. Some areas in Oklahoma may see a brief period of close to whiteout conditions due to the light snow and gusty winds. This will make travel very dangerous due to low visibilities in parts of Oklahoma.
NAM Windspeeds: Saturday Evening
Sunday Morning:
Temperatures will be the coldest of the season by Sunday morning. Temperature will range from below zero in Kansas, northwestern Oklahoma, and the Texas Panhandle, while the single digits and teens are likely for the rest of Oklahoma; northern Texas will fall to the teens while 20s are likely for much of the rest of the state. Windchills will fall below zero for many areas north of the Red River.
NAM Temperatures: Saturday Morning