Flurries fell on the Twin Peaks in San Francisco early Tuesday morning, shortly after snow levels sank to around 500 feet, according to the National Weather Service.
A deep chill brought on by cold, drier air moving in from Canada overtook the Bay Area, brought chances for a coating of snow on the region’s lower peaks and is expected to usher in widespread freezing conditions going into the weekend. The North Bay is expected to see temperatures in the mid 30s to low 30s while the rest of the Bay Area could see temperatures ranging in the 40s. On Wednesday, high temperatures in the Bay are expected to reach the low 50s while the North Bay could see lows in the mid-to-low 30s.
“We’re going to see some patchy frost around the area, especially in low-lying and valley areas where cool air tends to collect,” said NWS forecaster Eleanor Dhuyvetter. “Impact-wise, cover plants that are susceptible to colder temperatures and frost and make sure to bring pets inside.”
The freezing temperatures come as a series of rain and snow storms continue to lash the Bay Area and the Sierra Nevada over the last week, resulting in road closures, ski resort shutdowns and travel delays after felling power lines and trees. The UC Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Lab reported on Tuesday morning a new December record of 202.1 inches of snow, shattering the previous record of 179 inches of snow in December 1970 and marking it the third snowiest month on record.
As temperatures warmed up gradually on Tuesday morning, snow levels rose to around 2,500 to 3,000 feet and are expected to remain consistent throughout the night. More snow is expected to fall in higher elevation areas, including the higher terrains in the North Bay and Central Coast around the 3,000 foot range.
Snow storms are also expected to continue into Wednesday for the Sierra Nevada, with up to 7 more inches forecast for elevations above 1,000 feet and a light dusting on the valleys, according to the weather service, which also discouraged mountain travel due to road closures and near white-out conditions.
A couple of cold weather systems will continue to bring snow to Norcal today through Wednesday. Light snow is expected today, but heavier snow is forecast later tonight into Wednesday. #CAwx pic.twitter.com/AqA0IjRCZs
— NWS Sacramento (@NWSSacramento) December 28, 2021
As of Monday morning, Northstar has received around 117 inches of snow during the weeklong storms while Sugar Bowl and Homewood got 111 inches, according to the weather service. Palisades Tahoe received nearly 100 inches of snow while Kirkwood got 66 inches and Heavenly received 60 inches.
Portions of Interstate 80, Highway 50, State Route 20 and State Route 49 remained closed Tuesday as officials continued to clear the snow from the roads, according to Caltrans.
In the Bay Area, rain showers are expected to continue Tuesday into Wednesday before tapering off in the afternoon, capping off more than week of wet weather. The weather service has forecast dry conditions for the rest of the year. Through Wednesday afternoon, higher elevations in the Bay Area could see anywhere from a quarter to a half an inch of rain while the South Bay, the San Francisco Area and the East Bay hills could get a tenth to a quarter of an inch of rain. The North Bay valleys are expected to receive upwards of a tenth of an inch of rain.
As of 10:25 a.m., 72-hour precipitation totals included: 2.48 inches at Ben Lomond, 2.09 inches at Middle Peak at Mount Tamalpais, 1.74 inches at Mount Diablo, 1.05 inches in downtown San Francisco, 0.91 inches in Oakland and 0.56 inches at the San Jose International Airport.
Minor impacts, including street ponding in low-drainage or low-lying areas, could result from the latest bout of rainfall but won’t be significant compared to an atmospheric river storm.
The recent series of weather systems has been a welcome change for the Golden State after two dry winters in a row, but Northern California will still need more wet weather in order to eradicate it’s long-term “severe drought,” according to the weather service.
As of Monday, San Jose has received 6.37 inches of rain since the water year began on Oct. 1, compared to 0.91 of an inch of rain the city got in that same time period last year, according to the weather service. San Jose’s rainfall total is 165 percent of historic averages from 1991 to 2020, while the city was 24 percent of normal this time last year.
The recent snow storms also boosted California’s statewide snowpack from 19 percent of historic averages on Dec. 10 to 159 percent of historic averages as of Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service’s California Nevada River Forecast Center.
“We’ve gotten healthy rainfall,” Dhuyvetter said. “This has been more gradual as far as the rain falling over the area. Everything is saturated so it’s going to set up us nicely for the rest of the winter and the spring.”
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