Carson City area weather: Windy with chance of snow showers by Monday morning
Submitted by Jeff Munson on Sat, 02/10/2018 - 12:25pm
After more than two weeks of sunshine and unseasonably warm temperatures in the Carson City region, the National Weather Service says there's a slight chance for some snow showers developing Sunday night into Monday morning.
Gusty winds, which have kicked up dust around the region Saturday, will develop more so on Sunday ahead of a cold front that will move through the region Sunday night. The dust ups Saturday may bring reduced visibility in the region, especially along Interstate 80 and Highway 50 near Lovelock and Fallon, according to the weather service.
By Sunday winds look strongest within a few hours of the system's cold frontal passage, with widespread gusts 35-to 45 mph with wind-prone areas along Highway 395/Interstate 580 possibly seeing gusts to 50-55 mph.
From Sunday night into Monday, the weather system may also bring snow levels down to the valley floors by early Monday morning, according to the weather service. The last time the Reno and Carson City area received precipitation was Jan. 24-25, a NWS forecaster said.
A quick burst of snow is possible with this mostly dry cold front, making for potentially a slick and icy morning commute on Monday morning, even on the valley floors, the weather service advises.
Weather systems like this one in the forecast, with low precipitation amounts anticipated, can sometimes bring sporadic areas of accumulating snow, while other areas remain dry, forecasters say, noting that because of this, it is challenging to forecast exactly where the highest snow amounts will be.
For the Reno and Carson City metro areas, NWS forecasters say there could be zero snow accumulation or up to a half an inch possible.
For Sunday night into Monday the most likely location for snow accumulations of more than 1 inch would be the west-central Nevada around Lovelock.
A secondary system moving through Monday night could bring additional light accumulations to the region, especially south of Highway 50. For Monday night, the most likely area of accumulations greater than 1 inch would be in Mono County where upslope flow may bring several inches of new snow.
Temperatures will be below normal Monday with a few snow showers possible, followed by a warmup to above average temperatures by the middle of next week, according to the weather service.
