Middle Rocky Mountains' 1st big snow of season; what it means for us
Snowfall total forecast through Friday morning, Oct. 13
The first big snowfall for the Middle Rocky Mountains will be the same system that gives Wisconsin a soaking rain by the weekend.
One to 2 feet of snow will be possible throughout Wyoming and northern Colorado with higher elevations easily getting over 2 feet thanks to an impressive low moving in through Friday, Oct. 13.
What will also make this system unique is its slow motion when entering the Great Plains. This will allow for lower mountain ranges such as the Bighorn, Laramie, and Black Hills to get as much if not more snow than the Wind River & Absaroka Mountains which on average have higher peaks in Wyoming.
SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News
While topographical lift isn't the only factor in mountain meteorology, it's usually a big determinant of how much moisture is dropped from Pacific lows. Higher elevations squeeze the moisture out of clouds as it cools, condensing and falling out as precipitation.
This low will regain southern moisture as it heads into the Midwest to end the week giving plenty of juice to a broad system that could easily give Wisconsin 2 inches or more of rain when it's all said and done by Monday, Oct. 16
Low currently centered of Washington state as of Tuesday, Oct. 10 that will give all the snowfall to the Middle Rockies to end the week. This will later move to the Midwest giving Wisconsin widespread rain by the weekend.
As we get into the colder months of the year and the Great Lakes stay ice-free, we'll watch for similar Pacific systems starting in the southwest corner of the U.S. These are what can lead to "panhandle hooks" – or lows that swoop northeast into the Great Lakes region. This usually results in our biggest snows or highest precipitation systems of the winter.