MANCHESTER, NH – Looks like snow is in the Saturday forecast. National Weather Service meteorologist Tom Hawley says the estimate for Manchester is between 2 and 4 inches, with even more on the radar for Tuesday, with the probability of up to 8 inches.
And thanks to a new feature on the NWS site, you can follow along and play the game of odds – yes, it’s still a bit of a guessing game, but who doesn’t love a good data chart?
For this snow season, the Weather Service has added an interactive Snow Amount Potential chart. You can see what the probability is of snow in your area – or anywhere else – by how much snow will probably fall.
Take Saturday, for example. According to the chart, there’s a 53 percent chance of greater than .1 inch of snow. Select the “4 Inches or Greater” probability chart and you’ll see that the odds go down, but the probability is still there for a 7 percent chance of a 4-inch snowfall.
If nothing else, it’s an entertaining way to guesstimate what’s in store, says Hawley.
“We normally say something like ‘expect 1 to 3 inches’ for an event like Saturday’s. The chart gives you what our probability of snow is within a certain range, and it’s updated regularly,” Hawley says.
Saturday’s snow will likely start in southern New Hanpshire early- to mid-afternoon, and be over with by sunrise Sunday morning, Hawley says.
“It will be a light snow, nothing crippling,” he says. Just a lovely taste of winter as the holiday season sinks in.
As of now, Tuesday’s precipitation forecast looks like an all-day snow event that could bring another half-foot of snow, or more.
Or less.
You can click here to play around with the National Weather Service’s new feature.
