Cool air and sleet on Friday for the western lowlands. More crazy stuff in California.

No, snow won’t accumulate near sea level, but don’t be surprised if you see a few snowflakes west of the Cascade Peak on Friday,

The satellite image visible this morning (below) shows a strong spring front about to make landfall, with a swirling cloud combined with a clear low-pressure area offshore. In the west you can see areas of mottled, white and black clouds associated with great instability, instability caused by cold air passing over warm water. That air is our future.

This area of ​​cold air is coming at us from Alaska, as shown in the wider satellite imagery. Call it the Aleutian Express.

The trouble for low-altitude snow lovers is that this sea air (called the sea pole, MP, air mass) is generally too warm for any lowland snow. But it’s the perfect model for the heavy snow in the Cascades.

Here is the snow forecast until 23:00 on Friday. Some very light snow south of Tacoma, with more snow southwest of Washington. Not only will temperatures be marginal, but with currents out of the ocean in a northwesterly direction, Puget Sound will be covered by the Olympics with rain (or covered with snow).

The Columbia Basin will also be shaded by rain, but the mountains will benefit as much as a new layer of powder.

On Friday and Saturday, the lowlands will not exceed 40 degrees Celsius, significantly cooler than usual.

Madness in California

It’s hard to believe, but AN OTHER strong, record-breaking spring storm is being predicted for California. Here is the forecast for sea level pressure and surface winds at 11 p.m. Monday night, when a deep, intense low will approach the north coast of San Francisco.

Will California receive heavy rainfall from this system? Do children like to eat ice cream?

Take a look at the total rainfall forecast through Wednesday morning. Rainfall is more than 3-7 inches over the Sierra Nevada and northern CA. Perhaps the US Drought Watch will FINALLY ease the severe drought in northern California. Just silly.