A strong cold front is set to envelop Massachusetts Tuesday, bringing with it whipping wind gusts up to 50 mph and the potential for heavy snow showers, according to the National Weather Service.
Snow squalls are possible in northwest areas of the state beginning around 7 a.m. Tuesday, but forecasters say the cold front will stall and weaken as it heads toward the coast, meaning snow showers and squalls should stop by about noon. As the front moves through the state Tuesday morning, it will bring strong, gusty winds between 40 mph and 50 mph.
A wind advisory is in place for higher elevations — namely the Berkshires and the Worcester Hills — between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m.
High temperatures will peak in the low to mid-30s before the front moves in and drops temperatures down to the low to mid-20s. Wind chills are expected to be in the single digits, forecasters said.
Later Tuesday, residents of the Bay State can expect a period of steady light snowfall, thanks to a clipper system exiting the Great Lakes. The highest snow totals will be along Route 2, where up to 3 inches is possible. Higher elevations in the corridor could see between 4 and 5 inches of snow.
A National Weather Service map shows potential snow totals in Massachusetts this week. (National Weather Service)National Weather Service
But the rest of the state is likely to see much less, with a coating to 2 inches projected along the Massachusetts Turnpike and only a coating for southeast Massachusetts. Most of the snow is expected to come down between midnight and 3 a.m.
In the wake of the snow, high temperatures Wednesday are expected to reach up to the low to mid-40s across the state, particularly on the coast. But the more moderate temperatures won’t last, as forecasters predict “another shot of frigid air and blustery to gusty northwest winds” blasting Massachusetts Wednesday night into Thursday.
