First Alert Weather In-Depth: Receipt for Mixed Winter Precipitation

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – At times, it has been feeling more like early November. And when you examine the data, there is evidence of that when looking through this past month. The number of days with below average temperatures was significant and far greater when comparing the average temperatures for the month of October. Obviously, if this trend continues over the next couple of days the type of precipitation is going to be a questionable.

So how do we determine that receipt for mixed precipitation? One of the things News 10 NBC First Alert meteorologists look at is the projection of the temperature layers in the atmosphere. If it is relatively warm throughout the atmosphere the precipitation will be in the form of rain.  However, if the extreme lowest layer of air turns cold, that could produce rain changing over the freezing rain. That is not going to be a factor this time around, but the higher elevations will certainly play a factor as it relates to temperature.  If colder air expands through the column of the atmosphere, that is when we could see a bit of sleet or ice pellets. And if we see below freezing air through the entire column, then the type of precipitation is all snow.

More than likely there will be a variety of precipitation especially along the Southern Tier of New York State over the next couple of days