Another dusting tonight, more worries for Tuesday

Well, that wasn't such a big deal, was it? The dusting didn't even cover the grass below the WeatherDeck in Cockeysville. (Some local accumulations amounts on the jump, below.)

Mother Nature will get another chance tonight as another moisture-starved disturbance and cold front slip by. But the next (first?) significant snow of the season may have to wait until Tuesday.

Forecasters out at Sterling are describing tonight's setup as very similar to last night's. A little clipper-type disturbance is expected to spin around a low centered over the Great Lakes, bringing us another dusting of snow. It would begin after midnight tonight in the Baltimore area, and end sometime before lunch on Saturday.

They (the NWS) are predicting less than a half inch overnight, and about the same after daybreak. Eric the Red, a professional forecaster in Baltimore, thinks it may be a bit heavier and more widespread than last night's snow, and the one after Christmas (photo).

"I think it's prudent to plan on seeing 1-2" of snow tomorrow. However, little if any snow is once again expected south of D.C."

AccuWeather.com has us in the 1-3 inch-range (snow map, below).

With all the salt on the roads this morning - my car was really crunching through it - I doubt there will be much to worry about. But it's always a good idea to slow down when snow is falling and the temperatures are below freezing.

Once those snow showers and the next cold front blow by, skies will clear later on Saturday. And we can expect a sunny - but cold - day on Sunday. Highs will stall in the mid-30s - well below the norms for this time of year at BWI-Marshall. The overnight lows Saturday and Sunday nights will be in the low 20s.

Baltimore health officials have extended their Code Blue Health Alert through Sunday.

The next wintry weather would come Tuesday. The models are toying with a storm forecast to develop over the Gulf states. It would move to the northeast, while another disturbance over the Plains states moves east. The computers haven't quite settled yet on how the two will interact.

While the algorithms battle it out, the NWS is still calling for "a chance of snow," put at 30 percent for Tuesday and Tuesday night. Eric the Red is more confident:

"I think you can go ahead and put that storm on the 'likely' list. Looking more and more like our first, significant winter storm of the season."

UPDATE, 2 p.m.: New from Eric: "The first low will move out of the Gulf and along the coast, while the second will trail to the west ... The two are expected to phase into one, big, happy snowmaker along the Mi-Atlantic or Northeast coast.

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"If, when, and where this phasing occurs will determine whether we get 2-4" of snow or 6-12." ... The Tues. storm will likely start during the day on Tuesday, setting the table for a disastrous afternoon commute. The [precipitation] will linger into Tues. night and end on Weds. Given that this is still 4 days away, this is very prelim."

And AccuWeather.com is already looking for a "major winter storm," and "heavy" snow in most of Maryland. (Map, above.)

(SUN PHOTO: Algerina Perna, Dec. 26, 2010)

Here are some snow totals from our Friday morning dusting.

Frostburg: 3 inches

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Bel Air: 1.3 inches

Kingsville: 0.6 inch

Baldwin: 0.5 inch

Emmittsburg: 0.5 inch

Jacksonville: 0.4 inch

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Odenton: 0.3 inch

Gaithersburg: 0.2 inch

Here's more.

Another dusting tonight, more worries for Tuesday

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