After Wednesday's snowfall and another dusting Thursday morning, forecasters' attention is turning to a coastal storm that could bring a mess of rain and snow late Friday night into Saturday.
A system bringing snow to New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma was expected to sweep up the mid-Atlantic coast to end the week. But without a flow of cold air into the region, much of the precipitation could fall as rain.
The National Weather Service is predicting about 1-3 inches of snow along the Interstate 95 corridor, with 3-4 inches to the north and west and the potential for as much as 6 inches if more snow falls than rain. AccuWeather.com is forecasting 3-6 inches from the Shenandoah through Baltimore and Philadelphia to New York, with heavier snow expected in New England.
Another system could meanwhile bring a dusting Sunday night into Monday, with more disturbances possible later in the week.
Wednesday's snow brought several inches of accumulation across the Baltimore area but disruptions were light as pavement remained above freezing. Weather officials are warning motorists of possible slick spots Thursday morning as temperatures are near freezing.
Several school systems across the Baltimore metro area delayed their openings Thursday morning as a result of slick roads.
Snow totals surpassed 2 inches across the region, with nearly 3 inches in Severna Park and 2.5 inches in Oella and Columbia. In Carroll County, 3 inches were reported in Westminster and 3.5 inches closer to the Pennsylvania line, according to the National Weather Service.
At Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, 2.6 inches of snow fell, more than doubling the total there for January and bringing Baltimore's official snow tally to 5.4 inches this winter.
The snow prompted schools in Baltimore and Carroll counties to close an hour early, while Anne Arundel County schools had already been scheduled to close two hours early for exams.
Travel conditions were helped because the snow did not arrive until midday, a few hours later than forecasters had predicted and, thanks to temperatures rising into the 40s Tuesday, paved surfaces were relatively warm, said Dave Samuhel, a senior meteorologist with AccuWeather.com.
State Highway Administration spokesman David Buck said pavement temperatures hovered a few degrees above freezing around the region and few accidents were reported. But he cautioned that bridges, ramps and overpasses could be prone to freezing overnight into Thursday morning.
Light snow showers were possible overnight into Thursday morning, with less than an inch of accumulation expected, said Heather Sheffield, a meteorologist with the weather service's Baltimore/Washington forecast office.
Over the next week, several more chances for snow are expected.
A snowy system that was moving across the southern Plains on Wednesday night is expected to sweep up the Mid-Atlantic coast by Friday night and Saturday, in what Samuhel called a "classic track" for a Northeastern snowstorm.
Depending on how closely the storm hugs the coast, the storm could bring rain or a messy mix of rain, freezing rain and snow. Air in place ahead of that system is not forecast to be particularly cold, with temperatures expected to reach the upper 30s and lower 40s Thursday and Friday, which could limit accumulating snow, Samuhel said.
Forecasting models suggested several inches of snow, though it was too soon to make specific predictions.
"The potential is there," Sheffield said. "It's dependent on the track."
After that, a couple of disturbances could bring more snowflakes next week, including another "clipper"-type storm like Wednesday's, which sweep in from the west with a quick burst of snow.
"There are a few different ways to make snow, but they all in one way or another do the same thing," Samuhel said.
Baltimore Sun reporter Jessica Anderson contributed to this story.
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