Light snow chances will increase for Wednesday, snow will approach from the west to east as the late morning progresses forward. We are working with a fairly dry air mass in place, this means that snow/liquid ratios will be quite high!
In a “typical” or “textbook” scenario, snow/liquid ratios can be defined as 10:1 or 12:1 in some cases. In other words, 10 inches of snow would equate to 1 inch of liquid precipitation. However, when a very dry and cold air mass is in place, this ratio can increase quite a bit.
Cold air will hold less moisture than mild air (or air that is “less cold” in the winter months). When dealing with a drier variety or type of snow, it is not uncommon to see a snow/liquid ratio in the 15:1 range or possibly 20:1 in some cases. In situations like these, .25″ of liquid precipitation would lead to higher snow amounts (maybe 4-5″ of snow in the 20:1 case), whereas as a 10:1 ratio may only equate to appx. 2.5″ of new snow. Of course this is just an example, the values mentioned here can vary depending on the individual characteristics of each passing system.
For Wednesday, liquid precipitation amounts may average out at approximately .20″ – .25″ across the Metro. Based on the air mass in place, this could equate to 3″-4″ of new snow for Omaha provided the current going forecast stays on track!
I’m so glad to see this feature back up and running! I enjoy hearing a more detailed description of our forecast as well as understanding more about the weather that is happening!