New Jersey’s first wintry mess of the season is expected to begin around 7 a.m. Sunday and could deliver snow, ice and rain (depending on where you live) as commuters head back home or to work.
North Jersey is expected to see the brunt of mixed heavy precipitation, including snow and ice. And while forecasters can’t agree on snowfall totals for North Jersey, most agree on one thing: the bulk of any snow will drop Sunday night into Monday morning.
That should make for headaches among school administrators, commuters and those still straggling to get home after visiting relatives for Thanksgiving.
Sussex County could see the highest snowfall totals, with some forecasters predicting up to 12 inches. Morris and Warren counties could see a bit less.
Mostly rain is expected in South Jersey for the duration of the 48-hour storm. Forecasters seemed to differ on their predictions for areas closer to New York City, with some expecting rain and others expecting minor snow accumulations.
Snow bands which predict the accumulation totals vary among forecasters as well.
Here is what six different forecasters predict for the storm:
AccuWeather’s snowfall projections for New Jersey.
Storm forecast: Colder air will overcome the New Jersey region Sunday night, leading to heavier snow accumulation into Monday.
Details: AccuWeather predicts snowfall totals of up to 12 inches in the northernmost point of Sussex County. Anywhere from 3 to 6 inches of snow is predicted South of that until what appears to be Mercer and Middlesex counties. Only rain is expected for South Jersey.
The northern part of New Jersey is in the projected path of snow, ice and rain during the day on Sunday, according to AccuWeather forecaster Alex Sosnowski. Warm air, however, is likely to sweep in from the south and the Atlantic, so the storm will transition to mostly rain Sunday night. But cold air is likely to come into the area during Monday, bringing a change in accumulation to snow.
Northern parts of New Jersey could see anywhere from 5 to 11 inches of snow, forecasters predicted Saturday evening.
Storm forecast: The National Weather Service expects the wintry mix to begin 7 a.m. Sunday, although a winter storm warning is in effect for parts of North Jersey from 4 a.m. Sunday to 1 a.m. Tuesday.
Details: Total snow accumulations of 5 to 11 inches and ice accumulations of up to one-tenth of an inch are expected in Sussex, Warren and Morris counties, where winter storm warnings will be in effect from 4 a.m. Sunday to 1 a.m. Tuesday. Sussex County appears to have the highest snow accumulation predictions. Mixed precipitation with snow accumulations of 3 to 5 inches are expected in Hunterdon and Somerset counties. Just 2 to 4 inches of snow and a light glaze of ice are expected for Middlesex and Mercer counties.
The National Weather Service also predicts a lull in the storm Sunday evening followed by more snow late Sunday night and Monday.
Storm forecast: Most people may think this storm is a bust come Sunday night. But the bulk of projected snow will fall Monday around 1 a.m., this New Jersey-based weather company warns.
Details: The storm will kick off Sunday morning, first hitting South Jersey with rain. Warm air in the region will make for a wintery mix of snow, sleet and rain for other parts of New Jersey. But between 5 and 7 p.m. Sunday evening, the warm air will stop. The precipitation will change back over to snow Monday morning, when temperatures fall off. The snow band will rotate Monday from Trenton to the Monmouth County coastal waters. Moderate to heavy snowfall is expected in this region, bringing snow accumulations of 5 to 10 inches of snow in parts o Sussex County and 2 to 5 inches of snow in Central Jersey.
Storm forecast: Heavier snow bands are likely in some localized Northern areas of New Jersey due to vigorous energy in the upper atmosphere, this Virginia-based company says.
Details: There could likely be mesoscale banding of heavy snow, which could lead to much higher localized amounts in northwestern parts of New Jersey during late Sunday night into Monday morning. PerspectaWeather predicts much like the others: cold air during Sunday night will bring the bulk of snowfall towards the end of the storm. Mostly rain is expected for areas closer to New York City too.
Storm forecast: The storm is expected to leave the region by midday Monday.
Details: WeatherWorks predicted earlier Saturday morning that North Jersey would get wintry mix around Sunday afternoon. The group predicted up to an inch of snow to fall per hour in Northern portions of New Jersey, including Sussex County, throughout Monday. Northwest Jersey could possibly see a “handful of inches” of snow, while areas closer to New York City could see about 2 inches.
Storm forecast: Precipitation will likely begin as snow Sunday from eastern Pennsylvania into Southern New England before areas closer to the coast change over to sleet, freezing rain and rain.
Details: Areas along the cost that changed over to rain, sleet and freezing rain on Sunday are predicted to transition back to snow before the storm pushes out later Monday, the Weather Channel predicts. The channel, however, did not specify exact snowfall totals for the region along the Northeast coast.
Rebecca Panico may be reached at rpanico@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @BeccaPanico.
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