More rain this weekend

A fairly benign weather pattern tonight through tomorrow ahead of a moderate atmospheric river that will bring more rain to the area Sunday and Monday.

For tonight, a few spotty showers will move through the region and we can also expect that throughout Saturday. We’ll have some breaks with sunshine on Saturday too. Temperatures will start out in the upper 30s in Seattle and rise to the upper 40s. In the Cascades, snow levels will be around 2,000-2,500 feet tonight through Saturday and 3-6 inches of snow will occur in showers. Since it’s not coming all at once, pass travel shouldn’t be too difficult. There are no winter warnings or advisories out.

An atmospheric river – a fetch of richer moisture and precipitation – will sink south from British Columbia on Sunday and last into Monday. This will set up a situation where heavy rain will fall in the mountains with a snow level of up to 5,000 feet on Sunday, heightening avalanche danger and causing rivers to spike higher. However, we’re not expecting river flooding at this time. Around the Sound, rain will be heavier north of Everett and south of Tacoma through this event as well as at the coast where 1-2 inches of rain can be expected. In the central Sound from about Tacoma to Everett, we’ll likely have far less rain being in the “rain shadow” in the lee of the Olympic Mountains. Still a few periods of rain will occur.  Winds will also be gusty out of the south Sunday into Monday with gusts 25-35mph common.

We’ll dry out slowly into mid week after the atmospheric river moves south and snow levels will drop again, but we don’t expect any lowland snow chances the next seven days.

Cox Media Group