821  
FXUS61 KBGM 170221  
AFDBGM  
 
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION  
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BINGHAMTON NY  
1021 PM EDT MON MAR 16 2026  
   
WHAT HAS CHANGED
 
 
AREA OF HEAVY SNOW IS MORE EXPANSIVE THAN PREVIOUSLY FORECAST.  
THE WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY WAS EXPAND FURTHER EAST AS A QUICK 1  
TO 3 INCHES WILL BE POSSIBLE OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF HOURS.  
DROPPING TEMPERATURES INTO THE 20S AND UPPER TEENS OVERNIGHT  
WILL ALSO PRODUCE FLASH FREEZE CONDITIONS, FURTHER WARRANTING  
THE EXPANSION OF THE WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY.  
 

 
   
KEY MESSAGES
 
 
1) A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL BRING GUSTY HEAVY RAIN SHOWERS THIS  
AFTERNOON AND EVENING.  
 
2) THERE WILL BE A RAPID DROP IN TEMPERATURES WITH THE PASSAGE  
OF THE COLD FRONT TONIGHT, WITH RAIN CHANGING TO A QUICK BURST  
OF SNOW AND POSSIBLY A FLASH FREEZE AS TEMPERATURES FALL INTO  
THE 20S TO UPPER TEENS BY EARLY TUESDAY.  
 
3) ACCUMULATING LAKE EFFECT SNOW IS LIKELY FOR ONEIDA COUNTY  
TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT.  
 

 
   
DISCUSSION
 
 
KEY MESSAGE 1...  
 
CLOUD COVER TODAY HAS SIGNIFICANTLY LIMITED INSTABILITY AND THUS  
THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM THREAT HAS DECREASED. HOWEVER, A STRONG  
LINE OF RAIN SHOWERS WITH EMBEDDED THUNDERSTORMS WILL STILL BE  
POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. THE STRONGEST WINDS WILL  
LIKELY BE ASSOCIATED WITH FROPA THIS EVENING AND THE COLD AIR  
ADVECTION BEHIND THE FRONT OVERNIGHT. A WIND ADVISORY FOR THE  
FINGER LAKES AND A PORTION OF THE TWIN TIERS HAS BEEN EXTENDED  
UNTIL 8AM TOMORROW MORNING. GUSTY WINDS WILL ALSO GET CLOSE TO  
ADVISORY CRITERIA ACROSS THE POCONOS AND A WIND ADVISORY REMAINS  
IN EFFECT THERE UNTIL MIDNIGHT TONIGHT. RAINFALL TOTALS ARE ALSO  
LOOKING LESS THAN PREVIOUS FORECASTS, HOWEVER THERE WILL STILL  
BE SOME POTENTIAL FOR MINOR FLOODING, BUT NO MAJOR FLOODING  
IMPACTS ARE EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.  
 
KEY MESSAGE 2...  
 
BEHIND THE COLD FRONT, A VERY COLD AIRMASS FOR THIS TIME OF  
YEAR WILL MOVE IN QUICKLY AND CAUSE SURFACE TEMPERATURES TO DROP  
25-30 DEGREES IN A 6 HOUR WINDOW (BETWEEN 6PM AND MIDNIGHT).  
RAIN WILL CHANGE TO SLEET AND SNOW THIS EVENING AND SOME OF THE  
HIGHER ELEVATIONS ACROSS STEUBEN COUNTY COULD EXCEED 4 INCHES OF  
SNOW. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR THERE DUE TO  
THE SNOW AND THE POTENTIAL FOR A FLASH FREEZE IN THIS SITUATION,  
GIVEN HOW QUICKLY THE AIR TEMPERATURES DROP BEHIND A RAIN-  
PRODUCING FRONT.  
 
ELSEWHERE, 1 TO 3 INCHES OF A SNOW AND SLEET MIX WILL BE  
POSSIBLE ACROSS HIGHER ELEVATION AREAS AND VALLEYS WILL LIKELY  
SEE LITTLE TO NO ACCUMULATIONS. THE FLASH FREEZE POTENTIAL IS  
AREA-WIDE, BUT THE LIMITING FACTOR WILL BE THE WARM GROUND  
TEMPERATURES OVERALL, WHICH ARE MUCH WARMER THAN EVEN A COUPLE  
WEEKS AGO. ALSO, REMAINING GUSTY WINDS TONIGHT INTO TUESDAY  
MORNING MAY ALSO HELP TO DRY OUT THE WET ROADS BEFORE THE COLD  
AIR REALLY SETTLES IN.  
 
KEY MESSAGE 3...  
 
ON TUESDAY, STRONG COLD AIR ADVECTION TAKES HOLD AND 850MB  
TEMPERATURES WILL DROP TO -16 TO -18C. THE WIND ORIENTATION  
WILL INITIALLY BE WESTERLY, OR EVEN WEST- SOUTHWESTERLY TUESDAY  
MORNING, WHICH WILL ALLOW FOR MOST OF THE LAKE EFFECT SNOW  
SHOWERS TO INITIALLY BE LOCATED NORTH OF ONEIDA COUNTY/CLOSER TO  
LAKE ONTARIO. HOWEVER AS THE PRIMARY UPPER TROUGH SHIFTS  
EASTWARD, THE FLOW WILL BECOME MORE WEST-NORTHWESTERLY, WHICH  
WILL FAVOR AN UPSTREAM LAKE CONNECTION AND ALLOW FOR THE LAKE  
EFFECT SNOW TO SHIFT SOUTHWARD TUESDAY AFTERNOON, FIRST INTO  
ONEIDA COUNTY, THEN TOWARDS THE NY THRUWAY CORRIDOR TUESDAY  
EVENING. A FAIRLY ORGANIZED LAKE EFFECT BAND WILL LIKELY BE  
PRESENT LATE IN THE AFTERNOON INTO TUESDAY NIGHT (RATHER THAN  
MID-DAY TUESDAY DURING THE STRONG MID-MARCH SUN ANGLE). DUE TO  
THE TIMING, SEVERAL INCHES OF SNOW WILL BE LIKELY OVER ONEIDA  
COUNTY AND A WINTER STORM WATCH FOR LAKE EFFECT SNOW HAS BEEN  
ISSUED. HEAVY SNOW MAY SNOW MAY ALSO PUSH SOUTH INTO NORTHERN  
ONONDAGA AND MADISON COUNTIES, BUT CONFIDENCE WAS TOO LOW AT  
THIS TIME TO INCLUDE THEM IN ANY HEADLINES AT THIS POINT.  
 

 
   
AVIATION /02Z TUESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/
 
 
IN THE WAKE OF THE FRONT TEMPERATURES DROP RAPIDLY WITH  
PRECIPITATION TRANSITIONING FROM RAIN TO SNOW QUICKLY. THE SNOW  
COULD LAST FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS AS THE PRECIPITATION GRADUALLY MOVES  
OUT. SOME LAKE EFFECT SNOW SHOWERS OFF OF LAKE ONTARIO ARE  
EXPECTED TO DEVELOP NEAR THE END OF THE TAF PERIOD AROUND RME  
AND SYR. SNOW SHOWERS OFF OF LAKE ERIE COULD POTENTIALLY REACH  
ELM AND BGM AS WELL. LINGERING LLWS AT AVP IS EXPECTED TO  
DIMINISH THIS EVENING. SOME LLWS IS POSSIBLE AT RME TONIGHT  
07-09Z, CONFIDENCE WAS NOT HIGH ENOUGH TO INCLUDE AT OTHER  
SITES.  
 
OUTLOOK:  
 
TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT...SNOW SHOWERS BECOME  
MORE LOCALIZED AS LAKE EFFECT SNOW OVER SYR AND RME LATE ON  
TUESDAY. WITH WINDS STAYING GUSTY, BLOWING SNOW WILL ALSO BE  
POSSIBLE.  
 
WEDNESDAY...MAINLY VFR.  
 
THURSDAY AND FRIDAY...MAINLY VFR; A LOW CHANCE FOR SPOTTY  
RAIN/SNOW SHOWERS.  
 
FRIDAY NIGHT INTO SATURDAY...A CHANCE FOR ADDITIONAL RAIN/SNOW  
SHOWERS AS A CLIPPER MOVES THROUGH THE REGION; LOW CONFIDENCE ON  
TIMING.  
 

 
   
BGM WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
 
 
PA...WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 8 AM EDT TUESDAY FOR PAZ038.  
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 4 AM EDT TUESDAY FOR PAZ038-039-  
043.  
WIND ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT EDT TONIGHT FOR PAZ043-044-047-  
048-072.  
NY...WINTER STORM WATCH FROM TUESDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY  
MORNING FOR NYZ009-037.  
WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 8 AM EDT TUESDAY FOR NYZ015>018-022>025-  
036-044-055.  
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 4 AM EDT TUESDAY FOR NYZ015>018-  
022>025-036-044-045-055-056.  
 

 
 

 
 
DISCUSSION...BJG/MPK  
AVIATION...DK/ES  
 
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