Quick jolt of winter weather headed for Northeast, mid-Atlantic

Shocking may not be an adequate descriptor for the quick about-face the weather was taking the Northeast on Wednesday. Less than 48 hours after people were basking in record warmth across the region, millions will be dealing with a quick jolt of winter weather, thanks to a sneaky storm that will unleash a period of snow across the central Appalachians, the mid-Atlantic and New England into the evening hours on Wednesday.

At the very least, many are likely to face a serious case of weather whiplash. People in New York City enjoyed a record high temperature of 74 degrees Fahrenheit set in Central Park Monday. On Wednesday midday, snow was falling after beginning as rain. AccuWeather forecasters expect an inch or two of snow to accumulate, mainly on grassy surfaces in the Big Apple.

However, despite adding shock value, the snow is not likely to contribute much to New York City's seasonal snowfall tally, which at 17.5 inches of snow as of March 8, has fallen behind the average to date of 26.8 inches. Last year, a whopping 38.6 inches fell in the Big Apple.

Farther north, Boston will pick up a bit more snow from the storm. Beantown has the best chance of the major I-95 cities in the Northeast to pick up a few inches of snow, especially on non-paved surfaces. The city has already had an above-average winter in terms of snowfall with 51.9 inches being recorded as of March 8, compared to a normal to date of 41.7 inches. Most of the snow this winter fell in January from two storms. One storm on Jan. 29 dropped 23.6 inches and another storm on Jan. 7 unloaded 11.7 inches. During all of last winter, the city picked up 38.6 inches.

The storm will originate from the central Gulf Coast and run into cold air returning to the Northeast. Despite the fact that cold air will not be Arctic in origin, "it is just cold enough to allow snow," AccuWeather Chief On-Air Meteorologist Bernie Rayno explained. Moisture will spread quickly northeastward along the Appalachians and Atlantic Seaboard through Wednesday.

AccuWeather meteorologists expect roads to remain wet in the heart of major urban areas along Interstate 95 from Washington, D.C., to near New York City on Wednesday. The wintry blast follows after the temperature in the nation's capital soared to 80 F Monday at D.C.'s Reagan National Airport, breaking the old record of 77 set in 1961.

No accumulation is forecast for Washington, D.C. with just rain in store and despite some wet snow forecast to mix in around Philadelphia, no accumulation is anticipated in the city.

This radar image, captured at 11 a.m. EST on Wednesday, March 9, 2022, shows snow in blue and rain in green and yellow. The darker shades depict heavier precipitation. (AccuWeather)

It will be a different story farther north. In the suburbs surrounding New York City, as well as southern New England, much of upstate New York, northwestern New Jersey and northern Pennsylvania, slightly colder air will change the character of the storm so that snow is able to accumulate faster on all surfaces, even during the midday and afternoon hours Wednesday.

Motorists traveling over the higher terrain on I-80 and I-81, as well as portions of the New York Thruway, The Massachusetts Turnpike and I-95 in New England, should expect delays with road conditions ranging from wet to slushy and even snow-covered.

Wet snow will first began to fall in parts of the mountains in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee Tuesday evening. From there the snow zone broadened as it moved northeastward into Wednesday over portions of the central Appalachians and in part of the mid-Atlantic region. In some areas of the mid-Atlantic, the storm began as rain and transitioned to snow.

Not only may many people in the central Appalachians have to shovel snow, but some in lower elevations of Pennsylvania, northern Maryland, northern and western Virginia and northeastern West Virginia may have to clean their car off before heading home from work or school Wednesday.

CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP

Some roads can become slushy and slippery and a few inches can accumulate in grassy areas, on cars and other elevated surfaces. Slippery roads are likely, but not limited to the higher elevations, due to the heavy rate of snow that could approach 1 inch per hour. A general 1-3 inches of snow is forecast from the central Appalachians to southern New England with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 6 inches, mainly on non-paved and elevated surfaces.

In addition to the time of day, several other factors, including the intensity of the snowfall, the temperature of the ground and the air temperature, will play a role in how much snow is able to accumulate, meteorologists say. For instance, if snow comes down at a heavy rate this time of year, snow can still pile up even if the air temperature is above 32 F.

AccuWeather forecasters say the weather is likely to cause travel issues across the region, even where mainly rain falls.

"This storm is likely to bring rather low visibility and cloud ceilings, whether rain or snow is falling or both throughout the Northeast," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dean DeVore said. These conditions, when combined with deicing operations, can lead to substantial airline delays and perhaps flight cancellations Wednesday at the major hubs and secondary airports, even if runways are mainly wet, DeVore added.

The storm will be quick to depart later Wednesday and Wednesday night. In the storm's wake, standing areas of water and slush can freeze, unless treated, in many suburban and rural areas Wednesday night. Temperatures may stay above freezing in the heart of major cities, allowing wet surfaces to dry off before ice can develop, but forecasters caution that icy spots could be an issue in surrounding and outlying areas.

Temperatures will once again rebound from Thursday to this weekend, and the warmup will be key to the form of precipitation expected with the next storm that will arrive this weekend along the I-95 corridor. That storm is most likely to bring rain from Washington, D.C., to Boston.

Only if the weekend storm manages to substantially shift its track farther to the east might snow or a wintry mix occur along the Atlantic Seaboard. Farther inland, cold air is predicted to be drawn in, allowing rain to change over to snow in the Appalachians followed by a freeze-up later Saturday or Saturday night.

For the latest weather news check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch the AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeather Now is now available on your preferred streaming platform.