Cold Blast Could Bring Record Low Temperatures to Central New York

Get ready for the chilliest weather of the season.

A big weather change is heading our way, which forecasters say could bring on extremely cold temperatures and even more snow.

The National Weather Service has already issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook for Oneida and Otsego County for an oncoming clipper system that's expected to bring "significant lake effect snow" by Thursday.

Madison and Onondaga County are under a Winter Weather Advisory until 1PM this afternoon, December 3. Some areas could receive up to 7 inches of snow.

The NWS says the region should brace for even more snow by the time the clipper system blows in on Wednesday, December 4.

Read More: Significant Lake Effect Snow Possible in Central New York

It is still too soon to tell exactly how much snow the area could see by Thursday or Friday. That's because lake effect snow is notoriously difficult to predict.

Even the slightest shift in wind direction can completely change the entire forecast.

While weather watchers are still trying to figure out if the area will get slammed by snowfall, they are certain the coldest air of the season is heading our way.

Cold Snap Arriving by Week's End

The NWS is calling for "much colder temperatures and gusty winds" to flow into CNY on Thursday night and into Friday.

The current forecast for Utica says the mercury could reach around 19 degrees on Thursday night and, by Friday evening, it could get down to 12 degrees.

Similar temperatures are being forecasted for areas like Herkimer, Syracuse, and Cazenovia.

It's an entirely different story for North Country, which will see temperatures in the single digits.

The NWS says Lowville and Boonville could see the mercury drop to around 13 degrees on Thursday night and reach 5 degrees by Friday evening.

Residents are urged to prepare for the chilly weather to protect their health and safety.

Read More: Here's How to Prepare for Powerful Snowstorm Heading for New York

Max Velocity, who runs the Severe Weather Channel, says this system will be "a quicker shot of cold air" so we won't need to worry about single-digit temperatures for very long.

He says the weather models show average temperatures returning to the region by the weekend, with some areas possibly seeing warmer-than-average weather.

Velocity also looked into the oncoming lake-effect snow and what the current models are anticipating for the area.

He found nothing significant in the forecast before Wednesday, but highlighted the upcoming clipper system that could pack a punch to parts of Central New York later this week.

He says the current model is calling for sporadic "moderate to heavy snowfall" across the state.

Meanwhile, the long-range forecast from the Global Forecasting System (GFS) is flagging a potential snowstorm that could impact the area sometime next week.

The GFS model does continue to hint at a large winter weather event trying to take place [...] but, again, it is still over six to seven days out so things could definitely change.

However, Velocity did flag the chance of a "large storm" happening sometime in the middle of the month.

"It is very uncertain," he clarified, but the models are seemingly in agreement that something may be brewing.

"I think the weather will get much more active as we get closer to the middle and end of December," he predicted.

Does this mean CNY will have a White Christmas?  Stay tuned...

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