715 FXUS66 KOTX 072245 AFDOTX Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Spokane WA 245 PM PST Sat Nov 7 2020 .SYNOPSIS... Our next weather system will bring rain and snow (above 3000 ft) to the ID Panhandle and Palouse on Saturday with dry and breezy conditions down the Okanogan Valley. Colder air moving in will bring light snow to the lower elevations of the ID Panhandle and Palouse on Sunday morning with dry conditions by the evening hours. Another system is expected to bring widespread light snow Monday night into Tuesday. An active weather pattern continues late week and into the weekend with snow levels between 2500 and 3500 feet. && .DISCUSSION... Tonight through Monday: Currently, satellite is showing a low pressure system moving through Nevada and carrying wrap around moisture over the Pahandle and Southeast WA bringing snow to elevations above 3k feet and rainshowers to the L-C Valley. A trough is also dropping into the region from Southern BC and bringing gusty winds down the Okanogan Valley and Waterville Plateau reducing visibilities to around 1 mile. The showers will impact the Idaho Panhandle and extreme Eastern WA including Pullman to Spokane. While the moisture with this system is not as robust as the last one, snow levels continue to drop through the night due to the cold air push. The precip type will be mainly mountain snow showers and rain to rain/snow mix for the Valleys and Basin through the evening. It will then become mainly snow Saturday night through Sunday morning. Snow amounts for Southeast WA and Lower ID Panhandle have increased with higher snow ratios around 12 to 1. Snow amounts across the area expected to be: * Camas Prairie (above 3500 ft) : 2 to 5 inches * Pullman : 1 to 2 inches * Lewiston : 0 to 1 inch * Lookout Pass : 4 to 7 inches * Spokane : 0 to 0.5 inches Overnight lows are expected to be in the low 30s and upper 20s for lows. By late Sunday morning, continuing dry cold air will diminish the precip chances across the region. Winds will be breezy across the Basin for Sunday afternoon with gusts into the low 20s possible. The start of Monday will be quiet as the region is expected to be impacted by another system starting in the the afternoon. Highs for the period will be generally in the low 40s and 30s for highs and low 20s and upper teens for lows. /JDC Monday night through Friday: Quite an active and unsettled week on tap as several storm systems bring multiple chances for lower elevation rain and snow, mountain snow, and breezy winds to the Pacific Northwest. The first system moves into the area Monday night into Tuesday morning. The timing of this event brings the potential for a messy Tuesday morning commute. With temperatures in the 20s overnight, and low snow levels, our current thinking is that the areas that will receive the heaviest snowfall are the higher terrain areas of the Cascades, the N ID Panhandle, and the Blues with accumulations around 6 to 10 inches. Precipitation amounts and snowfall accumulations for lower elevations are not expected to be too impressive, with the current forecast ranging from less than an inch to two inches. However, any snowfall amounts expected during rush hour could be impactful. The predominant precipitation type for this system will be snow in the morning for a majority of the region, with the Columbia Basin and surrounding areas switching over to a rain/snow mix or all rain in the late morning as daytime temperatures rise above freezing. Precipitation chances greatly diminish for most of the area by Wednesday morning giving a majority of the region another brief break through Thursday afternoon, but light snow showers may linger in the Cascades and the ID Panhandle throughout the day on Wednesday. Beginning Thursday evening, another system is expected to push into the PNW. This system is setting up to be more impactful in terms of precipitation amounts and winds, but this one is looking to be a bit warmer than Tuesday. Similar to Tuesday, precipitation may start off as all snow overnight, but as temps warm and snow levels rise during the day, it may make it difficult for snow to reach the valley floors and transition to a rain/snow mix or all rain in the late morning. Winds will be breezy beginning Friday through Saturday with the potential for gusts up to 30-40 mph. VMT && .AVIATION... 18Z TAFS: VFR conditions expected for EAT-MWH as cold dry air moving in will bring gusty afternoon winds into the 20s this afternoon. GEG- SFF- COE can expected improving condtions into the early afternoon as clouds shift east bringing VFR conditions. PUW- LWS are expected to be under a low cloud deck moving Southwest to Northeast through most of the day bringing MVFR conditions with ceilings around 2k FT. Isolated showers are possible at these locations. /JDC && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Spokane 29 37 21 37 27 38 / 30 20 0 0 60 60 Coeur d'Alene 29 36 21 38 27 37 / 50 30 10 0 60 70 Pullman 28 32 19 33 26 37 / 60 60 0 0 60 70 Lewiston 34 38 22 39 31 44 / 60 60 0 0 40 50 Colville 27 44 20 39 23 40 / 20 10 0 0 60 50 Sandpoint 29 36 24 37 27 35 / 70 40 10 0 70 80 Kellogg 26 31 20 35 27 35 / 80 60 10 0 70 90 Moses Lake 33 46 22 43 27 46 / 10 10 0 0 30 10 Wenatchee 31 44 27 42 31 45 / 10 10 0 0 30 10 Omak 29 42 23 38 27 44 / 0 0 0 0 30 20 && .OTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... ID...Winter Weather Advisory from 10 PM this evening to 10 AM PST Sunday for Lewiston Area. Winter Weather Advisory until 10 AM PST Sunday for Lewis and Southern Nez Perce Counties. WA...Winter Weather Advisory from 10 PM this evening to 10 AM PST Sunday for Lower Garfield and Asotin Counties. && $$