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Jan. 17-18, 2026 SE Winter Weather Threat

Looking at some of the soundings for the CLT area, sleet might end up being a factor, which would be cool in a setup like this since mixed precip isn't a huge thing with Miller A's
 
Looking at some of the soundings for the CLT area, sleet might end up being a factor, which would be cool in a setup like this since mixed precip isn't a huge thing with Miller A's
I’m honestly worried just about precip, which, in my area has been drastically less than model forecasted for months!
 
20/59 corridor in AL is going to get absolutely smoked if this continues. Precip continues to rise and shift NW (and its still way underdone), the neutral tilt continues to inch west with each run, and shorter range guidance is all on board.....saddle up!

But doesn’t the NAM overdo things sometimes?


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I am not completely sure if this freezing layer right after the near warm-nose would be enough for potential sleet if the warm nose ends up stronger than modeled. But it seems that way.

1768489585597.png
 
But doesn’t the NAM overdo things sometimes?


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Normally it plays catch up on moisture feed in these situations. I would watch for an increased moisture fetch on all levels in the next few runs and then see how that plays out at the surface.
 
20/59 corridor in AL is going to get absolutely smoked if this continues. Precip continues to rise and shift NW (and its still way underdone), the neutral tilt continues to inch west with each run, and shorter range guidance is all on board.....saddle up!
I'm driving back to Montgomery from Gulf Shores that morning, so I'm probably in for a messy trip.
 
Euro 6z stuck to its guns with the AIFS/WeatherNext coastal track solution. ICON 12z and Canadian RDPS 12z join it on the same track with snow/rain depending on which model you go with.

So it's really just the GFS and the models based on the GFS (including the NAM) vs literally everyone else. @bouncycorn was saying he believes the GFS data ingestion is just plain wrong which would lead to the discrepancy. Totally possible -- did any of the recent NWS budget cuts reduce some of the gathering capabilities used to provide data to the GFS suite of models?

Does the GFS/NAM side somehow gets this right and literally everyone else has egg on their face? Seems implausible but anything is possible I guess.

NWS's discussions/forecasts seems to be giving a bit of weight to the GFS/NAM side (at least somewhat) but the question is whether that's because it's technically their in-house model or because they truly believe it sees something no other model suite sees.
 
CURRENT SNOW CHANCES:
- The highest chance of at least an inch of snow is only at 40-60% for anyone in the Carolinas currently.
- I don't currently buy the EURO model solution of a coastal snow, but it's still possible.
- I expect models to trend warmer, wetter, and further NW between now and Sunday.
- Ice Is still a possibility for many.

Made this map with what I expect to change in the data in mind
 

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  • Snowfall Snapshot Carolinas Manual Gerald(2).png
    Snowfall Snapshot Carolinas Manual Gerald(2).png
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Here's my thoughts on the storm for the CLT area for anyone who cares.

Worst Case Scenario(as of right now): Mostly rain with a brief changeover at the end from NW to SE.

Best Case Scenario: 1-3" inches of snow across the metro, obviously less in SE areas and more in NW areas.
I disagree. A complete miss to the east is still quite likely and the worst case scenario
 
Since I already made a gif for it, I thought I would drop it here too. I saw some of y'all drawing some similarities to Dec 2017 so here is the radar loop for that event for comparison:


IMG_0245.gif
IMG_0246.png

Dec 7 2017 vs NAM’s depiction of this weekend. Pretty similar. As mentioned before lack of 50/50 confluence and a big NE high is really hurting chances of snow to the east of ATL, almost like Dec 17.
 
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Colder than 6z but much less precip.


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The worst case for everyone is the system isn't amped up & the temperature issue remains. Someone has to score.
Agree... unfortunately... It's really difficult to imagine a mix between the Euro/GFS solutions... If you were to imagine it though, it'd look similar to the latest ICON or the AI models (with widespread temperature issues).

As I said in the banter thread, it would be ideal for areas of the i20 corridor (and truly most of the board) if a solution between the current GFS/Euro were to verify... but it's difficult to see that at this point.... In order for SOMEONE on the board to score, it feels like we are either going to NEED i20 to be south of the rain/snow line (favoring the amped GFS/NAM)... OR i20 to be north of the precip shield (favoring the suppressed Euro) making this a nothing burger for everyone except coastal areas.
 
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