Is this going to be the endless winter? Today is officially the last day of Spring.
Friday at 9:54 AM MDT the Summer Solstice occurs and in the Rocky Mountains of Montana, Wyoming & northern Colorado, Summer 2019 is going to begin with some fresh snow!

Click Image below to see the forecast snow accumulation across the Northwestern U.S. from Thursday morning June 20th through Sunday morning June 23rd.

It looks like the mountains of Southwestern Montana get the most accumulation, 7 to 11 inches possible at the higher elevations. Yellowstone Park, the Wind River Range and north-central Colorado’s mountains might see 3 to 6 inches of new snow to begin the summer season.

Cold Low-Pressure for June

This is all due to a very cold Low-pressure center in British Columbia that is swinging across the NW U.S. the next few days. Below is the general forecast map for the United States on Friday, June 21st, 2019. The first day of summer.

Also read the previous blog about: Very Cold Summer Solstice

Post by meteorologist Jim Woodmencey

A very cold Low-pressure system will be rolling across the Pacific Northwest & Northern Rockies this week, just in time for the first day of summer.  The Summer Solstice is this Friday, June 21st and afternoon high temperatures will be running about 15 to 20 degrees below normal. And, yes, we may even see a little snow!

Click on the map below to watch the progression of the cold air as it sweeps across the Northwest U.S. This map is at the 700mb level in the atmosphere, or around the 10,000-ft. elevation. (Blue-green boundary is the freezing mark). Temps in the Tetons at 10,000-ft., for instance will  get down into the lower 20’s Fahrenheit.

COLD AIR COMING….

Get the updated temperature forecast for the next 5-days, for the Jackson Hole valley and the Teton mountains on the Jackson Hole Forecast.

Snow on The Summer Solstice?

While it will certainly be cold on Friday for the Solstice, it does not look like much precipitation  for the Jackson Hole area. The Tetons may get a little bit of fresh snow, and there will be the possibility of a few flakes to the valley floor.

How unusual would that be to have snow around the Summer Solstice? Pretty unusual.  Although, on June 18th, 1973 the Town of Jackson received 4 inches of snow from a cold, late June, storm system.

Also expect some strong winds Wednesday & Thursday, out ahead of the arrival of that cold air. Good news is, we start warming back up later Saturday and on Sunday.

Post by meteorologist Jim Woodmencey

Update Saturday morning, June 8th: (scroll down to read post from Friday)
Forecast verifying pretty well, seeing snowflakes in the Town of Jackson this morning. Snow on the ground down to around the 6,500-ft. elevation.

Grand Targhee is showing over 10 inches of new snow overnight and early this Saturday morning. Screen shots from webcams below….

How unusual is snow in June? Not too unusual, but accumulating snow in Town (elevation 6,200-ft.) in June is rare. The record one day snowfall in June in Jackson was 4 inches on June 18th, 1973.

Post From Friday, June 7th:
A cold Low-pressure system will be moving across the Pacific Northwest & Northern Rockies Friday & Saturday, June 7th & 8th. This will bring some rain, a few thunderstorms, and a mix of rain and snow to the mountains of Northwest Wyoming. A cold front is currently stalled over central Idaho, but it will progress eastward the next 24-hours.

Snow in June

Yellowstone National Park will see more significant accumulations of snow late Friday night/early Saturday morning. As well as, the Beartooth Mountains of Southwest Montana. Lesser amounts in the Tetons, Wind Rivers, & Bighorns of Wyoming. Snow levels will be low enough to possibly create a mix of rain and snow in Jackson Hole.

Better Weather Sunday

Good news is, all this weather moves east of the Rockies later Saturday, with drier weather & warming temperatures Sunday into Monday. Click the Forecast Weather Map below to see where the worst weather will be the next few days, across the USA.

Post by meteorologist Jim Woodmencey

Weather is changing across the Western U.S. for the weekend…..Warm air in place ahead of a cold Low-pressure center positioned off the Pacific Northwest coast this morning. Isolated areas of early morning Thunderstorms started popping up at sunrise. An indication that the atmosphere is already quite unstable.

Satellite & Radar Images, plus lightning strike map from @ 0700 MDT Thursday, June 6th, 2019 below. (Today is the 75th Anniversary of D-Day, by the way).

Below is Thursday’s Forecast Weather Map across the USA. Click the map to view the general weather outlook for next 3-days…..

Further updates on this weekend’s weather situation coming on Friday morning….

Post by meteorologist Jim Woodmencey