Carson City area weather: Pair of storms lined up for late Christmas Day into the weekend

UPDATE: Heading into the Christmas holiday weekend, the weather pattern for the Carson City region is expected to change beginning Christmas Day with periods of rain, snow and gusty winds into early next week, according to the National Weather Service.

A pair of Pacific storms look to impact the Sierra and western Nevada over the upcoming holiday weekend, prompting a Winter Weather Advisory for Lake Tahoe and the Sierra, with up to a foot of snow possible above 7,000 feet.

The first storm looks to bring mountain snow, valley rain, and breezy winds Christmas afternoon through Saturday morning. The first storm may start to produce some light showers Christmas morning along the northern Sierra crest into western Lassen County; however, the strongest portion of the storm is targeting Christmas evening into early Saturday morning. Might be wise to consider adjusting travel plans to avoid lengthy delays during this time.

Snow levels will start around 5,000 to 6,000 feet until a cold front moves through the region early Saturday morning and lowers snow levels to 4,000 to 4,500 feet. Overall forecast remains on track and have upgraded the Winter Storm Watches to Winter Weather Advisories for the Tahoe Basin and into western Lassen County above 5,000 feet. Snow totals still look to be around 1 foot along the Sierra crest with some localized areas up to 18 inches possible. 3-8 inches will be possible for Tahoe communities and Mammoth and June Lakes.

The first system should be mostly rain for lower western Nevada valleys with some rain/snow mix possible pre-dawn. Foothill areas around 5,000-5,500 feet could see an inch or two. Not a soaker either with the valley generally looking at about 0.10-0.25" through Saturday morning.

Gusty winds will also accompany the storm Friday night into Saturday morning but pretty run of the mill for a winter system. Overall looking at peak gusts around 40-50 mph for a few areas in the Tahoe Basin and wind prone areas along US-395 and 100+ mph along the exposed Sierra ridges, according to the weather service.

A second, colder storm is possible late Sunday into Monday. While this storm could bring some snow into valley areas and the Eastern Sierra. The Sierra and western Nevada will be on the cold side of this system and confidence that snow levels will be down to all valley floors is high, according to the weather service.

The uncertainty arises in snowfall potential as the system will be moving fairly quickly. Given the southern track of this upper low, the best chances for moderate snow amounts will be along the Sierra Crest from Tahoe southward through Mono County where 6-14 inches of snow is looking fairly likely, according to the weather service.

East of the crest, uncertainty in snowfall potential is greater, but best estimates put 2-6 inches in the Tahoe Basin and along the eastern Sierra with up to 2 inches in western Nevada, generally south of I-80. Snow will start in the Sierra and Tahoe Basin Sunday evening, and then spread into western Nevada Sunday night into Monday morning. If you have travel plans, be prepared for winter driving conditions along the Sierra and even into western NV, including the Monday morning commute.

Temperatures are going to remain below normal next Tuesday and Wednesday as a shortwave high pressure ridge builds aloft and inversions return. If there is any snowfall on the ground, these inversions could be quite stout. Additional fast moving storms are possible by late next week and into the first few days of 2021.

In the meantime, seasonable temperatures and generally light valley winds can be expected through Christmas Eve.

Check the latest forecast at weather.gov/Reno and check road conditions with Caltrans and NDOT.
For the latest weather discussion go here. For Carson City area updates see CarsonWeather.com.