Sluggish storm to keep dumping snow over Midwest

A slow-moving storm already responsible for dumping more than half a foot of snow on parts of Missouri and Iowa will continue to produce fresh powder over a portion of the Midwest as it sluggishly drifts eastward through Saturday.

As snow returns to Chicago and Milwaukee and reaches Detroit, air and ground travel disruptions are likely to mount.

This satellite loop from Friday, Jan. 24, 2020, shows the organized storm swirling over the middle of the nation. (NOAA / GOES-East)

The storm became better organized late this past week as it managed to attach to the upper part of the atmosphere. Rather than remaining weak and taking a swift eastward track, spreading snow over huge swath from the Plains to the Northeast, the storm matured and stalled over the Mississippi Valley for a time.

The result was a swath of light to moderate snowfall from part of northern Arkansas to northern Michigan. The swirl of snow near and north and west of the center of the storm has held together and will drift eastward through Saturday.

"Up to a few additional inches of snow is forecast to fall on portions of northern and western Illinois, central and southeastern Wisconsin and northern Michigan," AccuWeather Meteorologist Courtney Travis said.

This is on top of what has already fallen, bringing the storm total to 6-10 inches with an AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 12 inches in portions of the area.

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"An advancing cold pocket of air with moisture is forecast to produce snowfall in the 1- to 3-inch range from central Illinois to northern and central Indiana and the northwestern and central parts of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan on Saturday," Travis added.

Americans who live in this zone, including in Indianapolis and South Bend, Indiana; Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo and Flint, Michigan; and Champaign, Illinois; may yet have enough snow to sweep off of their cars and shovel.

Up to a few more inches of snow is likely to fall on Chicago.

Meteorologists urge motorists to use caution on Saturday morning across the region, as untreated roadways are likely to be slippery.

Even though blustery conditions will develop as the storm moves along this weekend, the air is of Pacific origin and not from the Arctic. Aside from snow showers near the old center of the storm, lake-effect snowfall is likely to be minimal in the storm's wake.

Saturday night, slightly colder air with snow showers will continue to advance eastward along with the old storm center. Motorists around Detroit and Toledo, Cleveland, Columbus and Youngstown, Ohio, could encounter slippery conditions with a coating of snow possible.

By Sunday, the main focus of snow showers will retreat to the central Appalachians and around the eastern Great Lakes.

Temperatures are likely to be above average during the last few days of January and the first few days of February for the North Central states. Highs will generally average within a few degrees of freezing in the northern tier to the lower 40s over portions of the central Plains and the Ohio Valley.

Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.