SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) – Happy Friday, Utah! A big change in the Utah weather pattern is here! Clouds arrived overnight and air quality improvements are on the way. Moderate air is expected today in Northern Utah and Eastern Utah valleys, with clean air on deck for Saturday.

The bottom line? Snow arrives today with a series of winter storms! Healthy precipitation totals are expected and cleaner air is on the way.

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Daytime highs remain cold and below average today, as highs across the state will range mainly in the 30s with our first round of light snow for both mountains and valleys expected by the lunch hour. This is the first in a series of storms which is prompting several winter alerts including a Winter Storm Warning and Winter Weather Advisory for various parts of the state.

These storms come after a work week of strengthening inversions in our northern valleys, including the entire Wasatch Front and a decline in air quality. This pattern is more progressive and will deliver clean air to Northern Utah valleys by Saturday for a few ideas as our stormy pattern persists.

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The first of a few storm systems targeting the state aims to impact mostly Northern and Central Utah between Friday and Sunday. The first storm impacts us Friday and brings a cold front that will traverse across the state bringing scattered snow showers statewide. For most from Cedar City northward, we’ll see snow showers while St. George will have the chance of seeing an isolated rain shower. The timing of those snow showers for the Wasatch Front amp up before noon and will impact us through the evening.

As a result of this onset of valley and mountain snow, a Winter Storm Warning has been issued for the Wasatch Mountains and Wasatch Back. The warning starts at 11 a.m. Friday and will hold through 5 a.m. Monday morning for the mountains and is set to expire for the mountain valleys of the Wasatch Back by Sunday at 5 p.m.

The warning holds for all three storm systems bring snow potential through early Monday morning. Heavy snow is expected, with high snow accumulations expected with 20 to 30 inches expected for the Northern Mountains, and even higher totals possible for the Upper Cottonwoods.

On top of snow, winds gusting as high as 50 mph later Friday night through Sunday are expected so blowing snow should be expected. As for the Wasatch Back, plenty of snow is expected as well as tricky winter travel. Total snow accumulations of eight to 20 inches, with the greatest accumulations in the Ogden Valley, which is typically favored with a westerly flow and within this storm setup.

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Even as Friday’s cold front pulls away, we won’t be done with the wet weather by a long shot. Two more pieces of energy will dive in from the Pacific Northwest between Friday night into Saturday and Sunday. This will help keep wet weather potential elevated, especially for the northern half of the state. The coldest air and best snow accumulation for the Wasatch Front looks to be overnight Friday into Saturday, and we’ll continue to mainly see valley and mountain snow.

Northern Utah valleys are expected to see accumulating snowfall from these storms. As a result, a Winter Weather Advisory goes into effect the same time as our Winter Storm Warning, at 11 a.m. on Friday. The Winter Weather Advisory remains in effect through Sunday and will expire at different times for different regions.

The advisory impacts the Northern Wasatch Front, Salt Lake County, Cache Valley, Western Uinta Mountains, Central Mountains and Wasatch Plateau. Snow totals will differ in each one of these areas, but decent snow accumulation is expected for the valleys and benches. Winter driving conditions are expected. Periodic road snow and slush will create slick roads, especially during the overnight and early morning hours.

On Sunday, a southerly wind will help push up temperatures slightly meaning that in our valleys, including the Wasatch Front we could see a wintry mix rather than straight snow while heavy snow continues in the mountains. Wet weather potential will stay high through Sunday night before high pressure looks to take charge by early next week resulting in calmer skies and near/slightly above average temperatures.

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Our stormy pattern over the weekend looks like it will result in a healthy dose of moisture in central and northern Utah. The moisture will result in what will likely be the most significant snowfall of the season so far. Between Friday and Sunday, our northern mountains could end up receiving between 15 to 30 inches of snow while the upper cottonwoods and high Uintas could receive a foot and a half to three feet!

Given northern Utah will see the bulk of the moisture, the central and southern mountains won’t see as much, but snow is still expected with the central mountains likely picking up between 8-16″ while the southern mountains could see between two to six inches. Mountain valleys, mainly in northern Utah will likely see between eight to 16 inches while our typically colder valleys, like Cache, and the benches in northern Utah could see between four to ten inches.

Northern valleys, including the Wasatch Front could end up with two to six inches while the I-15 corridor from Cedar City to Nephi could pick up one to four inches. There are many evolving parts of this progressive storm pattern so make sure you stay with the 4Warn Weather Team for updates.

With Utah’s 4Warn Forecast both on-air and online you can stay on top of all the weather changes the Beehive State has to offer! We are Good4Utah!

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