There will be three main weather features to watch across the Lower 48 and Southern Canada over the next five days.

1) A storm will continue to bring significant snowfall to Interior British Columbia and Western Alberta on Friday, with many areas in this region enjoying late-week powder conditions. 

2) A weak and slow-moving disturbance will sneak into the Western U.S. from March 1 to 3, bringing light snow showers to the Rockies and to the Sierra. Snow levels will be fairly high with warm air in place, and the new snow will be on the denser side.

3) The East will remain in an unsettled pattern with colder air not relenting as easily. A weak storm is expected on Sunday, followed by a potentially stronger storm on Monday-Tuesday, though there are still question marks regarding the storm track.

Forecast for Friday (Feb 27):

A storm will continue to deliver the goods to Western Canada, favoring the BC Powder Highway and the Canadian Rockies for the deepest totals. This will be the final stretch of a multi-day storm cycle. Light to moderate snow will also reach the Northern Washington Cascades and Northern Idaho and Montana.

Further east, a storm will track across Central Ontario, while areas closer to the U.S. border will largely miss out on this.

Forecast for Saturday (Feb 28):

A storm will exit the Northern Rockies on Saturday morning, with snow spreading into the North Central U.S. as it tracks eastward. A storm will also move into Eastern Canada with snow favoring Quebec, mainly north of the St. Lawrence River. 

Forecast for Sunday (March 1):

A weak storm will move into the West with light rain and show showers developing over the Sierra (high snow levels), while light snow showers will also develop across the Central Rockies in Utah, Colorado, and Wyoming.

A weak storm will also move into the Northeast with light snow for the Northern Mid-Atlantic and Southern New England. On its heels, another storm will develop over the Central U.S.

Forecast for Monday (March 2):

A weak storm will linger across the West with light snow showers across the Sierra and the Central Rockies. Further north, a storm will bring snow to northern portions of British Columbia and Alberta. 

In the East, a stronger storm is expected to arrive with the potential for moderate to heavy snow across the Mid-Atlantic, though there is still some uncertainty with the storm track. 

Forecast for Tuesday (March 3):

A weak storm will linger over the Central Rockies into Tuesday with snow shower activity favoring Colorado. Snow will also develop across Central British Columbia as another storm makes landfall up north.

A storm will also continue to impact the East, with snow possible from the Mid-Atlantic into New England, depending on the track of the storm.

Outlook for Wed (Mar 4) to Sun (Mar 8):

In the West, the pattern will turn a bit more active with a northwest-flow dominant storm track expected to favor Western Canada, the Pacific Northwest, and the Northern U.S. Rockies. Temperatures will also trend cooler in this pattern. At least one of these storms may reach the Central U.S. Rockies (Utah and Colorado) as well.

In the East, a major pattern change to well-above-average warmth is expected, and it will start to feel like spring after an extended stretch of cold weather for many areas. 

Thanks so much for reading! Next update on Monday (March 2).

Alan Smith