Now Dasher, now Dancer...

This week's "Blizzard Lite" appears to be the first in a series of snowmakers coming our way. The next two systems are weaker, but they could still drop some accumulating snows.

First is Winter Storm "Dasher" which has already prompted the National Weather Service to issue a Winter Weather Advisory for Cape Girardeau County today. The advisory states:

1 TO 3 INCHES OF SNOWFALL IS EXPECTED ACROSS THE ADVISORY AREA...THOUGH SOME SLEET IS POSSIBLE.

TIMING: THE PRIMARY PRECIPITATION TYPE WILL BE SNOW THIS AFTERNOON ACROSS MUCH OF SOUTHEASTERN MISSOURI...SOUTHERN ILLINOIS...AND SOUTHWESTERN INDIANA. TONIGHT...SNOW IS EXPECTED MAINLY ACROSS SOUTHEASTERN ILLINOIS...SOUTHWESTERN INDIANA...AND NORTHERN PARTS OF THE PENNYRILE REGION OF KENTUCKY.

Since we are at the western edge of the advisory area, and since temperatures may be slightly above freezing for awhile, I suspect that we will be at the lower end of the 1-3 inch forecast, if we get anything at all. But sometimes these small systems can bring surprises, and it would be funny if this weak system dropped as much snow as the blizzard.

Next up is a potential Winter Storm "Dancer" on Monday, which is capable of dropping another 1-2 inches (although a mix with rain is also on the table).

I'm getting tired of looking at the computer models and their frustrating flip-flops, but I should point out that the GFS model is currently forecasting a total of 4 inches from the next two systems (over the next 5 days).