THE LATEST: North Texas’ new winter storm forecast shows how much snow, sleet, ice we could get
Texans across the state are preparing for unusual and extreme cold this weekend, as well as snow, sleet and rain.
The National Weather Service’s Fort Worth office issued a winter storm watch and an extreme cold watch ahead of the weather this weekend, and Gov. Greg Abbott has activated state emergency response resources. Major highways are being salted, garden stores are building temporary greenhouses and pantries are getting stocked.
While forecasts are subject to change, here’s the current breakdown of when to expect wintry mix, freezing temperatures and flurries.
D-FW Weather Wise
Friday
The daily high of 50 is expected at midnight, with temperatures falling all day until they reach 30 degrees at midnight Saturday, according to the National Weather Service’s Fort Worth office. It should feel even colder, with the gap between the air temperature and the “feels like” temperature, or wind chill, increasing throughout the day. By sundown, the air temperature is forecast to be 34 degrees, while the wind chill is predicted to be 24 degrees.
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Rain chances are also predicted to start rising at midnight and increase throughout the day. By 6 a.m., there is a 67% chance of precipitation. Exact rainfall totals are likely to vary, but the weather service expects about an inch of rain at DFW International Airport.
Later in the day, the chances of sleet and freezing rain begin to rise. The exact timing of this wintry mix — some combination of rain, sleet and snow — is less clear and will vary based on the exact air temperature at each location. For D-FW, the most likely start time is 6 p.m., with the earliest possible arrival at 2 p.m.
Saturday
The temperature is expected to keep falling early Saturday morning, dropping to an air temperature of 20 and a wind chill of 7 degrees before the sun comes up. The weather service predicts that midday warming will bring the temperature up a few degrees, to 23, before falling again. By midnight Sunday, the air temperature is forecast to be 15 degrees with a wind chill of 2 degrees.
A worker sprays deicing fluid on a Southwest Airlines plane at the gates of Dallas Love field after a winter storm moved through Dallas-Fort Worth on Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022, in Dallas. Southwest suspended all flights in and out of Dallas Love Field on Thursday due to the storm.
Smiley N. Pool / Staff Photographer
Those frigid conditions should increase the chance of frozen precipitation. Chances of freezing rain are highest in the overnight hours, with about 0.2 inches of ice expected. Chances of sleet, which first jump Friday evening, are expected to stay high throughout the day on Saturday. Snow chances start lower during the morning and afternoon, but rise Saturday night. Exact snow accumulation is still not completely clear, but could be between 1 to 2 inches.
Sunday
Snow and sleet chances are expected to continue in the early hours of Sunday, but precipitation chances are forecast to fall below 20% by 6 a.m. After the precipitation ends, there should still be significant cloud cover throughout the day.
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The early hours of Sunday morning should be some of the coldest of the winter storm, dropping to an air temperature of 11 degrees and a wind chill of -3 degrees. The high should be similar to Saturday, with the warmest part of the day when the temperature is forecast to hit 23 degrees at 3 p.m.
Monday
Temperatures Monday should be the warmest Dallas-Fort Worth has seen in days, but still may not rise above freezing. In the early hours of Monday, the low will drop to 9 degrees and a wind chill of 1 degree. By midday, the temperature should climb to 30 degrees.
Conditions should be a little more pleasant Monday, with sunshine throughout the day and a slight breeze. It’s unclear how much snow and ice will melt in the sun without temperatures above 32 degrees. Things should finally be warm enough to thaw out more comprehensively by midday on Tuesday.
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