Snow Predicted In Austin On Tuesday

AUSTIN, TX — Are you sitting down for this? Here goes: There's a chance of snow in Austin on Tuesday morning, according to National Weather Serviceforecasters.

On the NWS forecast page, they're labeling it as a "wintry mix" that is expected next week. But the little image above the detailed day unmistakably depicts snowflake imagery. Don't believe me? Here's that image they posted:

So no: This is not fake news.

But let's calm down here, and break it down methodically. Frigidly cold weather (at least by Texas standards) is being forecast in the early part of next week. Temperatures are expected to take a dive starting overnight on Monday into Tuesday.

In the early morning hours of Tuesday, 32-degree weather is expected to linger through the morning. And that's when it might happen: "A chance of snow, freezing rain, and sleet before noon, then a chance of rain, freezing rain, and sleet," NWS forecasters predict. "Mostly cloudy, with a high near 38. North wind 15 to 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%."

So even if snow materializes, disabuse yourself of the notion it will be an idyllic winter wonderland what with the nastiness of sleet and freezing rain. But still, snow.

Of more immediate concern, be advised that below-freezing temperatures are expected to be recorded tonight, Friday, Dec. 12, 2018. It's been sunny with a high of 56 degrees and near-negligible winds between five and ten miles per hour Friday afternoon. But tonight, while remaining clear, we'll see a low of about 28 degrees. Winds will remain weak at around five miles per hour.

On Saturday, Feb. 13, it's expected to be sunny with a high of 49 degrees with northerly winds between five and ten miles per hour. By Saturday night, the low will drop to 28 degrees. Winds from the north/northeast will be around five miles per hour before calming further in the evening, according to NWS forecasters.

But back to that predicted snow. Bear in mind that given the unpredictably mercurial nature of Texas weather, this is subject to change. Forecasters earlier warned of blizzards with the breathlessness of a disaster movie narration preview, only to have those formations peter out by the moment of reckoning. The anticlimactic development last month gave rise to jokes poking fun at us Texans over what we endured during this not-so-great blizzard of 2017 (see: "The Great Texas Blizzard of 2017: A Look Back," Dec. 8, 2017).

And yet, we did get rare snow in Central Texas back then in December. People enjoyed the snow, and parents posted pictures of their young children experiencing it for the first time. Social media was ablaze with wondrous reactions replete with pictures. Even Patch Austin's nephew got into the act:

It was glorious. Ah, memories. Life seemed simpler then, and less complicated.

But we digress. Back to the forecast, which is serious stuff to consider in negotiating local roadways next week. This is particularly key on Tuesday, when the low temperature is expected to dip down to 24 degrees (that's not a typo).

Here's the day-to-day breakdown for the Austin area, courtesy of the National Weather Service:

Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 56. Calm wind becoming south southeast around 5 mph in the afternoon. By Sunday night, mostly clear, with a low around 37. South southeast wind around 5 mph.

Monday: Martin Luther King Jr. Day will usher in partly sunny skies with a high near 61 degrees. South winds between five to ten miles per hour. There is a 50 percent chance of showers by Monday night with cloudy conditions and a low around 31 degrees. East/southeast winds will be whipping at between five to 10 miles per hour, shifting to a northerly direction between 10 to 15 miles per hour by midnight. Wind gusts could reach up to 20 miles per hour.

Tuesday: Here's where it gets dicey. Chance of snow, freezing rain, and sleet before noon, then a chance of rain, freezing rain, and sleet. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 38 degrees. North wind 15 to 20 miles per hour, with a chance of precipitation at 40 percent. Nighttime will bring partly cloudy skies and a low of around 24 degrees.

Wednesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 41 degres. Wednesday Night will be mostly cloudy, with a low around 31.

Thursday: A 20 percent chance of showers is expected under mostly cloudy skies, with a high near 48 degrees.

That's as far as the National Weather Service forecasters will go as far as predicting. Because they're not psychics or wizards, and even with powerful meteorological tools at their disposal can only look into the future in a finite way.

So prepare for the inclement weather, drive safely (meaning slow down amid slick roadways and keep a safe distance with the car in front of you), and take that snow parka out of mothballs. Why not? Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow! Am I right?

>>> Photos by Tony Cantú taken during The Great Blizzard of 2017 save for the icon showing the possibility of snow, which was provided by the National Weather Service