National Weather Service Little Rock, Arkansas Issued: 530 am CST 01/20/2016

 After a mild December, the pattern has changed in January, with colder air arriving from the north at times.  The coldest air of the winter so far surged through on January 18 th, and there was light accumulating snow in northern Arkansas.  With Arctic air still in place, there is a concern for more wintry precipitation as storm systems approach from the southwest.

A cold front pushed through Arkansas on the 18 th, with light snow across the northern counties. There were one to two inch accumulations in places. Arctic high pressure and much colder air followed the front.

The Arctic high (“H”) resided in the Ohio Valley early on the 20 th as a storm system (“L”) approached from the southern Plains. Moisture with the system encountered cold air over Arkansas, and this resulted in a wintry mix over the northern half of the state.

While amounts were generally light (less than an a half inch of snow/sleet and under a quarter of an inch of freezing rain), roads were icy and dangerous across the northern counties during the predawn hours of the 20 th.

After a lull during the afternoon of the 20 th, the pattern will repeat with another storm system (“L”) looming to the southwest over Texas. It will be a little warmer ahead of this system, and there will be more moisture. Widespread rain will develop early on the 21 st. Rain may start as a brief wintry mix toward the Missouri border.

By the afternoon/early evening of the of the 21 st, rain will continue, with thunderstorms possible south of Little Rock (Pulaski Co). In the north, colder air will wrap around the system, with chance of snow increasing.

Snow will continue into the nighttime hours in northern and central Arkansas, but should taper off by the morning of the 22 nd. This will happen as the system exits toward the Tennessee Valley.

This is preliminary, but a large part of Arkansas could see an inch or two of snow by the morning of the 22 nd. There is also the potential for a band of heavier snow (2-4”) from central into northeast Arkansas.

Hazardous Weather Outlook Road Conditions (What is on the Road) Road Conditions (How Much is on the Road)