Europe Daily Snow
By Luke Stone, Forecaster Posted 1 month ago December 11, 2024
Slow-Moving Storm Continues to Bring Light to Moderate Snow
Summary
The weather in the Alps and Pyrenees will continue to be dominated by the upper-level low that brought up to 1.5 m in the Pyrenees and over .5 m in the Alps over the last several days. It will bring a few more pulses of light to moderate snow to the Pyrenees and the Alps through Saturday. The next storm will drop down from the north this weekend, with more light snow possible.
Short Term Forecast
This storm has delivered so far, and it's not completely done with us yet. Based on reports, 30 - 60 cm fell in the northern/western Alps from northern France through western Austria. As expected, the Pyrenees have been the big winners, with many areas receiving 1 - 1.5 m over the last several days. Below are a few reports from the Alps and Pyrenees.
Alps
- Stubai Glacier, AT: 45 cm
- Vercors, FR: 35 cm
- Val Thorens, FR: 40 cm
- Madonna di Campiglio, IT: 72 cm
- Courchevel, FR: 27 cm
Pyrenees
- Luz Ardiden, FR: 1 m
- Nistos, FR: 70 cm
- Vallnord, AN: 60 cm
The upper-level low responsible for the above snow totals is now over the Mediterranean between Spain and Italy. With a strong high to the north, this area of low pressure still has nowhere to go. It will be split into multiple areas of low pressure, but the parent low will slowly drift to the west, bringing a few more rounds of snow to the Alps and Pyrenees.
Snow will return to the eastern Pyrenees early Wednesday morning and continue through Friday, with some possible breaks during that time. Totals will generally be in the 10 - 20 cm range. However, the southwest-facing mountains in the eastern Pyrenees will benefit from the southeast flow and could see 25 - 50 cm.
Below is the latest snow forecast from the WRF model for the Pyrenees.
In the western Alps, winds will be mainly out of the east, ranging from northeast to southeast. The location of this upper-level low will bring the best lift to the southwestern Alps. Initially, winds out of the northeast will favor the north-facing aspects of the southwestern Italian Alps. Later, as the winds shift more southeast, the south-facing aspects of the southern French/Italian Alps will do best. Totals will be in the 10 - 20 cm range for the southern French Alps, with 15 - 30 cm possible in the southwestern Italian Alps.
Below is the latest snow forecast from the WRF model.
On Saturday afternoon, another storm dropping down from the north in eastern Europe will spark some snow showers in the northern/eastern Alps. A quick follow-up low will keep the showers going through early next week. Between 5 - 15 cm are expected, deepest in the Austrian Alps. Snow levels will remain low, between 500 - 1000 m.
Extended Forecast
Early next week, a strong ridge is expected to build over western Europe, keeping the storm track to the east. A weak storm passing below the ridge could bring some snow showers midweek before a better-looking storm arrives from the west later next week. This has the potential to bring 30 - 60 cm but the models still have significant differences at the moment.
My next post will be on Thursday.
Thanks for reading the Europe Daily Snow!
Luke Stone
Forecaster, OpenSnow
Announcements
Your Daily Weather App
When you're not checking OpenSnow for the latest snow forecast, get the forecast for your current location with our new "My Location" screen.
Get everything you need from a daily weather app with OpenSnow, including current conditions, mini weather maps, the 10-day forecast, recent news articles, and historical weather for your current location.
View → My Location
Regions of the Alps
About Our Forecaster
