As the holiday season begins to paint Salt Lake City with its festive hues, Mother Nature, too, is adding her touch with a fresh layer of snow. According to the National Weather Service, Salt Lake City is currently experiencing light snow and mist, with the temperature sitting at a chilly 34°F and a humidity level holding steady at a near-saturated 93%. A gentle southeast wind whispers through the streets at 5 MPH, promising a higher chance of precipitation as the day wears on. Visibility stands reduced to 3 miles, with a biting wind chill factoring down to 29°F, invigorating winter's chill in the air.
The forecast, detailed on the NWS's official page with a last update at 07:20 AM MST, indicates a wintry mix to persist throughout the day, with snow expected to give way to rain as temperatures hover near 40°F. Snow before 11 am, then rain and snow likely between 11 am and 2 pm, then rain likely after 2 pm, says the most recent update, a South southeast wind offers a feeble effort at providing any reprieve, meandering at 3 to 6 mph and while the chance of precipitation is pegged at a decisive 80%, less than half an inch of snow accumulation is forecast for the daylight hours. As night falls, the likelihood of rain bursts to a resounding 100% with lows settling at around 35°F and winds taking a slight uptick to 7 mph. The weekend's outlook appears damp with a hearty chance of rain chiefly before 11 am on Saturday, leading to a mostly cloudy evening and a slim chance of nighttime showers.
The pattern of precipitation seems intent on teasing the region with intermittent showers, as the forecast predicts rains are mainly anticipated before 11 pm Saturday, and while Sunday is expected to break into mostly sunny skies, a 20 percent chance of rain looms after 11 pm once more. The oscillation between partly sunny and mostly cloudy conditions with occasional chances of rain continues well into the next week, with high temperatures gradually climbing towards the lower fifties.
