There’s a chance of fresh snow falling in Juneau on Christmas morning.
National Weather Service meteorologist Pete Boyd says to expect a “semi-white Christmas.”
He says a storm system with wind and rain is currently passing through Southeast Alaska. Then, there may be a period of calm and mostly clear skies before the next system quickly comes through on Christmas Eve and Christmas.
“We’re starting out well with that cold air that moves in for (Wednesday night) and into Thursday with these northerly winds,” Boyd says. “So, we get that nice cold, Canadian air through. But, as the low tracks up from the south, it starts bringing some warmer air with it. That gets us more of a mix of rain and snow.”
At most, 1 to 2 inches of snow will fall on Christmas.
Boyd also has some hopeful news for skywatchers. Jupiter and Saturn came together on the Winter Solstice Monday night in what’s called a conjunction in which they looked like one big heavenly body.
Even though the planets would now appear to be moving apart, it still may be possible to view them together in the southwestern sky after sunset.
“It’s actually looking better for (Thursday) morning. However, Thursday night, that’s when we start seeing the clouds increasing,” Boyd says. “So, there is a slight possibility. But, as with anything in Southeast Alaska with astronomy, if it’s interesting, (then) clouds are going to move in.”
Which is exactly what happened Monday night.
