A wide-reaching winter storm is causing or expected to cause massive travel headaches from Colorado to West Virginia to New Hampshire over the next four days. The storm – with snow, freezing rain, and some thunderstorms – will hit metropolitan areas such as Albany, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Kansas City, Little Rock, St Louis, and Springfield, Massachusetts.
The main story here for snow is how many states will meet winter storm warning criteria (usually over 6in in this geographical area) over the next 48 hours. Snow amounts of over 6in will be expected to fall over six states including Illinois, Iowa, and Minnesota. More than 4in can be expected in the south-eastern part of South Dakota, Michigan's upper peninsula, and pretty much the whole of Wisconsin.
Most of the snow from this part of the storm is expected to fall over the next 24 hours. The exceptions are the northern part of Wisconsin, including Green Bay, and most of Michigan, including Marquette, where snow will likely linger into Saturday.
The snow is expected to mix with sleet and freezing rain along the southern part of the storm system. St Louis and Springfield will see snow amounts of around 3-6in. The snow should mix with and change to sleet and freezing rain. Farther to the south and east freezing rain is likely to be the big story.
The freezing rain will be the most dangerous part of the storm. It is caused by snow that melts on its way to the surface and then freezes on contact with the surface. It differs from sleet, which is snow that melts and refreezes into little ice pellets on its way to the surface. Any ice that forms from freezing rain can create treacherous travel conditions and knock out power lines.
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