Utahns can expect a hazy start to the week. But winter storms could bring a white Christmas — and potentially break up the building inversions.
Those valley inversions will strengthen through Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service, with increasing fog and haze, cold temperatures and declining air quality.
According to the Utah Department of Environmental Quality, the air quality index is forecast as orange, or “unhealthy for sensitive groups,” through Wednesday in Salt Lake, Cache and Davis counties. It will be orange in Weber and Box Elder counties on Tuesday and Wednesday as well. And in Utah and Tooele counties, the air quality index is forecast as yellow, or “moderate,” through Wednesday.
The storm system that’s expected to arrive Wednesday night and continue into Thursday could clean out the valleys, according to the weather service. The forecast calls for rain and then snow in the valleys. There could be up to a foot of snow in the mountains, with some accumulations at lower elevations as well.
In Salt Lake City, daytime highs will be in the mid-30s through Wednesday, with overnight lows in the teens and low 20s. There’s a slight chance of rain mixed with snow on Wednesday, rising to a 60% chance of snow after 11 p.m., with accumulations of less than an inch. On Thursday, there’s a 90% chance of snow, with accumulations of 1-3 inches possible as temperatures rise into the mid-40s.
That storm is expected to move out Friday after dropping a bit more rain and snow, mainly late in the day. But another storm will move in on Christmas Day, bringing the possibility of scattered snow showers.
Snow is in the forecast for much of Utah from Thursday through Sunday — from Logan in the north to Cedar City in the south, although no major accumulations are expected in the valleys.
There’s even a chance of rain mixed with snow on Christmas Day in St. George, but the storm is expected to bring mostly rain to southwestern Utah from Thursday night through Saturday, with temperatures in the upper 40s and low 50s.
