A 'massive' change in weather brings snow to Alberta

Get out and enjoy some of that warmth as Alberta is forecast to have some incredible highs this weekend, and experts say a big change in weather is expected soon.

Daily Hive spoke with Environment Canada and Climate Change (ECCC) Warning Preparedness Meteorologist Alisa Pederson, who said the big change is expected to hit Alberta early next week.

Pederson said snow, more of it, is in the cards for Alberta, but the exact amounts and locations affected right now are still up in the air.

“It's a difficult system. Yesterday, computer models pointed to a large band of low snow from Slave Lake through Calgary, and then the Canadian guidelines responded that there were none, only in the foothills. Now this morning it's going to snow in the High Level and Fort McMurray and not much in central Alberta and then snow in the foothills,” Pederson said.

“Confidence in the amount of snow is not high. Yesterday it was five-40 centimeters for Calgary, now it is aiming for five centimeters. It will depend on how the system develops, which will bring big changes to the North American west.”

As of Friday morning, Pederson said, the best bets for snow are in Alberta's foothills and Rockies, including the Rocky Mountains and further south in Sundre, Calgary and Cochrane.

Setting up the upcoming weather change is the disturbance that Alberta and much of Canada will experience this weekend, with the jet stream moving higher and higher across Alberta and BC, bringing with it the strongest winds. clear sky and warm air.

“We're seeing a really warm weekend and above normal levels. When we have that happen, the jet stream turns south and becomes an upper trough, which is a big pattern change that brings cooler air and more active weather and snow and that kind of thing. It's going to affect a lot of western North America,” Pederson said.

“A pattern change will occur across central and northern Alberta Monday night into Tuesday, and snow will begin wherever it is. Watch the forecast, but expect snow.”

With daytime highs in the high teens in both Edmonton and Calgary this weekend, Pederson added that it's best to enjoy your weekend and the warmth before the pattern changes next week.

While the system may not affect Alberta, Pederson added that our friends in Saskatchewan and Manitoba are expecting widespread snowfall with “blizzard-like conditions” in the southern parts of those provinces on Tuesday and Wednesday.