CHRISTMAS EVE: Widespread rain and a few rumbles of thunder move in through the pre-dawn hours from west to east across the area. Everyone will see rain tomorrow morning, but some dry air will work into eastern Nebraska by the afternoon hours. For the Omaha metro and points to the east, scattered showers will continue through the evening into the overnight hours. Temperatures in the morning will be in the 50s, but once the front passes, it will drop into the 40s and eventually the 30s. The front looks to pass through Omaha during the early afternoon hours.
CHRISTMAS DAY: As the cold air moves in, the rain will change over to snow from west to east during the morning hours on Christmas Day. The transition could happen in Omaha as early as 2-3 am. The biggest question is how far east the rain/snow line gets on Christmas Day, as temperatures will be borderline around freezing. As of now, the rain/snow line looks to be set up near the Missouri River, with western Iowa seeing mostly rain, the Omaha metro seeing a rain/snow mix, and eastern Nebraska seeing mostly snow. Into the afternoon, dry air moves in which cuts off most of the precipitation in western Iowa back into the Omaha metro, but snow should continue in northeast Nebraska into Christmas night.
SNOW TOTALS: This system has a lot of complications which will be crucial for snowfall forecasts, including where the rain/snow line sets up and how long it snows for. As of now, western Iowa will see the least amount of snow with anywhere from just rain to potentially 3" falling. The Omaha and Lincoln metro areas could see anywhere from 1-4". The highest snowfall totals will be over eastern/northeastern NE where 4-7" is possible, with higher amounts towards Norfolk. These WILL change over the coming days, so keep checking back in as we get new information.
IMPACT TO TRAVEL: This snow is looking to cause travel headaches on Christmas Day and the days after. As most of the snow will fall in the morning across the Omaha metro, take precautions if you are heading out to any church services or other plans on Christmas morning. Not only will snow be falling, but wind gusts upwards of 30 mph at times could create snow-blowing snow/reduced visibility on the roads, so take it easy if you are driving on Monday or Tuesday. Flights could also be delayed/canceled, so check with your airline on the status of your flight.
The storm system continues around on Tuesday with scattered snow showers, highs will be in the low 30s.
The snow finally ends Wednesday morning but we stay cloudy, highs in the low 30s.
We get colder into the middle to end of the week with highs in the upper 20s and lows in the teens.
SUNDAY (CHRISTMAS EVE)
Cloudy
Breezy
Rain Likely
High: 55, but falling in the afternoon
SUNDAY NIGHT
Mostly Cloudy
Breezy
Rain Changes to Snow
Low: 32
MONDAY (CHRISTMAS)
Cloudy
Breezy
Rain and Snow
High: 33
TUESDAY
Cloudy
Breezy
Snow Showers
High: 32
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