Computer forecast models have had major difficulties with handling our our weather would evolve this weekend. At the beginning of the week a few computer models were suggesting the potential for yet another significant coastal storm, then the models "lost this" for a few days only to start bringing this system back. What's the explaining for this? Well it all has to do with the models handling of atmospheric waves or pieces of energy that work through our atmosphere. We also call these disturbances. During an active jet stream period several disturbances can work through the jet stream on a daily basis and it all comes down to how the models handle these disturbances. Early on, some models were zoning in on a few disturbances and phasing them, or combining them, with the jet stream on the east coast, when this happens we see explosive cyclogenesis, or rapid coastal storm development. For a few days the models than began to back off on these disturbances phasing with the jet, therefore, it didn't look like we would see any type of storm. Well as of a few nights ago, the computer models began on zoning in on another disturbance which would phase with the jet and some models continue to hint at this process occurring late tomorrow into Sunday. It's just a question as to how far west/east the system will track.
Snow should begin breaking out in the later afternoon hours and should begin winding down during the pre-dawn hours of Sunday, except across eastern MA where the snowfall will wind down by the late morning hours. At the height of the storm, snowfall rates could approach 1''/HR, especially across eastern areas and travel will be slick and hazardous.
Snowfall map:
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