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Florida Freeze: Snow unlikely despite cold snap
30 Jan
Summary
- A cold front with a chance of rain is forecast for Florida's Panhandle this weekend.
- Forecasters predict snow for North Carolina but not for Florida.
- Pensacola last saw trace amounts of snow in mid-January of 2025.
A cold front is set to sweep across the Florida Panhandle this weekend, bringing with it a possibility of rain and a significant temperature drop. Despite the anticipated freeze, the National Weather Service forecasts a low probability of snow for the region. Forecasters predict that while areas further north, such as North Carolina, could see substantial snowfall, Florida is unlikely to experience any frozen precipitation.
The timing of any potential precipitation is expected to be before temperatures plummet to freezing levels. Current forecasts suggest Friday's high temperatures will be around 62 degrees Fahrenheit, far above the typical threshold for snow. While trace amounts of snow were observed in Pensacola in mid-January 2025, this was a minimal event compared to the record-breaking snowfall recorded in January 2024 across the region.
Conditions for snow formation generally require temperatures at or below 32 degrees Fahrenheit. However, snow can occasionally form in slightly warmer conditions, even up to 33.8 degrees Fahrenheit, or under specific "wet bulb" atmospheric conditions. These scenarios typically result in wetter, stickier snow rather than the dry, fluffy variety.
