Significant Weather Blog: Tuesday, December 2, 2025 9 AM

Storm Today and Tonight: Heavy Snow Expected Across Higher Elevations of Interior Southern New England

The forecast remains much the same.  A surface low pressure center with plentiful moisture will pass about 50 or 60 miles southeast of Nantucket tonight.  Due to warm sea surface temperatures (in the upper 40s) and the lack of blocking high pressure to the north (to hold cold air in place), heavy snow is expected at least for the most part to be confined to the higher elevations of interior southern New England.  Except for a brief period of snow toward the end of the storm tonight, the precipitation should be mainly in the form of rain along the coastal plain (I-95 corridor and southeast).  The forecast is a bit trickier over the lower elevations along and somewhat west of the I-495 corridor where the precipitation could flip back and forth between snow and rain with ultimately a total accumulation of a few inches.

No significant coastal impacts are expected other than some beach erosion is possible around the time of the Wednesday morning high tide on the Bay side of the Cape (especially the Eastham and Wellfleet area) given the combination of fairly strong N to NW winds and a relatively high astronomical tide.

Forecast  

Snow or mixed rain and snow will become more widespread across southern New England from southwest to northeast late this morning.  The precipitation will become heavy at times this afternoon into this evening.  Heavy snow is expected across interior higher elevations of central and western MA (mainly above 600 or 700 feet).  Across lower elevations along the I-495 and Mass Pike corridors, the snow will likely mix with and possibly change to rain this afternoon.  In this area, the precipitation may flip back and forth between mainly snow and mainly rain.  Across interior eastern MA, northern RI, and northern CT, snow will likely change to rain this afternoon although wet snow may mix in at times.  Along the coastal plain (I-95 corridor and southeast including Boston) any snow will change to rain.  The precipitation will likely change back to all snow sometime this evening before tapering off after midnight.  The change to snow along the coastal plain will likely take place just before the precipitation ends with not much opportunity for an accumulation.

Projected total snowfall

Cape and Islands:  No snow accumulation expected.

Rest of coastal plain along and southeast of I-95:  A coating to an inch possible before ending late tonight.  This includes greater Boston.

Interior eastern MA northwest of the I-95 corridor to the I-495 corridor (including Boston’s Metrowest), northern RI, northern CT:  1 to 2 inches possible, most of it probably accumulating this evening.

Lower elevations of central/western MA west of I-495 and along/north of the Mass Pike: 2 to 5 inches.  The area of greatest uncertainty for snowfall is along the I-495 corridor from I-95 in northeast MA to the Mass Pike in east central MA as well as along the Mass Pike (I-90) corridor from I-495 to I-91 in the Connecticut Valley.

Higher elevations of central and western MA (Worcester Hills and Berkshires):  5 to 10 inches.

Impacts

Travel will become increasingly difficult late morning through this evening across the higher terrain of western and central MA.  There could potentially be a high impact to the evening commute for most areas northwest of the I-95 corridor and especially west and northwest of I-495 as well as possibly northwest RI and northern CT.  Conditions should be much improved by the time of the Wednesday morning commute, although there could be some patchy black ice.

Heavy wet snow loading on trees/wires could cause some power outages across the Worcester Hills and Berkshires.

Since this is expected to be the first winter weather event for much of interior southern New England, the impact could be higher than one might expect with a similar storm later in the winter.

Rest of Week Outlook

Coldest air of the season is expected later this week into the weekend following an arctic front passage on Thursday.  Presently, models indicate that a storm may pass south of New England Friday night or Saturday, possibly brushing the south coast including the Cape.  Will keep an eye on how this develops, although it does not currently look to have a major impact on southern New England.  There are some signals of a somewhat more active weather pattern for the following week.

This will likely be the last message until next Monday’s outlook unless the weekend system expected to pass south of us should appear to become more significant for southern New England.

About this Blog and Disclaimer

The National Weather Service monitors the weather 24/7 and updates forecasts, watches, and warnings as necessary.  For most of southern New England, refer to your local Weather Forecast Office for the latest forecast/warning information at weather.gov/box.  For information from other Weather Forecast Offices, go to weather.gov and click on the location of interest on the map.

A blog is issued when there is a potential risk of hazardous weather to southern New England and serves to provide background information regarding the significant weather with somewhat of an educational slant.  In the case of hurricanes, the author will attempt to issue a message when any portion of the United States coastline may be seriously impacted.  It’s intended to complement and not serve as an alternative to official forecasts issued by the National Weather Service.  Readers are urged to check National Weather Service forecasts and warnings for the most timely and updated weather information.  This weather message is solely produced by the listed author and does not constitute an official product of the Blue Hill Observatory and Science Center (BHOSC).

The frequency of this blog will depend upon the nature of the weather threat and availability of the author.  Thus, for the latest information on weather forecasts and warnings, refer to the National Weather Service, which monitors and forecasts the weather 24/7.

Blue Hill Observatory and Science Center (BHOSC)

The BHOSC maintains a continuous daily observation record that dates from February 1, 1885 without interruption and provides educational information on weather and climate to area students and the community at large.  Your support of BHOSC is much appreciated and enables this nonprofit organization to maintain the long-term climate record at the Blue Hill Observatory (longest continuous record in North America) and provide valuable educational resources on weather and climate via outreach to schools, site visits/tours, webinars, and conferences.  For more information on the Blue Hill Observatory and Science Center, explore bluehill.org.

Message issued December 2, 2025 by:
Bob Thompson
Retired National Weather Service Meteorologist
Blue Hill Observatory and Science Center Board member