Cold, snow and new record low in forecast for Pittsburgh area

The Pittsburgh area is poised to set a new record low temperature Friday night into Saturday morning, and some snow accumulation will be possible in the highest ridge tops, a National Weather Service meteorologist said Wednesday.

The high and low temperatures through Saturday are expected to be well below the average normals of 68 and 46, meteorologist Bill Modzelewski said.

After a high of 50 Wednesday, the low Wednesday night into Thursday is forecast to reach freezing at 32 degrees. A frost advisory was issued Wednesday afternoon for Beaver, Allegheny and Washington counties in Southwerstern Pennsylvania. It will be in effect from 1 a.m. to 9 a.m. Thursday.

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— NWS Pittsburgh (@NWSPittsburgh) May 6, 2020

Frost advisories are issued for temperatures in the mid-30s; a freeze warning issued when lows are expected below 32.

After a high of 60 on Thursday and a low of 38 that night, the coldest temperatures are expected Friday into Saturday.

After a high on Friday of 48 — 20 degrees lower than normal — the low is expected to get down to 28 degrees that night. That temperature would break the record low of 30 degrees set in 1983, Modzelewski said.

On Saturday, the high is expected to be only 45, with a low again down to 32, he said.

While some snow will mix in with rain Wednesday and again Thursday night into Friday, no accumulation is expected in the Pittsburgh area other than in the highest ridge tops, Modzelewski said. A dusting up to some minor accumulation is possible in the ridges Saturday.

Traces of snow are normal even in May, Modzelewski said.

The cold is not expected to last much longer, with temperatures forecast to rise into the 60s and 70s by next weekend, Modzelewski said.

“It doesn’t look like there are any good pushes of cold air after that, at least through the following weekend,” he said. “After this week the cold air goes back up north into Canada and we stay more in the warmer air.”