Raw footage of Lake Ontario from frozen to thawing. Tina MacIntyre-Yee
Comparatively placid skies and rising temperatures will mark Rochester's weather this week, spelling an end to the second snow-filled cold snap since late December.
We should be well into the 40s or low 50s by next weekend. Our blanket of snow will disappear.
Friday brought the most recent bombardment of cold air and snow. Officially, nearly 13 inches of snow fell Friday night and Saturday, and temperatures cratered into the single digits Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
That event ended a six-day stretch of unseasonably warm air and little precipitation.
But before that interlude, the region had to endure an 11-day stretch centered on New Year's Day that saw temperatures far below normal and included more than 21 inches of snow.
Now, another interlude is upon us. Other than an inch or two of snow forecast for Monday night and Tuesday, there is no precipitation forecast for the Rochester area this week.
Some light lake-effect snow could fall near the eastern ends of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie, though snowfall near the latter will be limited by the fact that a good part of the lake is frozen.
Temperatures will remain low Tuesday and Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service, and then begin a gradual climb into daytime highs in the 40s by Saturday and perhaps 50 degrees or so on Sunday.
A low-pressure system could bring rain or snow showers early next week, the weather service said.
Next week could be warmish as well. The Climate Prediction Center shows a better-than-even chance the Rochester-Finger Lakes region will have above-average temperatures and precipitation for at least the next two weeks.