Snow is possible in central North Carolina late this week, but it won’t last long.
There is a potential for wintry precipitation Friday, Dec. 5, James Danco, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Raleigh, told The News & Observer in a phone call.
The precipitation, which could be snow, sleet or freezing rain, could come Friday morning or afternoon. However, the wintry precipitation would be light. Exact timing is uncertain as of Monday, Dec. 1, but it likely wouldn’t last for more than a few hours, Danco said.
“The models have actually been trending warmer and towards less precipitation overall with the system, so at this time, we’re not too concerned about significant impacts,” Danco said. “But there could be a brief period of snow, sleet or freezing rain, most likely to the north, like the far northern Piedmont near the Virginia border. But you can’t completely rule it out around the Triangle, either.”
If the precipitation doesn’t begin as rain, it will change to rain, Danco said, although a cold rain.
Wintry precipitation, which could be snow, is possible in the Triangle on Friday, Nov. 5. Kaitlin McKeown kmckeown@newsobserver.com
Temperatures Friday morning are expected in the 30s, and it will warm up to the low 40s during the day. By Friday night, temperatures will drop back into the upper 30s.
Some rain could linger into Saturday, Dec. 6.
The possible snow event is still several days away, and the forecast could change in coming days.
Snow in NC
North Carolina is expected to have a warmer, drier winter, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Prediction Center.
However, that doesn’t mean that the state won’t see cooler, wetter periods over the next few months, Danco said.
The Climate Prediction Center is expected a warmer winter in North Carolina. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Earlier in 2025, central North Carolina experienced winter storms that brought snow, closing schools and businesses and making travel unsafe.
Those events marked the first time in years that many parts of the Triangle had recorded measurable snow.
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Renee Umsted
The News & Observer
Renee Umsted is a service journalism reporter for The News & Observer. She has a degree in journalism from the Bob Schieffer College of Communication at TCU.
