Some roads could get slick as a new storm system brings rain, snow or mixed precipitation to the Garden State.
New Jersey drivers could face slick road conditions late Tuesday afternoon as a storm system moving in from the South delivers a batch of rain, snow or mixed precipitation to parts of the region, forecasters said.
The storm -- unrelated to the system that coated the ground with snow in sections of Morris and Sussex counties Monday morning -- is expected to start out as rain in all areas of New Jersey Tuesday afternoon, said Larry Nierenberg, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service's regional forecast office in Mount Holly.
The forecast, however, will get tricky Tuesday evening and early Wednesday morning as temperatures start dropping into the lower 30s in parts of Morris, Sussex and Warren counties. In those places, as well as spots in the Poconos in eastern Pennsylvania, rain could turn to snow, Nierenberg said.
How much snow will fall depends on how quickly the temperatures drop, but the weather service notes in its latest forecast discussion that "a quick burst of snow" could produce accumulations of 1 to 3 inches in Carbon and Monroe counties in Pennsylvania and also in Sussex County in New Jersey.
Accumulations in other parts of New Jersey, such as hillier sections of Morris, Warren and Hunterdon counties, will also depend on how low the temperature gets Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, Nierenberg said.
By Wednesday afternoon, all the precipitation should be over, but skies are expected to remain cloudy, with temperatures in the 40s across the state. Later this week, a blast of cold air will work its way into our region, keeping daytime temperatures stuck in the 30s in North Jersey and in the upper 30s to low 40s in South Jersey.
Forecasters said morning lows could drop into the 20s, and wind chills could make it feel as cold as the teens, even in South Jersey.
Monday's morning snow
On Monday morning, New Jersey got brushed by a storm system that brought light rain and light snow to the Garden State. According to unofficial measurements by the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network, 1.6 inches of snow fell in Jefferson in Morris County, 1.5 inches of snow fell in Randolph and Rockaway in Morris, and 1.4 inches fell in Mine Hill in Morris and Wantage in Sussex County.
Holland Township in Hunterdon received 1.3 inches, and Oakland in Bergen County got 1.2 inches, the same amount as Hardyston in Sussex, CoCoRaHS reported.
Among the towns that got 1.0 or 1.1 inches were Denville, Hanover, Rockaway Township, Roxbury and Washington Township in Morris, Andover and Vernon in Sussex, and Califon, Glen Gardner and Lebanon in Hunterdon.
Although the snow was light, it prompted delayed openings at some schools in the region.
#njmorningshow Snow!!!! #Newton Sussex County @JamesGWeather has details @News12NJ pic.twitter.com/DqcsuOqIYB
-- Tony Caputo (@TonyCaputo) December 5, 2016
Snowfall report, 5:50 am Succasunna NJ, Morris County. 1.4" most on cold surfaces, up to 1/2" on paved@NWS_MountHolly @nynjpaweather pic.twitter.com/HTUJRxkRUO
-- American Chris B (@NJSnowFan) December 5, 2016
Len Melisurgo may be reached at LMelisurgo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @LensReality or like him on Facebook. Find NJ.com on Facebook.