Cold air has settled into North Carolina over the last couple of days, and now an approaching storm system will bring the chance for wintry preciptation to locations mainly north and west of Raleigh this weekend.

Futurecast show dry conditions at 5pm Saturday.
Futurecast shows precipitation arriving by 11pm Saturday.
Futurecast show precipitation continuing into Sunday morning.

Most of Saturday will be cloudy but dry. High temperatures will top out around 40 or the low 40s in the Triangle to the mid 40s in the Sandhills.  Spotty light precipitation could begin by late afternoon, but the best chance will come later in the night.

North and west of Raleigh, including Durham, Chapel Hill, and Henderson, the precipitation should start as a mix of sleet and freezing rain. A few snowflakes could briefly mix in at first, but that should be limited. The mix of sleet and freezing rain will continue into Sunday morning with temperatures hovering around freezing. Later in the morning that should change to a cold rain as temperatures climb slightly above freezing. A brief glazing, or less than 0.1" of ice accumulation, could collect in trees and elevated surfaces. Slick spots on roads should be limited to bridges and overpasses on mostly less traveled roads.

An icy mix should last a bit longer in an area from near Roxboro to Greensboro and Winston-Salem. These areas may see a dusting of snow along with 0.1" to 0.2" of ice accumulation. Slick spots on roads and highways are possible in these areas Sunday morning especially on bridges and overpasses.

The greatest chance to see just snow will likely come over the northern mountains of North Carolina into Virginia where around 1 to 5" is expected. Closer to Roanoke up to 6" is possible.

Very little wintry precipitation should fall from near Raleigh to the south and east.  When the cold rain starts in these areas Saturday night, it could be mixed with sleet but will quickly change to all rain through Sunday morning. Around 0.5" of rain is expected.

Sunday morning precipitation forecast

A change in this weekend's storm track could shift the area receiving an icy mix to the northwest or southeast.  Stay tuned to Weather on the 1s on Spectrum News for updates on the forecast.