A relatively sharp cutoff between snow and slush should keep the biggest snow totals away from Washington, D.C. and Boston, but elsewhere, totals will rack up to 1 or 2 feet. The National Weather Service issued a blizzard watch from late Monday night through Tuesday evening for New York City and parts of northern New Jersey and southern Connecticut, while winter storm warnings and watches were issued for the remainder of the Northeast. High-resolution weather models continue to insist that most of this storm’s snowfall will come during just a few hours via an intense band with snowfall rates of up to 5 inches per hour—near the upper limit of what is physically possible along the East Coast.
– Residents of the Northeast have known that a storm was on the way for days now, but the forecasts are only getting more dire as the moment approaches. The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard watch from late Monday through Tuesday evening for New York City and parts of northern New Jersey and southern Connecticut, while winter storm warnings and watches were issued for the remainder of the Northeast, per the AP. Meteorologists said the storm could dump 12 to 18 inches of snow on New York City and Boston, with Philadelphia is expecting up to a foot. But as NBC News notes, the more dangerous component will be high winds on Tuesday morning, with gusts of 55mph to 70mph in the forecast. "This would certainly be the biggest snowstorm of the 2017 winter season in New York City," says a weather service meteorologist based on Long Island. In fact, it has the potential to be among the worst, if not the worst, March snowstorm in New York City history. Coastal flooding also is a risk along the Jersey shore and elsewhere, as is "thundersnow," explains the Daily Beast. Meanwhile, spring officially arrives on March 20.