Georgia Snow Chance Fizzles, But A Very Cold New Year's

ATLANTA, GA — If you were hoping for snow to ring in the New Year in metro Atlanta, forecasters have some bad news for you. But, if you're planning to be out and about to welcome 2018, you'd still best bundle up.

A chance for snow that forecasters had been calling for, most likely on Sunday, has dried up in the most recent weather forecasts.

"It doesn't really look good any more," said George Wetzel, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Peachtree City. "The snow thing has really fallen by the wayside. There's just not enough moisture coming in."

What we'll get, instead, is the coldest days the Atlanta area has seen this season.

From highs around 50 on Friday and Saturday, temperatures will plunge. The weather service is calling for a New Year's Eve low of 24 on Sunday night, a high of only 36 on Monday and a low Monday night getting all the way down to 19 degrees.

"We have probably two to three cold fronts that are going to be coming through — Saturday, Sunday and probably around Tuesday," Wetzel said. "All that's going to do is keep reinforcing the cold air that's already in place."

The worst-case scenario, he said, is if metro Atlanta gets sleet and rain early Sunday. Temperatures probably won't get above freezing until around noon, meaning that we could get some black ice when they dip again Sunday night.

Here's your weekend and New Year's forecast for metro Atlanta, from the National Weather Service:

Friday: Sunny, with a high near 50. Mostly clear Friday night, with a low around 35.

Saturday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 50. Northwest wind 5-10 m.p.h., with gusts as high as 20 m.p.h. Saturday night, mostly clear, with a low around 29.

New Year's Eve: Mostly sunny, with a high near 41. Northwest wind 5-10 m.p.h. Partly cloudy Sunday night, with a low around 24.

New Year's Day: Mostly sunny, with a high near 36. Monday night, partly cloudy, with a low around 19.

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