Some lingering snow showers are possible Saturday before another weak ridge of high pressure builds over the area, keeping Sunday mostly fair. Two more modest storms are due early next week, with one arriving Sunday night and another perhaps by Tuesday. None of these systems is likely to be a big snow producer.

The next chance for a major weather system appears to be the end of next week.

Check www.tahoeloco.com for updates as these storms approach.

EL NINO UPDATE

Things have definitely turned in the Central Pacific over the past couple of weeks. The El Nino condition that peaked in December is backing down now, and average sea surface temperatures have dropped .6 degrees Celsius compared to average from their highs last month. For the week ended Jan. 25, the ocean water temperatures in the most watched region of the tropical Pacific were 1.4 degrees above average. Elsewhere they were almost back to average for the week. This is pretty much in line with the consensus forecast, and it suggests that this El Nino event will probably end this spring and will go into the books as a weak to moderate El Nino period. It’s still not clear what the implications will be for our weather, however. Even a short-lived El Nino can still affect the patterns, and there are signs this week that more wet weather may be ahead of us in early February. But the prolonged warmer and wetter periods that are more typical of El Nino have still not set in, and we’re actually grateful for that.