More spring snow could fall overnight

The first full week of spring is off to a snowy start in the Philadelphia area.

Several inches of snow fell in parts of the region throughout the morning, and a mix of rain and snow is expected to continue through the evening. Though precipitation had stopped in some areas by shortly before 1 p.m. Some schools dismissed students early.

Snow could again fall for a couple hours early Tuesday morning, according to the National Weather Service, but the total for Philadelphia is expected to be less than half an inch.

Most of southeastern Pennsylvania was predicted to see a total of two to four inches of snow, with rain also in the mix.

Snow started falling in most of the area before 7 a.m.

By noon, a number of places in the Philadelphia suburbs reported that two to three inches had fallen. Some parts of the Chester County, such as Glenmoore and East Nantmeal, saw more than four inches of snow, according to the National Weather Service.

(See a list of snowfall totals from around the region and the 25 biggest spring snowfalls in Philadelphia) 

Philadelphia International Airport was reporting some delays and warning travelers that more were anticipated.

Some form of precipitation was expected to be falling most of the day, though the weather service said late this morning that the precipitation was weakening. By shortly before 1 p.m., snow was no longer falling in most parts of the region.

The high temperature is expected to be around 40 degrees. Forecasters say temperatures today should be cool enough to produce periods of all-snow precipitation, but may be too warm for much snow to stick.

The precipitation will have to "fight the March sun effect," AccuWeather says.

"Even when concealed by clouds, enough energy gets through to warm road surfaces, causing some or all of the snow to melt," according to AccuWeather. "It would have to snow very hard in these areas to overwhelm the sun effect and accumulate on paved and concrete surfaces in urban areas during the middle of the day."

Any snow that does stick should mostly accumulate on unpaved surfaces, like grass.

But the weather service is still warning motorists and pedestrians to be careful.

"Some roads and walkways may become covered with snow and slush leading to slippery conditions," the weather service says. AccuWeather says to expect slush and poor visibility.

A number of vehicle accidents were reported around the area this morning.

Most of the Philadelphia region is under a winter weather advisory until 6 p.m. The advisory extends to midnight for some areas, though.

The storm is expected to affect most of the mid-Atlantic, with snow projected to also hit Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Wilmington, Trenton and New York. That system has already been responsible for heavy snow that fell across the midwest over the weekend.

Significant snow storms after the start of spring aren't unheard of in the area -- measureable amounts of snow have fallen in late April.

A slight chance of rain and snow showers persists Tuesday morning, though the weather service says there's only a 20-percent chance of precipitation then.

There's another small chance of rain and snow showers on Wednesday evening.