textproduct: Pocatello

KEY MESSAGES

- Snow returns tonight and continues into Wednesday night

- Heavier snow expected along and east of I-15 in the higher elevations

- Winds pick up tonight and continue into Wednesday evening

UPDATE

Issued at 359 PM MST Tue Feb 17 2026

Added winter weather advisories for snow and wind for zones 58, 59 and 65. Snow amounts are for 4 to 9 inches and wind gusts up 45 mph. Moderate to heavy snow will start after midnight tonight for zones 58 and 59. Moderate to heavy snow starts for zone 65 by early to mid tomorrow morning. Expect blowing and drifting snow with gusty winds of 30 to 45 mph.

DISCUSSION

Issued at 1226 PM MST Tue Feb 17 2026

For Tonight through Thursday morning...

While winds are slow to wind down across the Snake Plain and adjacent locations, snow has pretty much come to an end. We have ended the Wind Advisory for the Snake Plain and the Winter Weather Advisory for the central mountains a bit early. Tonight we will see snow returning from west to east. By midnight, precipitation will be ongoing across most areas, although it will be a bit slower to reach the Snake Plain and much of the southern and southeast highlands. Those areas should see business picking up before 5am though. It does look like we could see a burst of snow, potentially borderline snow squall- ish, with the front. Timing of this cold front is NOT easily resolved in the higher resolution models. Most of the computer forecasts have the front in Wyoming by late morning, while the higher resolution NAM is 6+ hours SLOWER. This timing will determine how long this round of snow impacts the Snake Plain, which our Blend of Models is leaning toward the faster moving cold front. By tomorrow night and Thursday morning, more widespread snow has pushed out of the state, minus a convergence band developing across the Snake Plain and eastern highlands, shifting south. Again, some forecasts hold it north of Blackfoot to Idaho Falls, while others push it into the Pocatello area. Shifting to the wind, strong southerly winds return this evening, and eventually shift to the west and southwest whenever the front clears. Downslope will cut down on snow amounts along the 15/84/86 corridor ahead of the front, while upslope will enhance snowfall (even if just a few hours) from the Wood River Valley up along the Arco Desert to the Montana border. Looking at potential snow amounts over this 36 hour period, many valley areas will see 3" or less. For the central mountains, that window of upslope will produce 1-4" of snow in the valleys with locally higher amounts in the surrounding mountains. For the Snake Plain, we MAY see an area of 3-6" total especially where the potential convergence band sets up tomorrow night. For the South Hills and Albion Mountains, higher elevation totals will be 2-6". Finally for the eastern and southeast highlands, we have 3-7" for lower valleys, and up to 12" for higher elevations. The Bear River Range is looking at and additional 7-17", with around 12" for portions of the Big Holes and along the Montana border. Headline-wise, we did extend the advisories for the eastern and southeast highlands through tomorrow night...while letting the Winter Storm Warning for the Bear River Range ride. We did issue a new Wind Advisory for Pocatello westward across the Snake Plain and Magic Valley, extending into the South Hills and Albion Mountains for gusts nearing 50 mph.

For Thursday afternoon through Tuesday...

Occasional precipitation is still in the forecast into early next week. We should see a lull, except for some lingering mountain showers, over the weekend. Amounts right now on a daily basis look minimal and not impactful at the moment. Ahead of the next main push moisture early next week, temperatures should climb this weekend...with some valley locations pushing 50 degrees by Sunday-Tuesday.

AVIATION /00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z THURSDAY/

Issued at 354 PM MST Tue Feb 17 2026

Winds at IDA are expected to diminish after 00Z this evening and after 01Z at DIJ where strong gusts die at sunset. MVFR to LIFR conditions will overspread all TAF sites in the 06-08Z time frame with reduced visibility in snow with ceilings in the 1 to 2 thousand foot range 08Z through 18 to 20Z Thursday with it continuing all day Thursday at DIJ. Winds will increase Thursday afternoon at BYI, PIH, and IDA to the 20 to 25 knot sustained range with gusts 30 to 35 knots. Expect poor flying conditions after midnight through most of Thursday.

PIH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

Wind Advisory from 9 AM to 8 PM MST Wednesday for IDZ051- 054>057. Winter Weather Advisory until 5 AM MST Thursday for IDZ058-059- 065. Winter Storm Warning until 5 AM MST Thursday for IDZ060. Winter Weather Advisory until 5 AM MST Thursday for IDZ061>064- 066-067.