The Thanksgiving storm will likely bring the first accumulation of snow to parts of New England

BOSTON – Confidence is growing ahead of a very stormy Thanksgiving across New England. For this reason, the WBZ Weather Team has issued a NEXT Weather Alert for Thursday.

Before we get to the details of the holiday weather, we have a bit of an “appetizer storm.”

“Appetizer Storm” on Tuesday

Locally, Tuesday will be a rainy day in the Northeast. Periods of rain showers, mainly light to moderate, may occur from mid-morning to mid-afternoon.

Precipitation totals will generally be less than half an inch.

Temperatures in our region will be in the low 50s on Tuesday.

The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory for parts of central and northern New England on Tuesday.

Temperatures will be slightly cooler in this region and therefore there will be a wintry mix of rain, ice and snow.

Snow and ice amounts will be light, but some roads may be slick from Concord, NH and areas to the north.

Nationally…It will be quite windy in the Upper Midwest (behind the rain zone).

Our Thanksgiving storm will move through the Rockies on Tuesday, bringing some rain and snow showers that side.

Partly sunny Wednesday

Local…The peace between the “starter” and the “main course”. Partly sunny skies with highs in the 40s to near 50 in southern New England, with an occasional breeze.

National…The main event will now have been moved to the central part of the country. It will be in the middle of preparation as it digs south into northern Texas.

Expect some rain showers in the southern Plains and some accumulating snowfall in parts of Wyoming and Colorado.

Wintry mix on Thanksgiving

One of the strongest storms we’ve seen here in a while will bring a wintry mix to the region. Precipitation totals in eastern Massachusetts could easily reach an inch or more.

When will the storm come on Thanksgiving?

It will essentially be miserable all day. When the storm arrives in the morning hours, it will start with some light rain and snow showers. The morning high school football games will be raw and humid, getting wetter by the hour.

Expect cold and persistent rain in eastern Massachusetts during the afternoon and evening.

This storm will bring the first snow accumulations to parts of southern and central New England.

Taking into account the time of year, ocean temperature and storm track, the greatest chance of snowfall will be at higher elevations. This is fairly typical of storms in late November.

Areas most at risk of snow accumulation include the Green and White Mountains, the Berkshires and the highest elevations in northern Worcester County and southwestern New Hampshire.

There is also a chance of a period of gusty winds on Thursday. While winds will not be a major concern in this storm, we may briefly see gusts of 25 to 45 mph along the immediate coastline. Fortunately, the tides are astronomically low, so coastal flooding is not a problem.

It seems a lot calmer again on Friday and this weekend, but it will be quite chilly.

The coldest air mass yet will flow into New England from Canada this season.

Daily highs will stick around in the 30s and low 40s, with periods of gusty winds making it feel even colder.

Things can still change and there are likely some adjustments to the forecast. Stay tuned to WBZ-TV and CBSBoston.com for up-to-the-minute news.