Albany

The groundhog was right.

The cold, snowy winter is expected to continue this week as a storm wreaking havoc in the South is predicted to move up the Eastern Seaboard and hit the Capital Region on Thursday morning.

"The potential is certainly there for seven or more inches of snow," which would complicate Thursday afternoon's commute, meteorologist Kevin Lipton of the National Weather Service said.

Weather watchers on Tuesday were tracking the storm that could drift south and east, which would mean less snow, or hit the area hard with a snowfall of 10 or more inches.

"I think this coming snow will be a little wetter consistency than the last few storms," Lipton said.

This new storm would come on the heels of one that dropped10 to 12 inches of snow on the region on Feb. 5.

Seven inches of snow remained at Albany International Airport on Tuesday.

So far, the Capital Region has received 48 inches of snow this winter, compared with an average total to date of 39.3 inches, Lipton said. This season's total easily trumps the 26.4 inches that fell by this time last year.

February temperatures through Monday were running 3.2 degrees colder than the period's 20.8-degree average.

Temperatures on Tuesday reached 20 degrees and were expected to drop to 5 below zero early Wednesday. Clear skies were expected, with temperatures staying in the teens and mid-20s. Clouds will increase Wednesday night. Snow could start falling after 9 or 10 a.m. Thursday and continue for much of the day, Lipton said.

dyusko@timesunion.com • 518-454-5353 • @DAYusko