Northern Utah's Indian summer of above-normal temperatures and dry weather is expected to end Thursday with the arrival of a storm that could bring rain, snow and colder air.

"Thursday is going to be a colder day, but any (snow) accumulation will be limited to the bench areas and higher," Dan Pope, KSL meteorologist, said.

While Veterans Day climbed to temperatures in the low 60s, Wednesday night featured south winds and temperatures lowering to about 48 degrees at the Salt Lake City International Airport.

So far, the month of November has had above-normal temperatures on 10 of its 11 days. Last Sunday's 53-degree high reading and 33-degree low temperature made for the only day of the month with a normal temperature. Otherwise, temperatures each day ranged from three to 14 degrees above normal.

Precipitation so far this month is zero, 0.5 inches below the normal.

Rainfall is likely today, with an 80 percent chance of precipitation, and temperatures only reaching about 50 degrees for the daytime high.

The snow level should be about 5,800 feet today, lowering to 4,800 feet after midnight, when Salt Lake Valley temperatures should hover just above freezing at 34 degrees.

The storm is expected to gain strength, moving southward, and the central and southwest mountains of Utah should take the brunt of it. Some snow may fall along the I-15 corridor and probably around the Sanpete and Sevier valleys.

Below-freezing temperatures should return to Salt Lake City, dipping to about 31 degrees Friday night and 29 degrees Saturday night.

Sunday is predicted to only reach a high of 41 degrees. Monday and Tuesday could rebound to the low 50s, under sunny skies, according to the Salt Lake Office of the National Weather Service.

What's ahead for the rest of fall and the upcoming winter?

"The bottom line is, we will continue to see storms about every seven to nine days," Pope predicted. "That has been the trend so far, so I would expect one more series of storms after this Thursday through Saturday series, by the end of the month."

He said the El Nino pattern will keep Utah slightly warmer than normal in December, January and February.

"The odds are equal chances for dry or wet, but likely about normal. This would mean snowfall will be 65.5 inches at the airport between now and spring. That means we will see several good storms this winter, and my gut tells me when we shift to stormy and wetter weather late this month, that trend will continue in December and January. Nothing extraordinary, but even normal winters bring some good storms and I expect that to happen this winter as well."

Pope said on average Salt Lake City sees 18 days of one inch or more of snow and nine days of three inches or more at the airport during an average winter. There are typically two storms of 6 to 9 inches and one storm every other year of nine inches or more.

"We call the 6-to-9-inch storms 'big storms' and the 9-inch or more storms 'super storms,'" he said. "My experience tells me we will have those 18 days of one inch or more (of snow) this winter."

"Average" also equals 38 days of measurable snowfall during a typical winter in Salt Lake.

"The trend towards near or slightly warmer than normal may cause the snow to melt off the valley floor a little more than usual. It also might mean a slightly under-performing ski season if there are warmer-than-usual days mixed in the normal amount of snow days. But I don't think it will have a significant impact on the ski season."

e-mail: lynn@desnews.com