Meteorologist Heather Buchman recently discussed that Buffalo will finally get their first measurable snow of the season, thanks to this wave of cold air and lake-effect event.

This map shows the AccuWeather.com forecast for lake-effect snow spanning tonight and during the day Friday. Additional snow will fall Friday night in the central and eastern Great Lake snow belts prone to getting hit on west to northwest winds.

The cold and associated lake-effect snow are coming in two waves.

Folks in the Northeast can attest to the cold air’s arrival, thanks to the gusty winds currently in the region.

The first wave was delivering snow to part of northern New York state today in the wake of the rain and snowstorm to hit the Northeast Wednesday night.

A new push of cold air will roll in tonight and Friday across the Great Lakes.

Bands of snow often shift around as the wind changes direction.

Even a subtle shift in the wind can cause bands of snow to clobber some communities with several inches of snow per hour, while leaving other locations with patchy clouds and just a few flurries.

Since winds will dramatically shift direction in the central and eastern Great Lakes tonight through Friday night, the bands of lake-effect snow will shift as well.

Over lakes Erie and Ontario this shift will be most dramatic. The northeastern ends of both lakes will be hit tonight into Friday morning due to southwesterly winds.

Buffalo and Watertown, N.Y., are in line for a good dump of snow during Friday as winds begin to shift more into the west, causing the bands of snow to shift southward slowly.

During Friday night and Saturday, more of a west to northwest wind is in store. This will push the bands of snow south of Buffalo and Watertown.

Places from northeastern Ohio to northwestern Pennsylvania will be in the thick of the snow Friday night. This includes the northeastern suburbs of Cleveland, the city of Erie and Jamestown, N.Y., off Lake Erie.

Other locations that should do well with lake-effect snow Friday night include southwestern Ontario, downwind of Lake Huron. There is a chance that decent snow may shift southward into Syracuse, N.Y., later Friday night into Saturday before diminishing.

Flakes will fly to the lee of lakes Michigan and Superior as well.

Motorists should be prepared for slippery travel and episodes of low visibility along part of Michigan’s I-194 corridor and the portion of I-94 in southwestern Michigan and northwestern Indiana into Friday night.