Snow forecast · Japan · Yamagata
Zao Onsen snow forecast
How much fresh snow will fall on Zao Onsen this week, and how low will it reach? The forecast below is for the top of the lifts at 1661 m and the bottom at 780 m, refreshed every time you open the page.
Fresh snow
No real snowfall in the forecast for the next 7 days.
Forecast of 2026-10-16 14:27 UTC. Updating live…
The next 7 days, day by day
| Day | Fresh snow, summit | Fresh snow, base | Freezing level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri 16 Oct | 0 cm | 0 cm | 2950–3250 m |
| Sat 17 Oct | 0 cm | 0 cm | 3050–3550 m |
| Sun 18 Oct | 0 cm | 0 cm | 3600–4200 m |
| Mon 19 Oct | 0 cm | 0 cm | 3850–4300 m |
| Tue 20 Oct | 0 cm | 0 cm | 3750–4150 m |
| Wed 21 Oct | 0 cm | 0 cm | 3900–4450 m |
| Thu 22 Oct | 0 cm | 0 cm | 1600–4700 m |
Days in local time (Asia/Tokyo). Freezing level: lowest and highest height of the 0 °C line that day.
Freezing level below 780 m: snow right down to the base. Between 780 and 1661 m: snow up high, wetter lower down. Above 1661 m: rain or melting on the whole mountain.
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Snow depth map around Zao Onsen
The map shows forecast snow depth on the ground every 3 hours (NOAA GFS); tap anywhere for the depth and the freezing level.
Zao Onsen at a glance
Zao Onsen is a ski area in Yamagata, Japan. Its lifts climb from 780 m to 1661 m, 881 m of vertical, so the same storm can bring powder at the top and rain or slush at the bottom: compare the freezing level with those two heights.
Questions
- Will it snow in Zao Onsen this week?
- The table above gives the fresh snow forecast for each of the next 7 days at the summit (1661 m) and at the base (780 m) of Zao Onsen. It is recomputed from the latest weather model run every time the page is opened.
- How much fresh snow is forecast for Zao Onsen in the next 24 hours?
- See the "Next 24 h" box at the top of the page: centimetres of new snow at the summit, with the base underneath. The 72-hour and 7-day totals sit next to it.
- What does the freezing level mean for skiing in Zao Onsen?
- It is the height where the air is at 0 °C. Below it precipitation falls as snow; above it, as rain. With a freezing level under 780 m it snows on the whole of Zao Onsen; between 780 and 1661 m only the upper slopes get snow.
- How deep is the snow in Zao Onsen right now?
- The "Snow depth now" box shows the modelled natural snow depth at the summit and at the base. It is a model estimate, not a measurement, and it leaves out groomed and artificial snow: check the resort's own report for the pistes that are open.
Snow forecast nearby
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How this forecast is made
Fresh snow (hourly snowfall), freezing level and snow depth come from the Open-Meteo forecast API, which blends national and global weather models (among them ECMWF IFS, DWD ICON and NOAA GFS) and corrects them to the altitude asked for: here the summit and the base of Zao Onsen. Totals start from the current hour; the daily table runs in local time. Model snow depth is natural snow only. The live map shows NOAA GFS snow depth and freezing level around Zao Onsen.