DENVER -- A WINTER STORM WARNING will be in effect for the San Juan Mountains through Wednesday afternoon and for the eastern plains through Thursday morning.

For the Front Range, snow is expected along the I-25 Corridor through Thursday morning. The heaviest snow will fall overnight Tuesday and Wednesday. Expect 5 to 10 inches of snow in the Denver metro area.

This storm will turn into a holiday nightmare for travelers in the Midwest. The storm will intensify over the central plains and will dump heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain from Iowa and Illinois across the Great Lakes. If you are traveling east, there will likely be significant travel issues for Wednesday and Thursday. Check our TRAVEL WEATHER section for more details.

The storm will start lifting out of the state by Christmas Eve, but it will leave some cold air behind. Highs will be in the teens and 20s through Christmas with overnight lows in the single digits.

A white Christmas is defined as Christmas where there is at least 1 inch of snow on the ground. In Denver there has been a white Christmas about 36 percent of the time.