Rainy AM Gives Way To Cold & (Maybe) Snow

COLD is here, bringing rain chances along with it; snow chances this weekend.

Posted by Landon Hampton on Tuesday, December 5, 2017

A rainy morning will give way to a cold afternoon. Temperatures as of 5:30 are likely the warmest they’ll be all day at 58°. The temperature should decrease to around 50° by 9 AM and down to 45° by 2 PM.

HRRR Model Forecast Temperatures - Valid Noon - pivotalweather.com
HRRR Model Forecast Temperatures – Valid Noon – pivotalweather.com

Gusty northwest winds will be possible behind the front this morning. This will not only help usher in the colder temperatures, but will also make conditions feel colder than they actually are. Keep in mind to bring the jacket or coat for the evening commute.

h/t giphy.com
h/t giphy.com

The cold will show itself tonight as lows drop to around 30° under mostly clear skies.

The cold will stick around for quite some time. After temperatures start around 30° on Wednesday morning, highs will only climb to right around 50°. Compare that to the 70° we saw yesterday afternoon and it will feel quite chilly, especially given the mostly sunny skies.

h/t giphy.com
h/t giphy.com

Conditions will be a bit colder on Wednesday night, which is typical of the second night after a cold front passage. Temperatures will drop to around 28° under mostly clear skies.

Bitter Cold Thursday

The brunt of the cold will show itself on Thursday. Northwest surface flow will keep temperatures quite cold across the region, warming to only the upper 30s to around 40° by afternoon. According to the Kentucky Mesonet, this could be the coldest high temperature of the Fall season thus far. The NAM model shown below only depicts highs around 36°!

NAM Model Forecast High Temperature - Valid Thursday - pivotalweather.com
NAM Model Forecast High Temperature – Valid Thursday – pivotalweather.com

Cold temperatures during the day will mean even colder temperatures during the night. Temperatures are really expected to bottom out in the low to mid 20s, which would put the season low of 23° on November 20th in jeopardy. This low temperature may be around 10° below normal according to the European model.

European Model Forecast Temperature Anomaly - Valid Thursday Night - weather.us
European Model Forecast Temperature Anomaly – Valid Thursday Night – weather.us

Snow Still in the Forecast

Snow is still in the forecast for Saturday. A “clipper” system should dive into the region from the northwest. Given the amount of sustained cold, I think some minor accumulations may be possible Saturday morning. There’s a chance temperatures warm above freezing Saturday afternoon before a reinforcing cold front moves in. This will bring even colder conditions to the region next week.

GFS Surface Model - Valid Early Saturday Morning to Saturday Evening - pivotalweather.com
GFS Surface Model – Valid Early Saturday Morning to Saturday Evening – pivotalweather.com

That should wrap up this forecast. Be sure to check out our live weather feed. –@wxornotBG