Not only will you need a jacket for much of the rest of this week, you'll also want to grab an umbrella at times...epecially tomorrow. A polar cold front brings definite Winter weather back to the Lone Star State! Most of today's showers taper early as the front heads south to the Gulf Coast, leaving us with a strong north wind that'll make 50s feel like 40s through the afternoon. A chilly rain sets up across our region tomorrow, and it looks cold enough for snow in West Texas. Be prepared for messy travel conditions.
As for temperatures, we hit our official high of 72 for the day during the overnight hours and, thanks to the front, it's one of those wacky weather days in which our coldest will probably happen just before midnight tonight. Check out current & forecast temps by going to weather menu above, then click "Temps and Almanacs."
Winds from the north were gusting around 25 to 35 mph immediately behind the front, a sign of its strength! We'll consider it windy all day long, with wind speeds forecast to gradually diminish to around 10 to 15 mph tonight and tomorrow. Add some Wednesday rain to the mix and it's going to be a fairly raw day out there. Tomorrow's chance is 80% and it comes with high temps only in the low to mid 40s -- that's about 20 degrees colder than normal.
Futurecast shows snow developing out across I-10 into West Texas for tomorrow night through early Thursday. While we expect it to all be liquid here at home, and maybe an all day rain event, the air aloft could get cold enough to support a wintry mix of rain and sleet in the far western Hill Country by tomorrow night. Little to no accumulation is expected thanks to warm grounds. We don't have a lot of confidence in that part of the forecast but want to make sure you're aware of the possibilities.
Our latest in-house models show possible 1" to 1.5" accumulations during the day tomorrow, then the showers should wrap up during the first part of our Thursday with some partial sunshine returning, along with slightly less chilly daytime 50s.
At the coldest this week, temps could reach a light freeze come Thursday morning out in the Hill Country and some of our notorious cold spots in the suburbs. In metro areas, we think we'll hold above 32 by a couple degrees but it'll be a close call as it appears now.
High pressure returns to Texas this weekend and temps will zoom back up into the comfort zone, with highs in seasonable 60s both Saturday and Sunday. See the 7 Day Forecast for more.
Keep warm!
--Chief Meteorologist Burton Fitzsimmons (@Burton_Spectrum)