December 31, 2020 archive

Type: Impactful wintry weather

What: Freezing rain/ icy glaze

When: 2a – 1p Friday

Temperatures: 25° to 30° (location dependent, please see below)

Wind: East 5-15 MPH

Blowing/ Drifting: Non-existent

Pavement Impacts: Salting will be required

Summary: After a dry New Year’s Eve, moisture will advance north as a surface low tracks from the northwestern Gulf Coast into the Ohio Valley. As the precipitation arrives (around or just after midnight for far southwestern IN before spreading north, reaching Indianapolis by 4a, and north-central Indiana by 6a), it’ll encounter a shallow layer of cold air entrenched at the surface. Several hours of freezing rain can be expected north of a line from Terre Haute, Bloomington, and Cincinnati Friday morning where temperatures will remain below freezing the longest. South of that line, only a brief period of icing is expected before a transition to a cold rain. Further north, especially along and north of the I-70 corridor, temperatures will fall into the middle to upper 20s tonight and slowly rise into the lower 30s by late morning. All of the state will “warm” above freezing by Friday afternoon with any lingering moisture falling as a plain ole rain. Beforehand, an icy glaze is expected to develop predawn Friday and travel will be difficult in places- especially from central IN and points north. If at all possible, we recommend delaying travel until afternoon as conditions should slowly begin to improve by that point.

Confidence: High

Next Update: This afternoon