Highlights:
- Damp at times through Saturday
- Sunshine returns
- Looking ahead to Christmas
Rain Gear Needed…A storm system will lift north along the Ohio River between now and Saturday night before crossing the Appalachians and “jumping” to the mid Atlantic coast Sunday into Monday. This will result in periods of rain today and Saturday. Heaviest and most concentrated rainfall will remain along and south of the I-70 corridor- especially across southwest IN. For the majority of us, this won’t be a major rain event.
Improving weather will develop for the 2nd half of the weekend as we introduce at least a little sunshine into the forecast. That sunshine will set the tone for the new work week, including a nice stretch of weather (by late-December standards) Monday through Wednesday.
A cold front will blow through the state Thursday with a shower possible, followed by colder air to close the work week.
Looking ahead towards Christmas, we still anticipate this to be around the timeframe that we’re transitioning back to colder air. It’s far too early to get specific around rain or snow, but the transitional pattern does support the idea of more active times. Stay tuned…
While this will support a 5-10 day period of temperatures of 5° to 10° above average (milder overnight lows, and a few days with highs at or above 50° are a good bet during the period, as well), the stage is already being set in motion for a return of colder conditions around the Christmas holiday. While admittedly, transitional periods can be “finicky,” there’s support from other pattern drivers behind a wintry return between the 12.22 and 12.24 time period. Furthermore, data suggests that there will be plenty of storminess to boot.
We expect the mean ridge position to set up shop over the Pacific northwest. This will result in a warmer than average regime across the west. At the same time, the trough will be pushing back into the east. As the cold air settles back in, we expect a rather active time of things during the period. This certainly doesn’t mean we’re talking snow storms, but it does appear likely that at least one or two systems of interest loom. We’ll have to deal with the challenges that will come from one or both as time draws closer.
