Colder air, rain & wintry mix Thursday

TONIGHT: Tonight will remain mild and breezy with overnight lows only falling to near 50s with mostly cloudy skies. There is a slight chance for rain showers after midnight as they develop in our northwestern counties and gradually track southeast. Winds will be out of the south up to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 25.

THURSDAY: A cold front will move through in the morning with falling temperatures from the low 50s at daybreak to below freezing by mid-afternoon. West to northwest winds will increase to 20 mph, gusting to 30 mph and producing wind chills in the low teens by evening. Rain is possible through early afternoon, changing to spotty and light freezing rain and sleet in the afternoon with some light snow possible. A glaze of ice is possible in areas, especially bridges and overpasses which will cool faster. Spotty areas of ice are possible but is not expected to be widespread at this time.

EXTENDED: It will be very cold and dry Thursday night as we drop into the lower teens by Friday morning with wind chills as low as 7 below zero. The Arctic air will stick around through the weekend, dropping low temperatures into the single digits Saturday night with daytime highs only in the lower 20s. We are watching a couple fast moving areas of low pressure which will move through this weekend. The first of these “Clippers” will move through early Saturday but won’t have enough moisture to produce snow as it move into Mid-Missouri. The other which moves through Sunday afternoon could allow for some brief snow showers across Mid-Missouri with a possible dusting of snow. Next week starts off below freezing with warming temperatures possible past Wednesday. Watch ABC 17 news and check back on our website for the latest updates to your forecast.