Following cold spell, January to end on a mild note

Following a brief thaw in Mid-Missouri, temperatures have plunged below freezing once again. It’s a trend that has held steady for most of the month, with the average temperature nearly 6 degrees below seasonal averages. It’s a testament to just how cold this winter has been, not only in Missouri, but across most of the nation.

In just a matter of 24 hours, temperatures rapidly fell from the lower 60s into the teens, as a strong arctic cold front tracked through the region. Unlike earlier in the month where temperatures stayed below freezing for two weeks, this round of cold air looks to stick around for only six days. As the arctic oscillation trends more positive, we’ll see the coldest air stay locked in place across Canada and the North Pole.

With persistent northwest flow aloft, very few chances at seeing any measurable winter precipitation will be in the forecast. The best chance comes as we head into Sunday and Monday of next week, as moisture streams into Mid-Missouri ahead of another strong cold front. This could bring a dusting to an inch of snow for the region, with heavier amounts expected near Highway 65.

There are signs that once this blast of cold air exits Mid-Missouri, we’ll end January on a mild note. As upper level steering winds shift more out of the west, we’ll pull in more moisture and warmth. The Climate Prediction Center notes this in its outlook through the end of January. The center’s most recent outlook shows a decent chance that we’ll see temperatures above average, which would be in the 40s for Mid-Missouri. Unfortunately, that will mean that outside out of snow chances through Monday, the rest of the month will be snow-free.

Stay with ABC 17 Stormtrack Weather as we continue to track the rest of our winter and follow us on Twitter @ABC17Stormtrack.