Tracking a cold start to a warm week
TODAY: Monday brings the chill, as winds from the northwest at sunrise, will intensify through the day. Sustained northwest winds in the 10-15 mph range, gusting to 30+ mph at times will keep us in the 30s, and feeling like 20s for much of the day. Despite the cold, there will be plenty of sun, so grab the coat and the sun glasses.
TONIGHT: Winds relax with approaching high pressure tonight. Clear and relatively calm conditions will allow for temperatures to drop into the teens.
EXTENDED: By Tuesday morning, winds are expected to return to a southerly direction, bringing a warmup to the rest of the week. We'll reach mid-40s by Tuesday afternoon, under partly cloudy skies. We'll keep some mix of sun and clouds in the forecast for Wednesday, as temperatures continue to warm. Expect 50s on Wednesday. We stay warm, but our warmup stalls in the 50s, as clouds increase in the forecast on Thursday. By the nighttime, we're adding chances for rain. Good news in regards to the drought, is, that we'll keep a chance for rain everyday from Thursday, through Christmas Day. For those hoping for snow, it's not so good news, as confidence is high that we'll have temperatures warm enough to avoid any chance at snow all together. Initially, our best chance at rain comes Thursday night, which may linger into Friday. Another low chance for rain arrives on Saturday as well. Both Friday and Saturday see highs in the mid-50s. This will all be tied to southerly flow at the top of the atmosphere. This brings in moisture, and even a few disturbances to help trigger rain chances. However, better moisture and forcing for rain is expected on Sunday. Generally, rain chances will climb and come to a head Sunday into Monday, Christmas Day, as the surface low tied to the parent upper level system that is responsible for the previous warmth and rain chances, approaches. A very rough initial approximation suggests we could see up to an inch of rain by Christmas.
