Tracking more sunshine on Wednesday, scattered storms Thursday

TONIGHT: Passing clouds, becoming mostly clear by daybreak. Lows near 40.

TOMORROW: Mostly sunny with highs in the upper 60s.

EXTENDED: We're in for another cool night as lows drop into the upper 30s to around 40 by tomorrow morning, but sunshine returns with lighter winds, so we'll be in for another nice day. Temperatures reach the mid-upper 60s tomorrow, with clouds moving in tomorrow night. Thursday will be much warmer as a warm front lifts to the north, pushing highs into the lower 70s and bringing a chance for scattered showers and storms. A few strong storms will be possible toward evening along the boundary to our north, producing isolated incidences of 1" hail. Friday is looking largely dry with highs near 80 degrees and more of a south breeze. We have a storm chance on Saturday ahead of the cold front, but that could be hindered by what's known as a capping inversion, or a warm layer of air above the surface that prevents updrafts from growing. That could limit storms from developing at all and hindering any severe threat. For now, it looks like the best shot at severe in the region would be on Sunday ahead of the cold front, so if the front speeds up, we could end up with a cooler day free from severe storms, or if it slows down, we could end up having a chance of strong storms in the afternoon or evening. Currently, the ingredients line up best across southern and southeast Missouri on Sunday. The magnitude looks like a typical spring severe event, not to the level we had about 10 days ago with the tornado outbreak.  Behind the cold front, we're cooler to start next week with temperatures plummeting back into the 50s on Monday and Tuesday.