Warmer temperatures are expected to close out the week. The next chance for rain will come with a strong cold front on Friday followed by the potential for record cold over the weekend.

Next 24 Hours: Clouds will continue slowly breaking apart from northwest to southeast overnight. Low temperatures will drop off into the mid 40s. We will welcome a good bit of sunshine back to the area on Thursday, especially away from the coast. High temperatures will chug into the mid 70s as a result.        

Up Next: After waking up to lows in the upper 40s and low 50s, highs will make it into the mid 70s before a strong cold front presses into the region on Friday afternoon. This system will bring increasing clouds through the day along with scattered showers and thunderstorms—especially during the afternoon and evening hours. Much colder air will follow this front. Thermometers will sink into the 30s by Saturday morning and fail to go beyond the low 50s in the afternoon. A freeze, several weeks past the average last occurrence, is expected on Sunday morning. In fact, the current forecast calls for a tie of the record low of 30 degrees dating back to 1948. Since the growing season has started, it will be important to cover or move young, tender and tropical plants. Thermometers will rebound toward average after that. CLICK HERE for your detailed 7-Day Forecast.

The Explanation: As the slow moving front that has influenced our weather all week slides farther southeast of the area, some clearing is anticipated on Thursday, especially for inland locations. Winds will be light and easterly; coupled with sunshine, high temperatures will push into the low 70s. A strong upper level trough of low pressure will merge with the jet stream on Friday while digging into the Southeast. A potent cold front will accompany that system and while the severe weather potential looks to be low, the clash in air masses should be enough to produce scattered showers and thunderstorms—especially Friday afternoon and evening. A significant cold air mass will overtake the area this weekend in the wake of that front. A strong surface high pressure system, originating from the Arctic, will dive into the Lower Midwest setting up strong northerly winds over the local area. Expect sustained winds of 10-20mph behind the front with gusts over 30mph possible through Saturday morning. These winds will help to usher in near record cold temperatures for Mid-March. Despite sunshine, high temperatures will be held down by the advancement of cold air on Saturday and struggle to reach the 50s. The lowest high temperature for the date was 48 degrees in 1993. Perhaps the record most in danger of falling is the low temperature on Sunday morning. Beneath clear skies, light winds and dry air will lead to a perfect setup for falling temperatures and many locations north of I-10 will freeze. As of now, the forecast is for 30 degrees, which would be good enough to tie the 1948 benchmark. Some neighborhoods could certainly reach the upper 20s. Since we are three weeks past the average final freeze and the growing season has started, expect some warnings from the National Weather Service to care for sensitive vegetation.  Temperatures will begin recovering quickly on Sunday as the parent upper level trough moves east and warming occurs at all levels of the atmosphere. Winds will turn south and southwesterly by early next week as another upper level trough of low pressure moves out of the Southwest U.S. into toward the local area. This system will return a chance of showers to the early as early as Monday evening. 

--Josh

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