A somewhat active week ahead, with a gradual warming trend

Happy Sunday folks!

It certainly has been a dreary day out there, with scattered light rain showers pushing through, and northwest winds gusting up to 40 mph at times. Temperatures are also beginning to drop, as cooler air works in from the northwest.

Clouds eventually decrease tonight, with temperatures dropping into the mid 20F’s across most of the region. It will remain blustery, with winds gusting up to 40 mph at times. Monday will be far more pleasant, with plenty of sun, and highs in the mid to upper 40F’s across southeastern Minnesota, and upper 40F’s to lower 50F’s across northern Iowa.

Clouds increase late Monday, as an upper level disturbance pushes in from the northwest. An Alberta Clipper type system will pass through late Monday night, and into Tuesday morning, resulting in chances for scattered rain and snow showers. The best chances for precipitation will be across northern Iowa after midnight, with only a slight chance across most of southeastern Minnesota.

Rain/snow shower chances continue into Tuesday, turning to all rain by mid morning. A chance of light rain showers will linger into Tuesday afternoon, but it certainly will not be a wash out. Highs will be in the upper 40F’s to around 50F on Tuesday.

Cloud cover builds Wednesday, especially during the afternoon. Highs temperatures will remain in the upper 40F’s to around 50F, and winds remain light. We see warmer temperatures arrive for Thursday, with highs in the upper 50F’s to around 60F. We’ll have a partly to mostly cloudy sky, with light southerly winds, making for a rather quiet Thursday.

The next precipitation chance arrives Thursday night, and early Friday morning. Another weak ripple in the jet stream will bring a weak area of low pressure through the region, along with scattered showers.

Friday will be mainly dry, with highs in the low to mid 60F’s under a mostly cloudy sky. Rain chances increase again going into next weekend. It’s too early to nail down any specifics, but the best chance of rain appears to be next Saturday at this point in time. Will continue to monitor through the week!

Overall, only a few light precipitation chances to watch for the last full week of March, with rather mild temperatures relative to normal for this time of year!