Warmer to start the week, a large storm system to track, and cooler by mid week

Happy Sunday afternoon everyone!

Temperatures have fallen short of the expected highs for the area this afternoon, with only a few locations reaching 40F. Nonetheless, it has been a beautiful early March day, with plenty of sun and lighter winds.

Southerly winds remain light tonight, and continue to bring warmer air northward. This will result in low temperatures only dropping to near 30F. Clouds gradually increase later on as we begin to feel the influence of a warm front approaching from the south.

Clouds will continue to increase through the day on Monday, with southerly winds also picking up a bit, gusting up to 20 mph at times. There will be a slight chance for a wintry mix of precipitation across the area Monday morning, but no significant accumulations will result. Just be mindful of a few slick spots on the roads Monday morning if any precipitation does indeed take place!

High temperatures will be well into the 50F’s Monday thanks to southerly flow ahead of a potent storm system approaching from the southwest. Low temperatures Monday night only drop to around 40F, as scattered shower chances begin to increase.

By Tuesday afternoon, widespread rain becomes more likely as an area of low pressure deepens just to our south. Moisture return northward is quite impressive, as well as forcing with this system. As a result, many locations may receive well over a quarter of an inch of rain Tuesday afternoon through the late evening.

Highs in the mid to upper 40F’s Tuesday will keep precipitation in the form of rain, but the same cannot be said for Tuesday night and into Wednesday. A transition from rain to snow is now likely Tuesday night into early Wednesday morning.

The deepening low to our southeast will also create a strong pressure gradient, capable of bringing gusty winds of up to 40 mph into our area Tuesday night and into Wednesday. With that said, impacts from accumulating, and blowing, snow are becoming more likely Wednesday, with exact snow accumulations still up in the air.

Cooler temperatures follow the remainder of this week, with highs in the low to mid 30F’s through Friday. Thankfully, even with the fresh covering of snow, the March sun angle is much stronger than during January and February, resulting in warmer daytime temperatures!

There is another system that bears watching this Friday, but model guidance is quite split on whether we see an impacts from this system or not. Lots of time to watch, with the main focus being on Tuesday and Wednesday’s system for the time being.

Until then, enjoy the more mild temperatures today and Monday!