Two Rounds of Rain, Then the Cold Cometh!

9:00 am – a late post…thank you sinus congestion!  Posts will start being around 5:00am weekdays beginning next Thursday (1/3/08). 

Low clouds are aggravating this morning.  Had hoped for a little sun and we may see some but looks like a mostly cloudy rest of the day.  You can see (image on right-click for larger view) from this visible satellite shot over the region how widespread the low clouds are.

Otherwise surface high pressure prevails.  Next rainmaker is going to get its act together over the plains and rain will make a return tonight. 

Rain will continue through the day on Friday. Exiting the region by Friday night. 

High pressure should take us into the weekend with some dry weather.  Another weather system, weaker than the one expected by Friday, will scoot along the Gulf coast Sunday.  Along with its upper level system, there won’t be as much moisture available with it as it pass through the area, thus very small chances of precipitation are expected.

The weather news for next week will be the coming cold.  It will time out to arrive with the new year.  This will be a polar delivery and temperatures are forecast to be the coldest of the winter season thus far.  Below is the forecast weather map for New Year’s morning:

That brings up an interesting side note:  this will be the coldest New Years Day since about 2002.  New Year’s Day 2008 is forecast to have a morning low of 27 and a high of 37… just a 10 degree spread between the low and the high…frankly with the cold air advection on winds likely to be out of the north at 15-25 mph…we may not get above 35.  I went back through the New Years Day files and found the following lows and highs for comparison (this is for Jackson’s McKellar-Sipes Airport):

• 2007: 26/45
• 2006: 38/69
• 2005: 53/69
• 2004: 45/61
• 2003: 41/44
• 2002: 14/32
• 2001: 10/23 -brrrrr
• 2000: 40/64

 So first day of 2008 appears to be the coldest in 6 years.