Quiet Thursday ahead of next big weather system for Columbus area
QUICK WEATHER FORECAST:
- Tonight: Mostly cloudy, low 31
- Thursday: Partly sunny, breezy, high 41
- Friday: Rainy & breezy, high 48
- Saturday: AM Snow, windy, high 30
- Sunday: Early flurries, snow showers late, high 22
FORECAST DISCUSSION:
Good Wednesday Evening,
Today was a pretty typical mid-January day with plenty of cloud cover and temps that topped in the upper 30s early and have slowly dropped through the day. Tonight expect mostly cloudy skies, with temps only falling to the lower 30s to upper 20s.
Thursday a weak system will pass to our north with clouds and a few flurries near US-30. Most of the area will see a bit of sunshine with temps back above normal in the lower 40s. Clouds will increase after midnight into Friday with precipitation holding off until at least mid-morning on Friday. This is good news, as it should all start as rain as temps will be rising into the 40s.
Winds will increase through the day, and it will be wet and windy with highs in the upper 40s. As the system pushes east, cooler air will slide in overnight and change rain showers to snow showers on the backside of the system. The higher snowfall totals will be in the northwest part of the state, with lighter totals in Central Ohio with windy conditions in the morning.
Saturday will see snow showers taper off by midday with highs only around 30, and this will be the start of colder air that will lock itself in place for a while. Sunday could have some flurries early to start the day, and then flurries to snow showers by Sunday night. Clouds and wind will be the rule Sunday with highs in the lower 20s, and chills only in the teens.
Monday will be even colder with blowing snow showers and highs in the upper teens, and wind chills barely into the teens at best. Monday overnight expect our first taste of below zero wind chills, with some spots dropping into the negative teens by Tuesday for wind chills in the morning. With highs barely into the middle teens Tuesday, expect wind chills to only top in the lower single digits under partly sunny skies.
Wednesday things will moderate a bit, with mostly cloudy skies, and highs in the lower 20s.
-Dave