KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Good morning bloggers,
The week will begin with a nice warm-up. Temperatures will surge towards 60 degrees the next two days. Here is a look at one forecast for this afternoon's temperatures:
Today's warm-up is being driven by a weather pattern that has even warmer air in the forecast. The Arctic air has exited the U.S. and there is a trough of low pressure, the black dashed line, extending from a surface low that is just off this forecast map in Canada. It extends all the way south into north Texas.
This trough will swing by tonight and Tuesday, but it is in a good position to help Tuesday get even warmer, with 60 degrees likely and possibly a bit warmer into the 60s.
This forecast made valid at noon tomorrow shows the trough gradually turning into a cold front. A cold front is also a trough, but it becomes a cold front when it becomes the leading edge of a colder air mass. This is exactly what is happening on Tuesday. Near 60 degrees is likely Tuesday.
After it turns just a bit cooler Wednesday and Thursday, the biggest warm-up may arrive Friday.
This map shows a stronger cold front moving through by Friday night. It will warm into the 60s ahead of this front and Friday may be the warmest day of the week.
What is going on here? Well, it is a great weather pattern for dry and warmer air to dominate our weather through this next week. But, remember, it is still winter, and we see a colder and stormier pattern in around 10 days or so.
Today's Gorgeous Sunrise:
"Red sky at night, sailor's delight! Red sky in the morning, sailors take warning!"
As the saying goes, this morning we should be taking warning, but we are in a dry weather pattern, so we just get to enjoy this beautiful sunrise. When the sun is shining on the clouds and illuminating them in the morning into the brilliant red color, it usually implies a storm moving in from the west, but this morning it was just a perfectly timed band of clouds and we get to enjoy a gorgeous winter day!
Kansas City weather timeline:
- Today through Tuesday: A warming trend with temperatures warming up into the 50s. It may rise into the lower 60s on Tuesday. Expect a mostly sunny sky after a gorgeous sunrise this morning.
- The rest of the week: There will be a little cool down on Wednesday, but it will stay nice. Then, another big warm-up is likely by Thursday night and Friday with temperatures likely surging into the 60s before a weekend cold front.
- The LRC look into the rest of this month: A stormy stretch with a chance of a winter storm or two will increase between Feb. 15 and 20, with a series of storm systems likely in the second half of this month. This is one of the signature parts of the pattern that has produced strong storm systems in the previous two cycles. The Mayfield, Kentucky tornado disaster happened in the December version of this year's cycling pattern. That part of the pattern will cycle back through in around 10 days. In the February and March versions of the LRC, there is often cold air still available and these later storm systems will likely have a strong winter and possibly the spring severe weather effects on the pattern. I am expecting a major winter storm with tornado potential in the warmer air farther south and east.
Thank you for spending a few minutes of your day reading the weather blog and sharing this weather experience. Have a great start to the week.
Gary
