Much Warmer To Start, Remaining Sunny & Dry

What a difference this morning huh? It's incredible to think that we were under a frost advisory a little over 24 hours ago with temperatures in the low to mid 30s. Thanks to a warm southerly wind, temperatures for those heading out early on were about 15° to 20° warmer in most spots. No complaints (in my opinion) on how our Tuesday got underway, as the warmer start was also met by dry conditions with just a few passing clouds. This morning's mild start is a sign for things to come, as temperatures remain above average not only into the middle of the work week, but into the upcoming weekend as well. 

The area of high pressure that kept us dry for the start of the work week will continue to keep our atmosphere dry for your Tuesday. You'll notice that skies were a bit hazy this morning. That's because a thick plume of wildfire smoke rode the jet stream aloft, and tracked into the Stateline during the evening yesterday. 

We'll see a little bit of smoke fill our skies from time to time today, with plenty of sunshine will be filtering through that haze. Southwesterly winds will help pull in warmer air ahead of the first of two cold fronts, which is forecast to slide through late this morning. No rain is expected with today's cold frontal passage, thanks to it being moisture starved. Most of the moisture today is trapped across the deep south, thanks to that same area of high pressure that will keep us dry today. As this front slides through, we may see an increase in cloud cover. But that's about all as skies will clear out once again by the afternoon. Highs this afternoon will end up a few degrees above average, with highs in the low 70s. 

As for tonight, hi-res models continued to show the second cold front sliding through during the pre-dawn hours of Wednesday. This cold front is also going to be short in the moisture department, so it may just add a few more clouds to the sky shortly after midnight. But the majority of our night will be feature dry, but breezy conditions. 

What's so important about tonight you ask? Well, a certain planet is going to be visible during the entire month of October. However, this certain planet will make it's closest approach to the earth overnight tonight, and will only be 38.6 million miles away. I know, it doesn't sound close at all. But, it won't be this close again until 2035. If you plan on being out tonight, you'll be in good shape to witness Mars. You'll just have to hold onto your camera stand, as winds could gust up to 20 mph.

Alright! I've got some good news for all of you warm weather fans out there. Highs the next couple of days will remain a few degrees above average, in the low 70s. However, it's not until Friday that we're talking about an even bigger spike in the thermometer. Dare I say that we might be flirting with the 80° mark once again both Friday and Saturday? It sure is possible. On the backside of a second high pressure system, strong southwest winds will help filter an even warmer air mass for weeks end. Temperatures both Friday and Saturday are expected to climb into the upper 70s. According to long-range outlooks, it does appear as though the warmer-than-average temperatures trend will continue through the middle of the month.