More Rain On the Way, Arctic Air Arrives this Weekend

More Rain to Come:

A large and powerful storm system over the central U.S brought a chilly rain, mixed snow showers, and a strong wind to the area overnight. Rainfall totals as of 6AM show that most of the region was able to pick up a good .25" to .75 of rain. 

With more rain in the works for our Wednesday, it'll be important to once again have the rain gear with you before you leave the driveway.  

Cloud cover will dominate our skies from start to finish, with occasional on and off showers passing through from time to time. As a secondary storm system nears the region, the radar will begin to fill back in as we head into tonight. 

In addition to the rain that fell last night, most will have the opportunity to pick up an additional .5" to 1.0". Once the midnight hour approaches, the activity will undergo a downward trend in intensity. Compared to today's forecast, Thursday will be a lot less hectic. However, there will still be enough moisture swinging around the low to support the potential of a few flurries and light snow showers.

Arctic Cold Filters In:

During the Thursday-Friday time frame, our storm system is going to undergo a process in which it will transfer it's energy to a new low that will form off the Carolina coast. It's during this time in which the focus will shift from the wintry precipitation to the Arctic cold in which the old low helps filter into the lower 48. High temperatures will drop from the upper 40s today to barely making it out of the 20s come Friday afternoon.

Along with the incoming cold, Friday also features the potential for a few snow showers. The coldest air arrives over the weekend, dropping highs into the upper 20s both Saturday and Sunday. 

Along with the colder days comes colder night as lows will be landing in the mid to upper teens. How long is this Arctic air going to stay? Well, long-range outlooks showcase this upcoming cold sticking around into the days before Christmas. All we need now is for mother nature to cooperate by sending us a storm system or two that will at least leave an 1" of snow on the ground by the time we're waking up on Christmas morning. Fingers crossed.