Forecast: Sun doesn’t last long as late-week precipitation chances lurk

Today's Daily Digit

 

A somewhat subjective rating of the
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Yay! Not too cold (40s) & the sun sticks around through at least 1st half of day.
 
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Today: Mostly sunny a.m. Partly cloudy p.m. Mid-to-upper 40s. | Tonight: Mostly cloudy. 30% chance of light rain or wintry mix late. | Tomorrow: Mostly cloudy. 30% chance of a.m. light rain or wintry mix. 50% chance of p.m. showers. 40s. | A Look Ahead | Get Express Forecast by E-mail

Even in a winter that’s been far from brutal, it’s nice to see the sun after a stretch of cold, cloudy days. We saw some periods of sun yesterday. And more is on tap for at least part of today, before skies cloud up again into Friday with precipitation chances along the way. Then comes Friday night and Saturday, when the forecast features a tinge of winter uncertainty.

Snow Potential Index: 2 (→) - A few chances at flakes Thurs am thru weekend, but odds of accumulation fairly low each time.

 

The SPI is a daily assessment of the potential for accumulating snow for the next week on a 0-10 scale. Get the 'SPI' on Twitter

 

Today (Wednesday): Not bad as winter Wednesdays go. Wake-up temps mainly in the 30s set the stage for mostly sunny morning skies, turning partly cloudy in the afternoon. Highs reach the mid-to-upper 40s with light winds throughout. Confidence: High

Tonight: Skies become mostly cloudy during the evening with a 30% chance of light showers overnight. If we do see precipitation, it’s possible some is in the form of light snow or sleet. But accumulation or iciness doesn’t look to be a concern with lows several degrees above freezing, in the mid-to-upper 30s. Confidence: Medium

For related traffic news, check out Dr. Gridlock. Keep reading for the forecast through the weekend...

Tomorrow (Thursday): The risk of any light snow or sleet (most likely of the non-accumulating variety) should wane during the early-to-mid morning. But we’ll still have a 30% chance of scattered rain showers in the morning and 50% chance in the afternoon. Highs in the 40s are seasonable under mostly cloudy skies. Confidence: Medium

Tomorrow night: As low pressure passes to our west, we see our rain chances rise to around 60-70%. Mostly cloudy skies and a warm flow from the south/southwest combine to produce mild lows from near 40 to the mid-40s. Confidence: Medium

Shower chances may extend into Friday, eventually followed by clearing skies and breezy conditions with not-too-chilly highs from the upper 40s to mid-50s. Confidence: Medium

Models over the past day or so have offered conflicting guidance for the Friday night through Saturday period. Specifically, at least one model has shown the potential for a coastal storm that could give us rain or snow, while others have not. For now I’m leaning toward quiet weather with Friday night lows near 30 to the mid-30s, and Saturday highs in the 40s. But confidence is still on the low side. Confidence: Low-Medium

Colder air pours in Saturday night and Sunday, possibly bringing with it some flurries or a few snow showers. Saturday night lows are likely pushed down to the upper 20s to mid-30s, while Sunday shapes up as partly sunny and breezy with highs in the upper 30s to low 40s. Confidence:Medium