Quick Look For Saturday

Good Morning!

A dreary winter day with mild temperatures is on tap today, expect it to rain in periods all day, and don't be surprised to see some snowflakes as well, especially as you work into the north zone, and as temperatures fall into the nighttime hours.  Here's the forecast...

We'll keep an eye on the upper wave that is bringing us our precipitation right now, and as temperatures fall, we'll also watch for a changeover, because that opens the door for some slick travel.  Have a good day!

Six Day Forecast

Good Evening!

After taking a look at some fresh weather data, I have the six-day forecast for you...here it is!

As you can see plenty of chances for rain and even a little snow in this forecast!  Have a great evening!

Chilly And Damp At Times...

Hello Again!

Seasonable conditions prevail in the area today, with a mix of clouds and sunshine.  A touch of warming is coming this way, you can see it in the surface temperature map here, with the above freezing readings stretching WAY north and edging this way:

National Surface Temperatures

Let's pop the hood and see what's running in there:

SUMMARY:  A Canadian Import in the form of a high pressure is sliding off to the east, with seasonably cool days and chilly nights.  As it moves, that opens the door for some changes in our part of the world.  We'll see temperatures climb just a touch with temperatures in the 40's and southeast winds the next few days.  In the meantime, some clouds roll in later today and precipitation chances go up a bit.  Nighttime lows will dip into the 20's.  Don't complain about the highs, because we have been spoiled all this time - normal highs this time of year should be right around 35 degrees.  Starting Monday, daytime highs trend down some to near normal levels, into the upper 30's with clouds, and we stay in that regime through late next week.

PRECIPITATION:  We stay dry today and into this evening.  For Friday, we should see some hit or miss showers early in the morning and stretching through the morning commute  I don't foresee these being much of a headache, as they should be light with some good spacing between them.  After that, we keep the clouds around, I don't think we get much rain though.  Really we'll have a shot at some activity from early Friday morning right on through the weekend and into Monday.  Within that window, forecast models are suggesting scattered to numerous showers through early Saturday afternoon, then we shift to a more hit and miss deal through early next week.  Let's take a look at the 5 Day Precipitation Outlook:

National Weather Service 5-Day Precipitation Forecast

Not a whole lot of precipitation for us in this forecast, and that looks about right from what I can see of the data this morning.  We'll come in at a half inch tops according to this map, I think we stay closer to a quarter-inch.  As a footnote, another weather shift of sorts occurs as well, starting as early as Sunday night.  We mix up the precipitation mode a bit, from rain, to a mixed bag including some freezing precipitation, or even a bit of snow.

A fairly consistent mid-level cloud deck greets us this morning, with some chilly temperatures in the area at this hour:

And here's the forecast for Jackson and surrounding areas including Napoleon and Leoni Township:


Today, some sunshine increasing clouds as the day progresses, a bit warmer than normal, high 44, winds SE 6-12 MPH.

Tonight, cloudy skies, some widely scattered showers develop late, lows near 34, winds turn SW 4-8 MPH.

Friday, cloudy skies, expect some widely scattered morning showers, these should taper off later in the day and leave the clouds around, high 46.  Wind NE 4-8 MPH.

Friday night, still cloudy, seasonably chilly, we can't rule out some redeveloping scattered showers, low 35.  Winds NE 4-8 MPH.

Saturday, mostly cloudy with the chance of a few stray showers, high 44.

Sunday, more clouds than sun, still the chance at some widely spaced showers, highs near 45.

Monday, cloudy skies, just the mention of a isolated shower or flurry, high only 36.

Tuesday, periods of clouds and sunshine, colder, high 34.

Wednesday, continued partly sunny, high 36.

There's a look at your forecast for the next six days, I do hope that you have a great Thursday!  Blessings.

Quick Look At Hump Day...

Good Morning!

The cold air has settled in over Michigan for awhile.  It could be worse - temperatures are in the teens across Lake Michigan in Wisconsin!  Some of that cold stuff may push in here for a bit tonight, but nothing long-term to worry about.  Here's my forecast for today:

I hope that you have a great day!

(Not Too) Cold & Clearing....

Good Morning!

Some rain showers are moving through the South Central Michigan Weather Zone at this hour, those are starting to depart.  Here's a look at the the Grand Rapids NEXRAD radar, showing the line of rain as it tracks through the area:

As I forecast late Sunday, this rain is the precursor to some sharply cooler temperatures, even though all we're doing is falling back into the normal temperature range for this time of the year.  Let's take a look at the  temperatures around the US of A at this hour:

That cold air returning is painted pretty clearly in this image, and the upper air trough connected to it is well-defined by the sharp temperature change.  You see all that blue digging into the nation's mid-section? Some of that is headed this way.  Thankfully, only some; the bitterly cold stuff doesn't look like it will get into lower Michigan and gain any real foothold.  In fact, we warm back into the 50's for the weekend.  Now let's pop the hood and take a peek at what's running under there:

SUMMARY:  All of the unseasonably warm spring-like conditions are on the way out.  A trough that has been unable to move and kept the bitterly cold air well north of us (a high temperature yesterday of -31 up in Alaska) finally gets traction and kicks the door down, diving into the US.  Expect a temperature nosedive of 15 to 25 degrees over the next 24 hours or so.  We keep the rain around in periods for a good chunk of the day, then as the cold front keeps edging closer, skies clear, winds turn northwesterly, then bye-bye spring reminder.  More seasonable high temperatures in the 38-44 range are on tap until Friday, with mainly clear skies.  Some clouds approach us for the tail end of the week and into the weekend, as forecast models are suggesting a surface low centered pretty much on top of us that will bring some precipitation.  We'll see another 10 degree dip from some 50's over the weekend.  More on that below.

PRECIPITATION:  Some departing showers in advance of the approaching cold front right now.  They'll be pretty well gone by the evening drive, but don't be shocked if a couple of stragglers are still about, especially over by Ann Arbor and up into Livingston County.  Clearing skies dry us out, no fog expected at this point as we get some wind to mix up the air as part of the frontal passage.  Dry conditions until Friday evening, when a low should bring us a chance at some scattered showers, with those becoming more numerous for the overnight into Saturday.  Numerous?  Perhaps.  Heavy?  Not so much.  We'll keep a chance at some rain in the mix all weekend and into the new work week.  Take a look at the 5 Day Precipitation Forecast from the National Weather Service...

5 Day Precipitation Forecast

Around a half inch tops for most of Lower Michigan through Sunday morning, and that looks pretty good from the perch here.  All rain.  Let's see how long we can keep our precipitation as rain.  And it's too early to start asking about a White Christmas, so please give it about a week before you do :-).

Current conditions still fairly mild, especially with southerly flow, but give it a few hours and these readings will be a memory.  Let's look around the area:

And here's the forecast for Jackson and surrounding areas including Vandercook Lake and Sandstone Township:


Today, cloudy skies, showers start to taper off after lunchtime, not as warm, highs hold fairly steady around 55, winds turn NW 7-14 MPH.

Tonight, some clearing skies bring up a mix of clouds and stars, much cooler as the front leaves us to the colder air, lows roll all the way back to 30, winds NW 5-10 MPH.

Wednesday, mainly sunny, perhaps a couple of clouds, highs struggle to reach 40.  Winds NNW 5-10 MPH.

Wednesday night, mostly starry skies, cold, lows near 26, winds turning SE 3-7 MPH.

Thursday, more sunshine than clouds, a touch warmer, high 45.

Friday, skies become cloudy, expect some afternoon showers, warmer still, high 52.

Saturday, mostly cloudy, a chance at a couple of scattered showers, high 51.

Sunday, more clouds than sun, still the chance at some widely spaced showers, cooler, high only 40.

Monday, cloudy skies, some scattered showers and perhaps a flurry, high only 38.

There's a look at your forecast for the next six days, I do hope that you have a great day! Blessings.