In brief: Today, we tackle some colder weather for Houston this weekend, but most importantly, we look at the prospects of snow during the Texans/Patriots game in Foxborough on Sunday. We also have the latest on next week’s rain chances and some signs of colder weather again next weekend-ish.

Texans Outlook

We’re going to start in New England rather than in Texas today. Obviously, many of you are amped up for the Texans/Patriots game, with the Texans having a chance to do something exciting and positive for both the city and America in general. We are too. We’re also pretty intrigued by the forecast. The 50,000 foot view here is that a storm system is likely to pass through on Saturday, with rain showers ending as snow showers across southern New England. Then, on Sunday another storm system is going to develop off the Southeast coast, perhaps bringing some snow as far south as southern Georgia or even the Florida Panhandle. As that moves offshore and to the northeast, it will likely graze southeastern New England. It will be a close call for the Texans game.

A couple reasons for this. First, the storm track is not set in stone yet. A more suppressed storm would keep most precip closer to Cape Cod or coastal Massachusetts than Foxborough (remember, Gillette Stadium is closer to Providence than Boston). But if the current models are correct, Foxborough will be in the sweet spot for developing snow late on Sunday afternoon. Most importantly, timing is everything. Models have varied a bit on the snow’s onset for Sunday. Kickoff is 2 PM CT/3 PM ET, and it appears that snow develops in that window. It could be a situation where the game starts out with nothing worse than flurries, but the second half gets a little gnarly. Is that good for the Texans? The offense and fans should enjoy temperatures that may actually be about 4 to 8 degrees warmer than in Pittsburgh (mid to upper 30s) despite the snow, with lighter winds (5 to 10 mph). The defense? I’m pretty sure you could put them in a hockey rink on roller-skates and they’d still be scary good. Whatever happens: Let’s go Texans!

Today

Back to our local weather, it’s a cool start again today, but we’re heading up, up, up this afternoon. With sunshine, we should push into the low-70s.

Weekend

Another uneventful cold front pushes into the area tonight with maybe just a passing shower south and east of Houston. That will push offshore overnight, and much cooler weather will drop back in for Saturday. Morning lows will be in the 40s and 50s, followed up by breezy conditions and highs in the mid-50s at best. Saturday will be sunny once again.

Our coldest night of the current stretch so far will come tomorrow night into Sunday morning with lows in the 30s across the area. We will likely see temperatures near the freezing mark across northern parts of the area, as well as the usually sheltered colder spots out toward Bellville and Sealy and into Fort Bend and Wharton Counties, as well as in Liberty County. Sunday itself looks like a lovely winter day with sun and highs in the 50s.

Next week

There are no big forecast changes for next week. Monday starts quiet and sunny for those able to honor and enjoy the MLK holiday. Highs will be in the 60s after morning lows in the 30s and 40s. Clouds move in Tuesday, along with cooler temperatures. And the prospect of a widespread rain remains somewhat in the cards for Wednesday and Thursday. Stay tuned. Extreme and severe drought has expanded over the last week in the Houston area. We need rain.

Thereafter, we’ll watch for colder risks next weekend, possibly some of the coldest air of winter (though a Texas freeze event does *not* look likely at this time). Speaking of cold…

A message from Reliant

As Eric explained in yesterday’s post, January has been warm so far but cooler temps coming our way this weekend! At Reliant, we’re sharing a few energy-efficiency tips and simple home improvement tasks that can keep your heating system from working harder than it needs to and keep you from spending more on winter electricity bills.

Try space heaters in high-traffic rooms. Lower your thermostat and use an energy-efficient space heater in rooms where you spend the most time.

Check your thermostat. If you have an electric heater, set the thermostat to 68 degrees while you’re awake. Lower it and add an extra blanket while you sleep to save energy.

Use your drapes. Thermal drapes can help block drafts and retain heat, especially on older windows. Open south-facing curtains during the day to let in sunlight and close them at night to trap warmth.

Invest in smart plugs and smart power strips. These allow you to control the power supply to devices remotely via a smartphone app. This way, you can easily shut off power to devices not in use, even when you’re not at home.

Layer up. Reach for a sweater or blanket before reaching for the thermostat. Weather-appropriate clothes help reduce the demand for heat. Plug in your electric blanket and stay warm for around 25 cents a day.

Install insulation. While more of a long-term project, you can regulate your home’s temperature and reduce heating costs by adding insulation.

Weatherstrip exterior doors and windows. With a couple of hours’ work, you can seal out the cold and save up to 10 percent on total energy costs.

In brief: In today’s post we review the region’s average temperature over the first two weeks of the month. We also take a look at a sharp front that may bring a light freeze into the area by Sunday morning, as well as rain chances for later next week.

January is nearly half over

Through the first two weeks of January the average temperature was 62.6 degrees in Houston, at Bush Intercontinental Airport. If you’re wondering, that’s 9.5 degrees above the normal level this time of year, and more typical of mid-November. It will be interesting to see where we end up given that we have a couple of days below normal this weekend before somewhat warmer conditions later next week. For what it’s worth, some parts of Texas has been even warmer than this, relative to typical January conditions. Some parts of north Texas have been 12 to 15 degrees above normal for the first two weeks of this month.

Thursday

It feels like a normal January outside this morning, with temperatures falling to about 40 degrees (the usual lower spots, such as Conroe, have fallen into the mid-30s). The good news is that the strong-ish winds from Wednesday afternoon have died down overnight, so there’s not too much of a wind chill about. We’ll see moderate northerly winds throughout the day. Sunny skies will help us warm to about 60 degrees, or just below, later this afternoon. We are going to have a clear and cool night, with lows in the mid-40s in Houston, with slightly cooler conditions for outlying areas.

Friday

With a returning southerly flow temperatures on Friday will push into the lower 70s for most of Houston, with mostly sunny skies. Southwesterly winds may turn a bit gusty, up to 20 mph maybe. A front will arrive to change that, but I think it is unlikely to do so until after sunset on Friday. This will largely be a dry frontal passage, but there may be enough moisture closer to the coast to squeeze out a few showers. I’d only put chances at 10 or 20 percent, and they will pass quickly as the front sweeps through. Lows on Friday night will drop into the mid-40s.

Saturday and Sunday

We are going to see plenty of sunshine and cooler air this weekend. Highs on Saturday will likely top out in the mid-50s for most areas, and we could see fairly blustery winds from the north (perhaps gusting to 20 mph or a bit higher). If you have outdoor activities planned keep this in mind, as the wind will definitely add some chill to the air. Lows on Saturday night will bottom out with clear skies and lighter winds. A light freeze is possible in the region, perhaps including urban Houston although I certainly wouldn’t bank on that. Matt will have a better estimate of the freeze line in tomorrow’s post. Highs on Sunday will again be in the upper 50s, although with less wind it should feel a bit warmer. Lows on Sunday night will reach about 40 degrees, with cooler conditions for outlying areas.

Next week

If you’re attending a parade on Monday for M.L.K. Day you can expect fine, mostly sunny weather with highs in the 60s. After this we should see more clouds next week. A weak front is likely to push in Monday night or Tuesday, possibly bringing some rain chances. But then we’re going to see warmer conditions, with highs in the 60s and 70s for the rest of the week. The presence of a coastal low pressure system is likely to bring increased rain chances on Wednesday and Thursday, although this will depend on how far the low progresses inland. But for coastal areas (i.e. south of Interstate 10) that have been really dry in December and January, for now this provides a hopeful signal for some rain. Some sort of front may arrive by next weekend, we’ll have to see.

In brief: Today’s forecast is a tale of three fronts, which will keep Houston mostly on the cooler side of things into the middle of next week. The first two will be dry ones, but there is a healthy chance of rain with the third one next week. We could use it, as the southern half of the region has fallen into a ‘severe’ drought.

Rain wanted

Some parts of the Houston area (i.e. Kingwood, Cypress, Spring, Oak Forest, and other nearby environs) picked up a decent amount of rain with last weekend’s cold front, but for the majority of the region totals were far less. For some areas on the south side of Houston, it has been more than six weeks since a solid rainfall. And according to the most recently issued US Drought Monitor, a large slug of the southern half of the metro area has now fallen into a ‘severe’ drought.

I don’t want to over-set expectations, and it’s always possible this could fizzle out. But it does seem likely that the Tuesday through Friday period of next week will bring a decent chance of rain into the region. We are not talking the potential for flooding, I think. And in a normal period this would not be particularly noteworthy. But after such a dry winter so far, the potential for 0.5 to 1.5 inches of rain next week is worth highlighting. Anyway, we’ll keep an eye on things for you.

Wednesday

We’re getting a cold front today, but it will be a dry one. Skies will be sunny, with high temperatures pushing into the upper 60s. Winds are light, from the west, this morning. However by or before noon we’ll see a wind shift to come from the northwest and then north, and this afternoon we should see gusts up to about 30 mph. This will bring in drier air, and push overnight temperatures down to about 40 degrees tonight in Houston, with cooler conditions for outlying areas. Winds will continue to be strong this evening before settling down a bit after midnight.

Thursday

This will be a chilly day, with sunny skies and highs generally in the upper 50s. Thursday night will be a couple of degrees warmer than Wednesday night, but still chilly.

Friday

This will be a warmer day as southerly winds return. Expect highs of around 70 degrees. Before this warming trend becomes too pronounced, however, another front will push through.

Saturday and Sunday

In the wake of Friday’s front we will see a cool and fine weekend, with sunny skies. Expect daily highs of around 60 degrees. Saturday night should be the chilliest of the period. Most of Houston will likely remain above freezing, but some of the usual spots further inland could see a light freeze.

Next week

Monday, when we celebrate M.L.K. Day, will be pleasant, with sunny conditions and highs in the 60s. After this yet another front will push into the region, and this is when I think we may start to see better rain conditions. However the details are still pretty fuzzy. We also should start to warm up into the 70s by the second half of next week before another front some time next weekend.

In brief: Houston will continue to see cool and dry weather through the weekend. There are some slight rain chances today, but most of what’s on radar appears to be virga. We also take a sneak peek at Texans playoff weather in Massachusetts this weekend.

Texans playoff weather

The Houston Texans football team advanced to the Divisional Playoff round after a thorough beating of the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday night. The Texans, which have the best defense in the franchise’s history, will now play the New England Patriots at their home stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts next Sunday. This can be a forbidding place, weather-wise, in January. But an early look at the forecast is not too intimidating.

The game starts at 2 pm CT, and temperatures will likely be in the upper 30s, with partly sunny skies. Winds, at this time, look manageable at 10 to 15 mph. Snow is not out of the question, but for now most of the models keep a low pressure system just north of the area, ruling out any accumulations. The bottom line, for late January near Boston, the forecast is one in which the Texans can thrive.

Tuesday

Returning closer to home, temperatures this morning are generally in the upper 40s for much of the Houston metro area. In response to a weak upper-level low pressure system we are seeing some light showers on the radar this morning to the west and southwest of the Houston area. Much of this is likely virga, which is precipitation that falls from clouds but evaporates before hitting the ground. This is occurring because the rain is light, and the air near the surface is very dry. It’s possible that some of these showers will be come a little bit stronger later today, so there is about a 20 percent chance of light sprinkles or showers reaching the ground as this system moves into the Houston region. Skies, otherwise, will be partly to mostly cloudy today with highs of around 60 degrees. Lows tonight will again generally drop into the upper 40s.

Wednesday

The first of two reinforcing fronts this week will arrive on Wednesday. Ahead of the front skies will be clear, and highs could reach about 70 degrees. However at some point, probably around noon or shortly after, winds will pick up from the north, gusting up to 25 mph or higher. These winds will eventually slacken some by Wednesday night, with lows dropping into the lower 40s, with cooler conditions for outlying areas. The front will be a dry passage, with no precipitation expected.

Thursday

This will be a sunny, cool day with highs of around 60 degrees. Lows on Thursday night will fall into the low- to mid-40s.

Friday

Temperatures will rebound to around 70 degrees on Friday, with ample sunshine. Another front later on Friday will bring more colder air in, dropping temperatures into the low 40s Friday night.

Saturday and Sunday

The weekend looks clear and cool, with highs generally in the 60s (probably mid-60s, but we’ll see) and sunny skies. Overnight lows will probably fall to around 40 degrees in Houston (although there is a chance for slightly colder nights). Overall rain chances are close to zero. Really we have zero weather concerns locally this weekend. Enjoy the winter-like weather!

Next week

The early part of next week looks to bring continued cold for a few more days. There is some “noise” out there about a hard freeze early next week, but at this point most of our modeling keeps things at, or above freezing. We’ll keep an eye on this. After about Tuesday we are likely to warm up for a few days, perhaps reaching the mid-70s toward the end of next week. This may change with another front by or before the weekend. Rain chances, alas, continue to look really low as we dry out. That is the only unfortunate element of this otherwise splendid winter weather forecast.