Month: February 2016

Warm-up begins

From a meteorologist’s standpoint, it has been exceptionally boring of late in the Houston area and much of Texas for that matter. Most people certainly won’t complain though. Since January 7th, we’ve accumulated a whopping 0.84″ of rain officially in Houston. Typically, this is our driest time of year, but given the expectations that we may have had with this so called “Godzilla” El Nino, there’s no question rainfall has been something of a disappointment here (and in California for that matter, though the crucial snow pack has held strong so far).

But I digress…

The next few days look brilliant.

TODAY

Pick your favorite positive adjective and use it to describe today: Super, brilliant, excellent, stellar, epic, amazing, wonderful… It looks great. Wall to wall sunshine is expected, with high temps pushing or eclipsing 75° officially. While not as desert-like as it was earlier this week, humidity will remain low.

NWS Forecast high temperatures today. Have a day, Texas. (Weather Bell)
NWS Forecast high temperatures today. Have a day, Texas. (Weather Bell)

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Still cold, still dry, but mild weather on the way for awhile

It’s another cold morning, with temperatures ranging from below freezing in areas like Conroe up into the low 40s closer to the coast.

TODAY

It’s still very dry, but dewpoints have recovered some this morning to about 30 degrees. This, at least, is above the desert-level dry air we’ve had. We’ll see full sunshine today, with highs in the upper 60s. After the early chill dissipates it will be a beautiful day.

THURSDAY and FRIDAY

The warming trend continues and we’ll begin to see moisture return from the Gulf of Mexico. This will allow highs to reach the mid-70s under mostly sunny skies on both days, while lows generally remain in the low 50s. It will definitely feel spring-like outside.

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Here comes the Sun … for the rest of the week

It’s cold this morning, about 40 degrees, and especially dry. Dewpoints are around 10 to 15 degrees, making for exceptionally dry air. Fortunately the blustery conditions we saw Monday are gone.

TODAY

The dry air and sunshine will allow highs to climb into the mid-60s this afternoon, before falling tonight into the low 40s.

Relative humidity forecast for noon today in Houston. Wow.
Relative humidity forecast for noon today in Houston. Wow.

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Cold, windy and dry today, moderating the rest of the week

A cool, windy and dry day is on tap for today, which will set the stage for a cool start to the week.

MONDAY

The Houston region is under a “red flag” warning today through 7 p.m., which means very dry air will blow in from the northwest, creating ideal conditions for outdoor fires. The relative humidity should fall in the teens this afternoon as winds gust into the upper 20s. Highs should reach around 60 degrees.

This map shows conditions a little more than one-half mile up in the atmosphere later today. This nicely shows the tight gradient between high and low pressure, drawing a cold northerly flow into Texas. (Weather Bell)
This map shows conditions a little more than one-half mile up in the atmosphere later today. This nicely shows the tight gradient between high and low pressure, drawing a cold northerly flow into Texas. (Weather Bell)

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