Month: January 2025

In brief: Houston will experience milder conditions until a robust front arrives on Sunday, with the possibility of some severe weather to the northeast of the city as it passes. Afterward we’ll see blustery conditions, with the likelihood of light freezes and, by Wednesday night or so, even the potential for some sleet or snow.

Friday

There’s some light drizzle at a few locations around Houston this morning, but this should soon clear out. We’ll be left with a partly to mostly cloudy day, and high temperatures in the upper 60s or so. Winds will be light from the northwest and temperatures tonight will drop into the upper 50s.

Saturday

A similar day to Friday, albeit a little bit more humid, perhaps a little more sunshine, and a little warmer. Expect highs in the mid-70s. Saturday night will be quite a bit warmer, with lows only dropping into the mid-60s. If you are looking for a mild evening outdoors, this is it.

Sunday

Sunday will start out warm, and high temperatures will likely reach the lower- to possibly mid-70s before a front comes sweeping down from the northwest. The timing remains a bit uncertain, but this is likely to occur during the afternoon hours. It looks as though a line of broken showers and thunderstorms will accompany the front’s passage, with the greater likelihood of rain, and possibly severe winds, to the north and east of Houston.

Temperatures will drop rapidly behind the front, as brisk northwesterly winds bring in much drier and cooler air. By early Monday morning much of the region will experience a light freeze, with temperatures dropping into the 30 to 35 degree range for most of the metro area.

Monday and Tuesday

This period will bring us our coldest weather of the season, to date. Look for high temperatures in the 40s, with sunny skies. The clear skies will allow for ideal cooling overnight, with temperatures dropping to around 30 degrees in Houston, give or take. We still don’t have a concrete handle on how cold things will get, but I continue to lean toward a “light” freeze rather than a “hard” freeze. This will be less impactful on our infrastructure, but please do keep pets and plants protected during this cold spell.

Wednesday and Thursday

Temperatures remain cold during the latter half of the week, and we’ll need to keep our eyes on a coastal low pressure system that could bring some decent precipitation chances, especially on Wednesday night and Thursday. Depending on whether this system delivers, and how cold temperatures get, we could see some sort of sleet, snow, or other wintry precipitation on Wednesday night or Thursday morning. Saying precisely what, or how much, is impossible this far out. The bottom line is that if you have plans for Thursday they could be a little messy. We’ll see.

Later next week

Temperatures begin to moderate somewhat heading into next weekend, although we still look cool for this time of year, with highs in the 50s and lows perhaps in the upper 30s, give or take. Winter, for the next week at least, is going to feel like winter around here.

In brief: So far this winter in Houston has been abnormally warm, with December feeling more like late fall than winter. But that’s about to change as an Arctic front arrives in Houston on Sunday, bringing much colder air into the region. However, it’s looking more like the metro area will see a light freeze rather than a hard freeze next week.

Winter so far

There are several definitions of winter, but from a climate standpoint in Houston the three coldest months are December, January, and February. By this definition this winter has, to date, been incredibly warm. December had an average monthly temperature of 61.1 degrees in the city, which is 5.7 degrees above normal. So far the city of Houston has yet to record a freeze at its official monitoring station, at Bush Intercontinental Airport. The lowest temperature so far has been 35 degrees.

Beginning Sunday or Sunday night we will shift into a colder pattern that will stick around. Although there are still some details to be worked out, much of the Houston area is likely to see a light freeze next week. The good news is that, for now at least, most of our modeling guidance has backed off the idea of a hard freeze in Houston. So we are probably not looking at a situation where most of the area falls into the low- or mid-20s. But we will continue to keep an eye on this.

Thursday

Lows this morning have fallen to about 50 degrees, and with a light easterly wind we’re seeing the development of some clouds. Skies will be mostly cloudy for much of today and tonight, with highs likely only reaching the lower 60s. A few isolated showers will be possible today, but I expect most of us will not see any rainfall. Lows tonight will drop into the mid-50s.

Friday

As winds shift to come from the northeast we should see clearer skies on Friday, with highs in the upper 60s to possibly lower 70s. Lows on Friday night will fall into the mid-50s.

Saturday and Sunday

The weekend will be mild ahead of a front on Sunday. Skies on Saturday should be partly to mostly cloudy, with highs around 70 degrees, and a warm night with lows only dropping to around 60 in Houston. Sunday will be warmer, in the mid-70s. The front should reach Houston some time during the afternoon hours, possibly with a broken line of showers or thunderstorms (nothing serious, probably), followed by much drier and colder air. This is a slap-you-in-the-face kind of front with gusty winds coming from the northwest almost immediately. Temperatures will likely fall into the upper 30s by Monday morning.

Next week

The colder weather will stick around for much of next week, although Tuesday and Wednesday mornings now look to probably be the coldest of the period. For much of Houston that probably means a light freeze, with temperatures in the vicinity of 30 degrees. We could be colder than that, or a bit warmer, as it remains to be seen. Highs are likely to be in the 40s for a few days. There’s a possibility of a wintry mix on Wednesday, Wednesday night, or Thursday morning, but this will depend on whether there’s enough moisture for precipitation, and how cold things get. It’s just not possible to say at this time. Next weekend will probably be a little warmer, but still chilly.