In brief: Houston’s early February warm spell is bringing record high temperatures and plenty of sea fog, and this pattern is unlikely to change before at least Sunday. And even then there is some uncertainty about the timing and strength of a front that will be moving down toward Houston.

Unseasonably warm
We’re starting to set some fairly serious heat records with this present warm spell. The high temperature at Bush Intercontinental Airport on Tuesday afternoon reached 84 degrees, smashing the previous record of 81 degrees for the city of Houston, set during 1957. The city of Galveston, too, eked out a new record of 75 degrees, besting a mark of 74 degrees originally set way, way, way back in 1890 (and subsequently tied in 1957). With a very warm southerly flow in place for the remainder of the week, we can expect more records to fall in the coming days.
Wednesday
Warm air temperatures are continuing to contribute to the development of sea fog across coastal areas, as this air moves over the cooler Gulf waters. In addition, we’re seeing some light, misty rain in coastal areas. If you’re driving through the soupy air, take a little extra time and give the car ahead of you a little more space. This fog should dissipate between 9 and 10 this morning. Afterward, highs today will reach around 80 degrees under mostly sunny skies. Winds will be from the south at about 10 mph, with higher gusts. Lows tonight may briefly drop into the upper 60s.
Thursday and Friday
The warm pattern continues, with sea fog possible in the early morning hours. Highs will be in the lower 80s, with mostly sunny skies and southerly winds. Nights will be warm, in the upper 60s.

Saturday and Sunday
We can be confident in the weather for the first half of the weekend. It will be warm, with partly sunny skies, and highs in the lower to possibly mid-80s, pushing record levels. (This is moderately amusing because about 10 days ago you may recall some social mediarologists telling us about an “Arctic blast” coming through during the weekend of Saturday, February 8). A weak front will approach the Houston area on Saturday night and Sunday, but it remains an open question as to whether the front will make it all the way into Houston proper. Accordingly my best guess is that highs reach about 80 degrees on Sunday, but there’s some uncertainty around that. As the front stalls, we may see a few scattered showers.
Next week
At some point next week a stronger push of cooler air is likely to come down, but how strong and how long it lasts remains to be seen. Perhaps we’ll see a night or two in the 40s.