Eric Berger

For now there’s no indication of extremely cold weather, but the rest of January does look to be rather winter-like for Houston. While there may be the odd 70-degree day, for the most part we’ll be colder during the daytime, with plenty of nights in the 30s and 40s. A freeze is possible as soon as Sunday morning in outlying areas of the region, and it will definitely make for a cold Houston Marathon.

Wednesday

Temperatures have fallen to around 50 degrees this morning, and with a fair amount of cloud cover they’ll be slow to rise before noon. But with more sunshine this afternoon, I’d expect much of the region to see high temperatures in the low- to mid-60s. Light northeast winds will turn more westerly this afternoon. With clearing skies later today and tonight, most areas should see low temperatures drop into the 40s overnight.

Thursday and Friday

These will be a pair of splendid days, with sunny skies and highs between 70 and 75 degrees. Overnight lows will range from the upper 40s to low 50s, for the most part, with generally moderate winds. Dewpoints will creep into the upper 50s by Friday afternoon or evening, so it will feel a bit humid, but overall these will just be wonderful weather days for the region. Enjoy!

Saturday

Change will arrive by Saturday morning, with a strong front pushing into northwest areas probably sometime around sunrise or shortly thereafter, into Houston during the mid-morning hours, and arriving near the coast around Noon. It’s likely that the front’s passage will be a dry one, or with only a bit of light rain, but with plenty of wind. Gusts on Saturday afternoon may well get above 30 mph as temperatures hover in the 50s despite sunny skies. Winds will continue to blow on Saturday night as lows drop into the upper 30s in Houston.

Sunday

The good news if you’re running the marathon is that we can be highly confident in dry conditions, both in terms of humidity as well as clear skies. For those who like the cold, Houston Marathon start line temperatures will be rather chilly, too. Expect the mercury to be somewhere between 35 and 40 degrees. The less good news is that while winds will slacken some from Saturday, I think we’ll still see a persistent northerly wind on Sunday morning of about 10 mph, with gusts from 15 to 20 mph. That is less than ideal for both runners and all the amazing volunteers at the marathon. Highs will climb into the 50s during the afternoon. Lows will drop into the 30s on Sunday night, with some inland areas again seeing a light freeze.

Next week

Temperatures will gradually warm next week through about Wednesday, when the next front arrives. This one has a better chance of producing some rainfall, but nothing that looks too crazy in terms of amounts. Lows should drop back into the 40s toward the weekend.

Good morning. Temperatures range from near freezing in Montgomery County to the upper 40s along the coast on what should be our coldest morning until at least Sunday. Houston’s basic pattern is pretty well locked in, with a slow warming trend from now through Friday, before the next front arrives and makes for a cold and breezy weekend ahead.

Tuesday

Today will not warm up a whole lot, as an upper-level disturbance will help to generate some cloud cover. As a result, expect highs to only reach into the mid- to upper-50s, and with light to moderate winds out of the northeast it will feel fairly chilly outside. There is a slight chance of showers this evening, although I think our air mass is dry enough that an upper-level low probably won’t produce any measurable rainfall for most areas. Lows tonight should be a couple of degrees warmer than Monday night due to the cloud cover.

Wednesday

We’ll see a mix of clouds and sunshine on Wednesday, and local temperatures will depend on how much sunshine breaks through. Overall, highs somewhere between 60 and 65 degrees seem a good bet for most locations. As skies clear tonight, most of the region should again see temperatures drop into the 40s on Wednesday night.

Thursday and Friday

As the high pressure system moves off to the east during the middle of the week, we’ll start to see a warmer flow for Thursday and Friday, both of which will probably be mostly sunny days with highs in the vicinity of 70 degrees.

Saturday, Sunday, and beyond

Saturday morning will probably start out fairly mild, with temperatures in the low 50s, before the next cold front arrives. I think it will likely reach the Houston metro area sometime between sunrise and noon, although that’s not locked in. Some brief, light rain is possible with the front although for much of the area it looks to be a dry passage. Saturday afternoon and evening look breezy, with temperatures in the 50s and gusts of perhaps 20 to 35 mph.

By Sunday morning, lows likely will drop down to around 35 to 40 degrees in downtown Houston—a good incentive to keep running during the marathon. Winds, fortunately, should begin to subside somewhat by Sunday morning, although they will continue to blow from the north at perhaps 10 mph. Highs should climb into the mid-50s beneath sunny skies, with another night of temperatures in the 30s for inland areas, and 40s along the coast.

A warming trend then begins on Monday for the region, with another front possibly moving through some time on Wednesday, and perhaps bringing somewhat better rain chances with it

Good morning. Over the next seven days Houston will see mostly winter-like weather, with only one or two days with a high temperature of around 70 degrees. If you’re participating in the Houston full or half marathon this Sunday, I’m now highly confident that conditions will be cold, perhaps with start line temperatures in the upper 30s or low 40s.

Monday

Skies have cleared out this morning for inland areas, and will soon for the coast. This will lead to a mostly sunny day, with highs in the upper 50s for most areas. Winds will blow out of the north at about 15 mph, with higher gusts, keeping a chill in the air all day. As winds die down this evening we’ll see ideal conditions for radiational cooling, with lows dropping to about 40 degrees in the city of Houston, with cooler temperatures further inland, and slightly warmer temperatures along the coast.

Tuesday

This will be another cool and sunny day, with highs of around 60 degrees. Winds will be lighter, but shift to come from the northeast and then the east. As a result, temperatures on Tuesday night will still be chilly, but 5 to 10 degrees warmer.

Wednesday

A bit warmer, with highs in the mid-60s, and a few more clouds as high pressure shifts away. Lows will be around 50 degrees in Houston, with colder conditions in outlying areas.

Thursday and Friday

These should be the warmest days of the week, with a southerly and southwesterly flow pushing highs into the upper 60s on Thursday, and low- to mid-70s on Friday. Expect mostly sunny skies. Dewpoints will remain in the 50s, so it’s never really going to be “sticky” outside, however.

Saturday and Sunday

A strong cold front should arrive sometime between Friday evening and mid-day Saturday. Questions yet to be answered are whether any rain will accompany the front (probably not) and how cold the air mass will be (fairly cold, probably). Depending on the front’s timing, high temperatures on Saturday are likely to be around 60 degrees, with gusty northerly winds. Saturday night should be quite chilly, with a colder day on Sunday likely in the 50s. Winds should be lighter on Sunday, helping with the run. Details to come. A warming trend should begin on Monday.

Good morning. The Houston region saw some pretty gnarly weather on Saturday night, with storms producing pockets of 4 to 8 inches of rainfall, prodigious amounts of lightning, and potential tornadoes. (One near Humble is likely to be confirmed later today). Some area bayous, such as Greens and Luce, saw waters rise to the top of their banks, but these floodwaters should now be receding. The good news is that conditions will settle down somewhat today, and then turn cold, calm, and winter-like for the first half of this week.

The focus for rain showers today will turn toward coastal areas, generally south and east of Highway 59/Interstate 69. These areas may see up to 0.5 or 1 inch later this morning and into the afternoon hours before a cold front arrives. The front should reach northwest areas this morning, central Houston during the early afternoon hours, and push off the coast by late afternoon or around sunset. As the front moves through its dry air will scour showers from the region. We should expect no rain tonight.

The first half of the week will see mostly sunny skies, with highs in the 60s and lows generally in the 30s (for inland areas) and 40s. Our next real rain chances will not come until the end of the coming work week.