Eric Berger

Good morning. After several days of calm weather and sunshine, Houston’s forecast will soon turn a bit more dynamic for the rest of the week. We could see some storms with a frontal passage on Wednesday, and then more inclement weather with a front coming this weekend. With the latter front we think there is even a slight chance of wintry precipitation, including possibly snow, which we’ll discuss below.

Tuesday

This morning we have some fog issues for coastal areas, but this should clear up pretty quickly. Highs will reach about 70 degrees later today under mostly sunny skies. As winds come from the southeast later today, tonight will be the warmest one of the year so far, and probably for at least the next week. Lows probably will only drop into the mid-50s for much of the region.

Wednesday

We still have some questions about the timing and speed of the front, but the most likely time for its passage is around sunset in Houston, and a little bit later along the coast. Daytime temperatures therefore should reach about 70 degrees, with mostly cloudy skies and scattered showers. A line of storms is expected to move along with the front, and how fast the front moves will determine rainfall amounts. We probably will see accumulations of about 1 inch or so north of Interstate 10, and approximately 0.5 to 1 inch closer to the coast. Rains will end quickly with the front’s passage, as cooler and drier air moves in during the evening and overnight hours.

Thursday and Friday

The end of the week will be sunny and cool, with highs of around 60 degrees and lows near 40 in the city of Houston—cooler inland and warmer along the coast.

Saturday

The first half of the weekend should be similarly pleasant, with highs of around 60 degrees and partly to mostly sunny skies.

Sunday and beyond

The next front looks set to arrive on Sunday. The details are sketchy, but there is at least the potential for some wintry precipitation. As the front pushes into Houston there will be plenty of moisture along with a southerly storm track, and enough lift to generate precipitation. (Rain accumulations with the front probably will be on the order of 0.5 to 1 inch). The question is whether there will be enough really cold air in the atmosphere for freezing conditions almost all the way to the surface. That’s more likely the further north along Interstates 45 and 69 one goes. Right now I’d estimate that snow chances are decent for places like Huntsville and Livingston. However, we’re probably still at 20 percent, or less, for the city of Houston itself. But it will be something to watch.

Temperatures should be cold in the wake of Sunday’s front, with daytime highs generally in the 50s, and nighttime lows in the 30s and 40s to start next week.

Good morning. Houston will now see a couple of warmer days—with temperatures peaking in the low to mid-70s—before colder, winter-like weather returns. We then may see a sustained stretch of truly colder weather (for Houston, at least) with several days during which high temperatures do not climb out of the 50s. If you have been waiting for winter proper, it appears to be at hand for Houston.

Monday

Some central parts of Houston are seeing a thin layer of fog develop, but this should burn off fairly quickly after sunrise. High pressure will continue to drive our weather, and this will lead to a mostly sunny day with high temperatures likely reaching into the low- to mid-70s for most of the area. A few clouds will develop tonight, as temperatures fall into the 40s for most of the area except for the immediate coast.

Tuesday

We’ll see another sunny day, with high temperatures likely reaching about 70 degrees. Winds will start to come from the east, and then the southeast, and this will begin to slowly increase moisture levels and set the stage for some healthy rain chances on Wednesday. But there will be none of that on Tuesday, when we should see mostly sunny skies. As clouds begin to increase during the overnight hours, this should prevent lows from falling below the low 50s for most of the region.

Wednesday

The day should start cloudy, with a chance for scattered showers during the morning hours. A front should sweep through during the afternoon hours, from west to east, and most all of the area should see at least brief rainfall from these storms. Accumulations for most people should be less than 1 inch as the storms push through, but isolated areas may see a bit more than that, and some of these thunderstorms may be briefly intense. As the front clears the area during the late afternoon or evening hours, rain chances will end, and lows will drop into the 40s.

Thursday and Friday

After the front moves through we may see some breezy conditions overnight, but winds should begin to subside by Thursday and Friday. This will set the stage for a sunny, cool end to the work week. I’d expect highs in the upper 50s to about 60 degrees with lots of sunshine both days. Lows probably will drop to around 40 in the city of Houston.

Saturday, Sunday and beyond

So what does the weekend hold? Temperatures remain cold through Saturday, when we may see a few more clouds begin to develop. Sunday may see a bit of a warmup before another front approaches the area, but I think mostly cloudy skies will probably keep highs in the 50s. The timing and details with the next front are unclear, but it’s expected to bring another shot of rainfall and then quite a bit more colder air. We probably will see lows in the 30s next week, but it’s difficult to have much confidence in the details for now.

Good morning. Just a short update today, due to the holiday, and also because frankly there is not much to say about Houston’s weather in the wake of our stormy New Year’s Eve frontal passage.

High pressure will dominate our weather for the next several days, and in January that means cool, mostly sunny days, and mostly clear nights. Highs for New Year’s Day and Saturday will likely only reach the mid-50s, with lows dropping down to around 40 degrees in the city of Houston. Highs by Sunday and Monday should reach into the mid- to upper-60s.

The warming trend will continue through about Wednesday, when we may see some scattered showers ahead of the next front—sliding through on Wednesday evening, perhaps? The front should lack the fireworks that we saw with the New Year’s Eve front. It should set the stage for more cool, clear, and winter-like weather heading into next weekend. We’ll have more for you on Monday morning.

All that’s left to say now is Happy New Year! We hope it is a better one for you, and our region. We’re going to continue to work to improve the site, and we’ll be announcing some big things in the coming weeks. We really appreciate this community, and Space City Weather set all kinds of traffic records in 2020 due to our growing readership and the dual threats of Hurricane Laura and Tropical Storm Beta:

• 12.6 million page views
• 3.8 million visitors
• 358 posts

We’d gladly take half of that traffic in 2021 if it means the tropics remain quiet!

So far the forecast for Houston remains on track. Nearly all of the heavy rainfall has remained west of Interstate 45, with generally 1 to 4 inches falling between Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning. A few areas, such as western Montgomery County, saw as much as 5 inches. Now, we’ve got to get through one more day before skies clear this evening and the new year dawns brighter.

Thursday daytime

After storms waned during the wee hours of Thursday, we’re starting to see activity fire back up west of Houston around sunrise. This mass of storms should generally move from west to east during the daylight hours, bringing an additional 1 to 3 inches across much of the Houston area. However, the forecast will be complicated by the front’s interaction with a low-pressure system presently along the Texas coast, near Corpus Christi. As this low moves north today, it could induce some severe weather to the south and east of Houston—especially the closer one gets to Beaumont and Port Arthur. The threat will be strong winds amidst severe thunderstorms, and possibly a few tornadoes. The area of greatest threat is shown below.

New Year’s Eve evening

The cold front presently draped across the Houston region will finally lift to the northeast this afternoon and evening. I think rains should be gone from the central Houston area by around 4 to 6pm CT today, and rapidly pull away to the east after that time. Temperatures after sunset will quickly drop into the 40s, with brisk westerly winds blowing at 15 to 20 mph, and higher gusts. Bottom line: If you’re outside when the clock strikes midnight, it will “feel” like it is in the 30s.

New Year’s Day

Lows will drop to around 40 degrees before rebounding into the upper 50s on New Year’s Day. After some morning clouds, skies should be mostly sunny.

Saturday and Sunday

Expect more sunshine throughout the weekend, with highs in the mid-50s on Saturday, and low 60s on Sunday.

Next week

Houston will likely see a slow warming trend next week before another front arrives on Wednesday or Thursday to keep our weather reasonably cool. This one may bring some additional rain, but nothing like we’ve been experiencing with the current front.

2020 Hurricane Season

If you missed it, we published Part I of our hurricane season wrap-up on Wednesday, and will publish Part II later today.