Eric Berger

It is quite cold for early March across Houston, but this is far from uncharted territory. Here are just a few data points this morning:

• As of 6:15am, the low at Bush Intercontinental Airport is 30 degrees. The record low for today is 25 degrees, set in 1989.
• The latest freeze ever recorded at Bush IAH came on April 10, 1973, when the low was 31 degrees.
• College Station did shatter a record on Monday, with a maximum temperature of just 35 degrees—five degrees below its previous record of 40 degrees.

In short, it’s very cold across Houston with a freeze blanketing almost the entire region except for the coast, but it is not unprecedented to have such an outbreak of cold weather in March.

Tuesday

After an long string of mostly cloudy days, we’re going to see the return of mostly sunny skies today. This should allow temperatures to rise above freezing fairly soon this morning, but with northerly winds continuing to bring cooler weather into the region we can expect temperatures today to only get up into the mid- to upper-40s. Tonight should be cold again for the region, with overnight lows perhaps 2 to 3 degrees warmer than Monday night.

Rodeo weather

Conditions at the rodeo this evening will be cool going in, with highs holding on to the mid-40s just before the sun goes down. Winds will be fairly light, at 6 to 8mph out of the north, so that will help keep things from being too cold. By the time the show ends, however, temperatures will have fallen into the upper 30s, so be prepared for that.

Wednesday

The high pressure associated with this strong cold front will move away on Wednesday, and as that happens winds will turn easterly and eventually southerly. This will mean two things for Wednesday: the return of some clouds, and a warmer day in the 50s. Lows Wednesday night will probably only fall to around 50 for most of the region as a warmer pattern begins settling in.

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Temperatures are very cold this morning across the Houston region, ranging from near freezing for inland areas to around 40 degrees right along the coast. Gusty, northerly winds have pushed wind chill temperatures into the upper 20s for most of the area, so please bundle up before heading out today. Much of the region will see a freeze on Monday night as modified Arctic air spills into the region.

Monday

It will be cold all day. Clouds should hang around for most of today, before some clearing this evening, keeping high temperatures to around 40 degrees. High pressure over the central United States will continue to drive strong northerly winds for most of today, with gusts of around 20 mph, so wind chills will likely remain in the 30s all day. Some light, misty rain will be possible, especially near the coast, but accumulations should be near zero. In short, it will be extremely cold for early March. As skies clear tonight we will see ideal conditions for cooling, and a freeze may well extend into the central Houston area.

Rodeo weather

Well, it’s going to be chilly. Temperatures at 6pm will be around 40 degrees, with rain chances near zero, and fading northerly winds. Not much will change after the rodeo is over, although skies may well be clear after the show. So you might be able to look up and see a few stars as you’re shivering your way back home. Please dress warmly.

Tuesday

A cool, sunny day, with highs of around 50 degrees. With clear skies Tuesday night, the Houston region should see conditions ranging from a light freeze for some areas of Montgomery County down to around 40 at the coast.

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This week continues to deliver a messy forecast for Houston, as a cold front pushes through the region today, and the potential for some more thunderstorms later this afternoon and evening when upper level winds favor the development of some fast-moving showers. This rainy pattern continues through Sunday, after which time we might finally see some clearing skies with a significant cooldown.

Thursday

The aforementioned cold front is hung up in the city, such that temperatures in The Woodlands, Tomball, and Katy are only in the upper 40s this morning, while areas like League City, Seabrook, and Clear Lake are in the mid-60s with high humidity and fog.

This front should slowly slog down toward the coast this morning, helping to clear fog and dropping temperatures. Alas, this is a shallow front, so we’ll still see mostly cloudy skies. Moreover, a feature known as a jet streak, which is part of the jet stream where there are stronger winds, will transition over the region later this afternoon. This lift will bring an elevated risk of showers and thunderstorms from around noon to sunset. Accumulations likely will be only a few tenths of an inch of rain, but some small hail is possible.

Rodeo weather

I’d expect any storms that develop this afternoon to hopefully die down around 6pm, so rain chances going into the rodeo will likely be only around 20 percent. But it will be chilly, with temperatures in the low 50s, and a moderate northerly breeze. Post-show temperatures will probably be around 50 degrees, with only a 10 percent chance of rain.

Friday

As Thursday’s front, which should stall just offshore, moves back inland we’ll see temperatures quickly recover to around 70 degrees on Friday, with fog in the morning and humidity. At least rainfall chances are relatively low, probably below 20 percent.

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Storms on Tuesday afternoon and evening proved more intense than anticipated, with some areas near Rosenberg, West University Place, Pearland, Friendswood, and Clear Lake seeing 2 inches of rain or more, and Deer Park and La Porte seeing 3 to 4 inches of rain. Fortunately, this threat of heavier rain appears to have passed—although daily precipitation chances are likely to remain with us through Sunday. It’s a messy forecast, so let’s jump into it.

Wednesday

The main problem this morning is fog, as warm air in the 60s moves over cooler water. A dense fog advisory is in effect until 10am this morning so take some extra care for your commute, or trips around town. Today will be fairly warm, with highs in the mid-70s under mostly cloudy skies. We probably will see some scattered showers develop this afternoon, although I don’t expect them to be nearly so organized or as intense as those on Tuesday evening.

Rodeo forecast

Temperatures will still be in the low 70s at around 6pm today, and we cannot rule out some showers over the central Houston region. I’d put the chances of light rain near NRG Stadium at about 30 percent going into the show. Conditions will still be muggy after the concert, but rain chances should fall down to around 10 percent.

Thursday

The will-it or won’t-it make it cold front appears likely to stall somewhere over the Houston metro area on Thursday. Of this much, we can be sure: a cold front will push into the northern edges of the metro area on Thursday morning. After this, the most likely scenario is that the front stalls somewhere along Highway 59, or perhaps a bit closer to the coast. Your local temperature, humidity, and rain chances are all going to vary Thursday depending on how far the front makes it (for example, the range of possibilities for afternoon temperatures at Bush Intercontinental Airport in the European ensemble model range from the upper 50s to 75 degrees). So our official forecast is ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.

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