Eric Berger

Welcome back, Winter

Cooler air has arrived, with overnight lows falling into the 40s north of Houston, and into the low 50s for most of the rest of the metro area. Thus begins a period of prolonged, cooler winter-like weather.

Today through Sunday

Conditions will be more or less sunny to partly sunny the next four days, with a reinforcing cool front arriving on Saturday to keep things on the chilly side. Expect highs of around 60 degrees most days, with lows of around 40 degrees—warmer for the coast and cooler for inland areas. Rain chances will be near zero, even Saturday’s frontal passage should be dry for most areas. Enjoy the return to winter.

Monday through Wednesday

Temperatures will begin to warm up, from the upper 60s on Monday to the lower 70s on Wednesday. Rain chances remain near zero, and lows will probably stay in the low 50s through Wednesday morning under the influence of moderate southerly winds.

NOAA rain accumulation forecast for now through Thursday. Yeah, it’s dry. (Weather Bell)

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Cold front arrives this morning and brings winter to Houston for awhile

Good morning. A cold front will move across the area this morning, ushering in a period of significantly cooler weather after an abnormally warm spell that has lasted more than two weeks.

Today

Some very light rain has fallen ahead of the front, and more scattered, light showers are possible as the front moves through northern Houston around sunrise, and off the coast by, or before about noon.

Cold front position as of 6:40am CT on Wednesday morning. (National Weather Service/Space City Weather)

In the wake of this morning’s front winds will be moderate, holding at about 5 to 10 mph out of the north rather than gusting strongly. Highs today should remain in the 60s for areas well inland, but will still reach the lower 70s for coastal areas. Drier air will allow the area to cool off quickly this evening, and lows should fall to around 40 degrees for inland areas, and the mid- to upper-40s closer to the coast.

(Space City Weather is sponsored by Westbury Christian School for this month)

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After another warm day, Houston to have a nice spell of winter-like weather

A fairly cool morning—with temperatures in the 50s—will quickly warm and give the region one more warm day before winter-like conditions settle across the region for the rest of the month.

Today

As winds pick up out of the south today, with gusts possibly pushing into the low 20s mph especially along the coast, we’re likely going to see temperatures rise into the low 80s this afternoon under mostly sunny skies. This will be this winter’s 10th day of high temperatures that reach 80 degrees, or higher, and the last for awhile. Temperatures tonight won’t moderate too much, falling only into the low 60s across most of the area.

Wednesday

Some time on Wednesday morning, perhaps around sunrise, a cold front will move through Houston. It’s likely there won’t be enough moisture in the air to allow for much, if any, rain to develop with the front’s passage although a few scattered showers can’t be entirely ruled out. Temperatures won’t climb much on Wednesday as highs reach about 70 degrees under clearing skies. Northerly winds will dry things out, and lows Wednesday night should fall into the 40s—low for inland areas, upper for those closer to the coast.

(Space City Weather is sponsored by Westbury Christian School for this month)

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Houston Super Bowl forecast at 13 days out—no clear signals

Houston will host Super Bowl LI on Sunday, February 5th, at 5:30pm CT. Here’s an early look ahead at the forecast for Super Bowl week in Houston, and for the game itself.

Super Bowl week

We can have fairly high confidence that Sunday, Jan. 30th, Monday and probably Tuesday of Super Bowl week will have fairly chilly weather—for Houston. All available climate signals point toward highs of around 60 to 65 degrees, with lows of about 40 degrees.

The question then comes as to what happens from Wednesday through about Friday? Some of the guidance suggests fairly rapid warming, with high temperatures rebounding into the upper 70s. However other models bring another front through by Tuesday or Wednesday, to keep the colder weather going through most of Super Bowl week. I don’t see any real clarity in the forecast at this point, I’m afraid.

European model 10-day temperature forecast. (Weather Bell/Space City Weather)

 

In terms of precipitation, I don’t see any kind of a washout in the cards, but some light precipitation is possible toward the middle or end of next week.

Super Bowl weekend

And what of the big game? Regardless of the midweek front, the GFS ensembles are leaning toward a warmer game weekend, with a high temperature in the upper 60s to mid-70s on Saturday or Sunday.

In regard to the European model, many of the ensembles are suggesting a fairly strong cold front might move through sometime during the first week of February. If that happens before Sunday game time temperatures might be quite chilly, in the 40s or 50s. If it doesn’t, we could be back to highs of around 80 degrees by Saturday, Jan. 4th and Super Bowl Sunday. One forecast we can have confidence in: The roof will be closed, regardless.

(Space City Weather is sponsored by Westbury Christian School for this month)