Tracking storms for Wednesday night, and a sunny weekend

It’s a rather humid morning outside—almost, but not quite summer-like with lows of only about 70 degrees—that offers prelude for the potential heavy rain and thunderstorms on Wednesday night and Thursday morning. Our weekend forecast still looks quite pleasant for late April.

Tuesday

A somewhat disturbed atmosphere may lead to scattered showers during the daytime hours for Houston, but any accumulations will be slight. Skies will be mostly cloudy regardless, and this should help keep a check on temperatures, limiting them to the upper 70s or 80 degrees. Tuesday night should be another warm and humid affair for the region.

Wednesday and Thursday

Much of Wednesday should be similar to Tuesday, with a 20 to 30 percent chance of rain area wide, but things will change Wednesday night and Thursday morning, as a large line of showers and thunderstorms sweeps through the region from west to east. Right now, it appears as though this line of storms will push through between around midnight and sunrise, dropping between 0.5 to 2.0 inches of rain for most people, but we can’t rule out some isolated areas of 3 inches or a bit more.

Severe storm outlook for Wednesday and Wednesday night. (NOAA)

There is the possibility of some severe weather in the form of hail and thunderstorms, but atmospheric conditions will favor this more to the west and southwest of Houston (as shown in the forecast map from NOAA above), rather than over the metro area itself. Depending on the timing of this system, which is still subject to change, the worst of it could be over before Thursday morning’s commute begins, or the storms could still be moving though—let’s hope for the former. A few scattered, light showers remain possible later in the day on Thursday.

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After Easter’s dazzling weather, clouds, and maybe storms return

After several weeks this spring when the gorgeous weather fell during the weekdays, and storms on the weekends, Mother Nature got things right for Easter weekend with wall-to-wall sunshine, moderate temperatures and mostly mild winds. After the potential for some storms this week, sunshine should return next weekend, although it will be somewhat warmer as we edge closer to summer. (I hate to say it, but it would not surprise me if this was the last truly spring-like weekend of the season).

Monday

Today will be a day of transition, with a gusty southerly wind bringing moisture back inland. Still, I expect at least partly sunny skies, and this should allow high temperatures to reach about 80 degrees. Tonight will be warm, with most of the city in the mid- to upper-60s under cloudy skies.

Houston can expect a warm night Monday, with lows Tuesday morning only falling a bit below 70. (Pivotal Weather)

Tuesday

Clouds will largely cover Houston’s skies on Tuesday, and there will be enough moisture for some light rain showers, but I’d peg chances at only around 20 percent. High temperatures will depend on whether any sunshine peeks through during the afternoon hours, but we’ll probably see the mercury reach about 80 degrees again. It will be another warm night.

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A spectacular Easter weekend for Houston

After yesterday’s rain and storms, we cleared out, and this morning we’ve cooled off a good bit.

Most locations are starting today in the refreshing 50s. (NOAA)

Today and tomorrow should feature Chamber of Commerce weather for all of Southeast Texas before we warm up and reintroduce rain chances next week. Let’s jump in.

Today and Saturday

Wall to wall sunshine should be expected for both days, with nothing worse than a few passing clouds. If you’re looking for something to complain about, you could probably be a bit perturbed by the wind today, which will gust at times around 25 miles per hour inland or even somewhat stronger at the coast. Wind Advisories are posted for Friday along the coast.

Otherwise, it should be relatively sublime. Expect temperatures to warm into the lower or middle 70s this afternoon. We’ll have another cool, pleasant night tonight, with temperatures dropping into the 50s in Houston and near the coast. Some of the northern and western suburbs and more rural locations will probably dip into the 40s tonight.

Look for lows in the 50s in the city and along the coast tonight, but 40s are likely north and west and in rural locations. (NWS forecast via Weather Bell)

On Saturday, we should warm up to about 80 degrees or so. Humidity should stay comfortable through Saturday afternoon.

Easter Sunday

We expect sunshine to continue for Easter Sunday. Look for morning lows to start in the low-60s. We will warm up to around 80 degrees once again. The difference between tomorrow and Sunday will be the humidity, which should be a bit higher and slowly increasing through the day on Sunday.

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Storms rolling through Houston, should clear area by noon

Storms are rolling through Houston this morning, along a front that will bring intermittent thunderstorms. The primary concern during the morning hours, until about noon, will be brief periods of heavy rainfall—but we don’t anticipate any severe weather such as hail or tornadoes. Some areas of west Houston have received as much as 1 inch of rain as of 5:45am this morning, and an additional 0.25 to 0.75 inch is possible this morning. Very briefly flooded streets are the only real concern. High resolution models show this system clearing from 9am to noon, from west to east, across Houston.

Houston radar at 6am CT Thursday. (kktv)

Thursday

Today will be a day of two parts. After this morning’s showers and thunderstorms, we’ll see strong, northwesterly winds move into the region from the west that could gust up to 25 mph this afternoon. Skies should clear out, and depending on how much sunshine the area receives, highs could get up to around 80 degrees. Conditions tonight should be breezy, with mostly clear skies, and highs generally in the 50s across Houston. Winds again will be the story, with gusts perhaps up to 30mph, especially for coastal areas.

Low temperature forecast for Friday night. (Weather Bell)

Friday

This will be a sunny, breezy, cool (for April) day with high temperatures likely in the mid-70s. We could see some wind gusts during the afternoon hours in the 20-25 mph range, but otherwise the weather should be splendid, with dry northerly air. Lows Friday night may fall into the upper 40s for well inland areas, but likely will be around 50 for most of the area.

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