A mild week ahead, followed by a likely return of freezing temperatures early next week

In brief: Houston will see a warming trend this week, with high temperatures eventually pushing near 70 degrees by Friday or so. We’ll also see plenty of clouds later this week, along with some modest rain chances from Wednesday onward. A strong front arrives on Saturday, and this will usher in a period of significantly colder weather next week.

Early post

Surprise! As I write this it is 5:15 am ET in the Orlando airport, and I am awaiting an early morning flight back to Houston. I’ve been up all night so this post will be fairly brief, but I wanted to dash it off before I pass out. It was an eventful night, with the debut launch of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket scrubbed during the final hour of a three-hour launch window. Alas.

Monday

After a chilly start this morning, we should see clearing skies and high temperatures in the mid- to upper-50s. Winds will be brisk, from the north, for much of the day adding an extra bit of chill. Lows tonight will fall to around 40 degrees in Houston. This is likely to be our coldest weather until next Sunday morning.

Tuesday

As winds shift to come from the northeast, we’ll see some more clouds in the sky, and this should limit high temperatures to the mid-50s. Lows on Tuesday night will only drop into the mid-40s as increased cloud cover provides a bit of insulation.

NOAA rain accumulation forecast for now through the weekend. (Weather Bell)

Wednesday and Thursday

As high pressure moves east we’ll see the southern portion of the Houston region become susceptible to a bit of rain. Don’t expect anything serious, but some areas south of Interstate 10 could pick up perhaps half an inch of rain, or a little more, during this period. Chances for inland areas are lower, perhaps just 10 or 20 percent each day. With partly to mostly cloudy skies, expect highs in the mid- to upper-50s. Lows will be milder, in the upper 40s mostly.

Friday

This will be a warmer day, with partly sunny skies and highs of about 70 degrees. Break out the shorts! However there will also be a decent chance of rain (again, mostly light) so this may not be a spectacular day all around. Lows on Friday night will only drop into the upper 50s.

Saturday

This will be another mild day, with highs near 70 degrees and partly sunny skies. At some point on Saturday, perhaps around noon, afternoon, or the evening, a cold front will push into the Houston area. This may bring an additional shot of rain, followed by stronger northerly winds that will really dry us out.

Sunday

The forecast for Sunday, and the Houston Marathon, is continuing to come into better focus. Low temperatures on Sunday morning are likely to be in the upper 30s or lower 40s, but it will feel colder with what is expected to be a fairly stiff northerly breeze. While there’s still the potential for some change, my advice is to prepare to bundle up. Skies should be clearing so I don’t anticipate precipitation being an issue. High temperatures may reach the upper 40s or 50 degrees before another cold night.

Something cold this way comes. (Pivotal Weather)

Next week

There are no bones about it, next week looks pretty cold. I do think we’re likely to see freezing conditions in the Houston metro area on at least one or two nights, but it remains to be seen whether we see a hard freeze (defined as 28 degrees F or below by the National Weather Service) in Houston. Several people have asked about the potential for snow, or a wintry mix next week. I do think it’s possible on Monday or Tuesday nights, but we just have to see how cold temperatures get, and whether we see any precipitation during these colder times. It’s something we’ll continue to keep an eye on, but it will be a few days at least before we have any definitive answers.

The Houston Marathon forecast is trending much colder

In brief: We’re posting on Sunday to provide a forecast for the Houston Marathon next weekend, as the outlook is coming into better focus. It looks decidedly colder in the wake of a front. Also, we wanted to let you know that Monday’s post will be later than normal.

Programming note

This is a special Sunday update due to the fact that we finally have increasing clarity about the forecast for a week from today, when tens of thousands of people will participate in the Houston Marathon, and more than a quarter of a million people will show up to volunteer and spectate. I’m so appreciative of everyone who is involved.

Also, I want you to know that Monday’s post could be a couple of hours late. Why? Because I’m presently in Florida for the launch of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket, and Matt is attending the American Meteorological Society annual meeting. Finally, we are sending a shout-out to the Houston Texans for the dominating playoff win on Saturday. The team showed up when it mattered most.

Temperatures this week will be chilly before an end-of-week warmup. (Weather Bell)

Weather this week

Houston faces a rather calm week of weather, with chilly but not exceptionally cold weather. Look for highs most days to be in the 50s or lower 60s, with lows around 40 degrees give or take. Skies will be partly sunny with low rain chances after today. Friday and Saturday look warmer, with highs perhaps around 70 degrees.

Previously we’ve written that the outlook for this year’s marathon on January 19 is uncertain due to the timing of a fairly strong cold front this coming weekend. Well, we now have less uncertainty in the timing and strength of this front.

Houston marathon forecast

Since we are still almost a week out from Sunday morning, there is still some wiggle room in the forecast. However over the last 24 hours most of our modeling guidance has come into good agreement. Most likely, a front will push through Houston some time during the day on Saturday, with the potential for some rainfall (nothing too crazy, probably). Then we’ll see colder air follow overnight with gusty winds in place on Sunday morning.

GFS model forecast for temperatures at noon on Sunday, January 19. This is before wind chills are factored in. (Weather Bell)

Assuming this timing is correct, and again take nothing for granted this far out, expect temperatures on Sunday morning to be in the upper 30s to lower 40s in downtown Houston. However, it will feel colder if winds are, as expected, out of the north and gusty. The apparent temperature may be down closer to freezing level. Conditions will probably not warm up a whole lot during the morning with additional cold air advection from the north, even if skies are clearing. The good news is that any rain will very likely have exited the area.

The rest of the week following the marathon looks rather cold, although just how very cold we cannot yet say. A freeze is definitely possible. See you tomorrow, albeit later than normal.

After a widespread soaking in the Houston area, cool, calm weather takes hold

In brief: After a solid 1 to 4 inch rainstorm in the Houston and Galveston areas last night, we aim for calmer conditions today. Saturday should be a lovely winter’s day, followed by a chance of rain on Sunday. Next week looks quiet with a slow warm-up after a chilly start.

One quick housekeeping item: If you missed it yesterday, those of you who use our app on Apple devices should now have a solution to issues that prevented you from receiving notifications when we post. Check that out here from Dwight.

Weather-wise, it sure rained last night. Often when we look at rainfall estimate maps, they’re fairly erratic. The one for the last 24 hours is not. Everyone saw about 1 to 2 inches, with isolated higher amounts south and east and down close to Victoria. Galveston saw nearly 4 inches of rain and peak wind gusts of 50 to 55 mph.

The heaviest rain fell at the coast as expected, but everyone shared in the bounty. (NOAA MRMS)

But this was just a good old fashioned coastal storm that delivered basically as promised. Now, we get some quieter weather.

Today

It will remain dreary and cold today. Look for clouds to stick around most of the day, though there could be a few breaks of sunshine. Temperatures should only warm into the mid-40s today, though if we see more clearing than forecast, we’ll make a run at 50 degrees. Winds will back down a bit, though it’ll still feel like the 30s through the day.

Tonight

Clear skies and calm winds tonight will allow for a pretty cold evening. Look for another generally light freeze with temperatures in the low-30s in the city and upper 20s in the suburbs. We could see some mid-20s in far north and northwest areas (Conroe to College Station).

Going to be a chilly night tonight! (Pivotal Weather)

Some patchy fog could develop Saturday morning as well up north. With temperatures below freezing, this could lead to a few icy patches on roads to the north of the Houston area. We aren’t expecting anything widespread, but this is something to just be aware of up north, mostly well away from the Houston Metro and suburbs.

Rest of the weekend

Saturday looks like a lovely winter’s day after any fog dissipates: Sunshine with highs in the 50s. It will be milder Saturday night with lows in the 30s and 40s as clouds move back in. Sunday is trending a bit wetter now with showers developing, especially south and east of Houston. I’m not ready to call it a washout, but it’s looking damp with perhaps up to a half-inch of rain at the coast and a quarter-inch inland. Highs will be in the mid to upper-50s.

Next week

We get a dose of somewhat cooler weather early in the week behind Sunday’s system, but it should only produce highs in the 50s and lows in the 30s. Just some more winter. A warming trend ensues later next week which should push high temps back into the 60s again. We are not expecting anything other than clouds and sun for most of the week right now. More cold weather may follow after next weekend, but it’s a bit soon to say just how cold that will be.

Hey Apple users: Your long national notification nightmare is (hopefully) over. Do this.

For quite a while now, a growing number of people who have the Space City Weather app on their iPhones, iPads and Macs have stopped getting notifications. (Android users were not having the same problem.) We mentioned this in last month’s SCW Q&A post, in which we admitted our bafflement..

Hussain Abbasi, our developer, has been banging his head against his monitor, trying to figure this out. The code for the app was doing what it was supposed to do, he said. He tried tweaks to the tool we use to send app notifications, without success. He took his time looking at different combinations of devices and operating system versions. Nothing he tried put an end to our frustration and your annoyance at not being alerted when a new item was posted.

But last week, Hussain noticed posts in user forums on the web indicating that other apps were having the same problem. And he learned that, with the release of iOS/iPadOS 18, Apple had made a change in the way notifications are handled. Our app’s code was doing what it was supposed to do, but things were different on Apple’s end.

Which brings us to a simple fix.

First, if you are no longer getting notifications from the SCW app on your Apple device, make sure you have notifications turned on. Tap the same 3-line menu you’d use to change cities, tap the gear icon upper right of the city picker, then choose Notifications. Make sure the toggle buttons for the notification types you want are on.

Here’s the Notifications setting page for the SCW app. Turn on all the alerts, except for Evacuate Katy. Whatever you do, don’t even try to turn that on.

If notifications are turned on and you haven’t been getting them, do this: Delete the app and reinstall it from the App Store. Apparently this re-registers it with Apple, and adopts the changes to the notification system.

If you have an iPhone, iPad or Mac with the app installed and you are still getting notifications, you need do nothing. However, if they suddenly stop coming, you now know what to do!

We have tested this with our own devices and it seems to work. But if for some reason it doesn’t work for you, make sure you have in place the latest version of your device’s operating system and that app notifications are turned on. Update your device if needed. Then try deleting the app, restarting the device, then reinstalling the app.

And if that doesn’t work, send us details from the Feedback feature, also in the SCW app’s settings. As always, thanks for reading Space City Weather and using our app! And to everyone who sent in Feedback reports about this issue, we appreciate you. They were a big help.

Update: Hey, look! It works!

Notification from the SCW app about this post. Hello, old friend! I’ve missed you!