The warmth continues, and we’ll have to watch for the possibility of storms on Friday.

Today

We’ll see another day a lot like Wednesday—which is to say a chance of early morning fog and then warm, with highs in the low- to mid-80s. Temperatures will again be near record highs for late March, especially for the southern half of the region. (Houston’s Hobby Airport, for example, has already tied two records this week).

Conditions tonight will be quite warm, perhaps only falling to around 70 degrees for areas closer to the coast. A more noticeable change will come with the winds, which will pick up in response to a potent upper-level system moving into the central plains states, and pushing toward the eastern United States. For Houston, this means winds will increase to about 20mph by Friday morning, with higher gusts.

Friday

We’re continuing to watch for the possibility of severe weather in Houston from the late-morning period through the late afternoon hours. As that upper-level system moves across the plains, it should produce a fairly potent line of storms at the surface. As this line moves from west to east across Texas, its southern boundary could pass through the northern Houston area, bringing the threat of strong thunderstorms and damaging winds, especially for areas around Conroe and points north.

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Spring has come to Houston, and that means a steady diet of 80-degree temperatures for at least the next week or so. A risk of storms remains on Friday.

Today and Thursday

We’ll see continued warm weather—for this time of year—as high pressure sort of sways across Texas during the next couple of days. Expect partly to mostly cloudy skies and highs in the low- to mid-80s. These are near-record high temperatures for this time of year. Lows will moderate into the low- to mid-60s. The primary concern will be the possibility of some scattered, dense fog.

Friday

As we’ve been discussing, an upper-level low pressure system, and an associated cold front, will move off the Rocky Mountains later this week and drag what will probably be a significant line of storms across parts of the central and southern United States. Most of the action should be north of the Houston metro area, but we’ll need to be wary of the possibility of a few severe thunderstorms north of interstate 10.

(Space City Weather is sponsored by an anonymous donor this month)

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Good morning. Today is the spring equinox, the point at which the Sun crosses the equator. For a nice explanation of why meteorologists generally begin spring on March 1, instead of today, see this post by Braniff Davis. In practical terms, for Houston, this means that days will continue to get longer for three additional months, and we’re going to continue our march toward the dead of summer. It also makes last week’s brief cold outbreak (shown in the graphic below), all the more sweeter.

Today

It’s warmer this morning than it’s been in Houston for awhile, with lows generally having fallen only into the mid-60s. That’s because in addition to a warm flow moving in from the Gulf of Mexico, some overnight clouds helped keep some of the heat close to the surface. But those clouds should mostly go away later today and allow highs to climb to around 85 degrees (and about five degrees lower along the coast). Lows tonight will be in the mid-60s.

Tuesday and Thursday

Similar weather should continue through most of the work week—lots of sun, highs in the mid-80s, lows in the mid-60s. This is warm for mid-March, but won’t be record-setting for the area expect for perhaps the coast, where Galveston’s record highs for this time of year are around 80 degrees.

(Space City Weather is sponsored by an anonymous donor this month.)

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