Wet Christmas Eve

For most of us, it has been more than a month since we have received any significant moisture to speak of. Notice the chart on the right. That should be changing tonight and much of the day Friday as an area of widespread rainfall will be moving from west to east across the state. Locations along and south of I-40 will likely receive the bulk of the rain where total amounts may exceed ½" for some locations. For the rest of us, rainfall totals will be more like ¼" or less, and notice I am talking about rain, not ice or snow.

There is one possible exception to that which is for SE KS, NW Ark, and the adjacent counties of extreme NE Ok where a brief period of freezing rain or drizzle may occur first thing in the morning of Friday. Drier air at the surface is currently in place and the evaporative cooling of the rain falling through that drier air could potentially bring temperatures to near the freezing mark for those locations creating a hazardous driving situation on elevated surfaces. Speaking of travel, the further E and NE you go, the more likely you will run into wintry weather conditions, particularly late Friday and right on into Christmas Day.

As the rain moves on eastward during the day Friday, colder air will start moving back into the state as our winds shift back to a more northerly direction by early afternoon. Thus, the warmest time of the day will be around the noon hour with temperatures falling back into the low-mid 30s by evening. That will allow for another brief window of opportunity for a few snow flakes or sleet pellets for extreme NE Ok and NW Ark, but no accumulation is anticipated.

Cloudy skies to start Christmas Day along with a brisk northerly wind could wring out a few snow flurries for the extreme NE counties and on into Arkansas, but again no accumulation is likely. We should see decreasing cloud cover by that afternoon and a clear, cold Christmas Night. Sunday will be sunny and quite cold followed by a gradual moderating trend by the middle of next week.

So, for those of you wanting a White Christmas, it certainly does not appear to be in the cards for us. But, it will not be too far away as at least some snow is likely into Missouri, Arkansas and on eastward during Christmas Day itself.

As always, stay tuned and check back for updates. Also, I would like to take this opportunity to wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year!

Dick Faurot