Much Cooler, Chance Rain Sunday.

Temperatures yesterday and today have been very Spring-like, but don't let that fool you. Notice the 24 hour temperature change map on the right as of early this afternoon, courtesy of the OK Mesonet. As you can see, much cooler air has already spread into NW OK and will be working its way across the rest of the state tonight and Sunday. In fact, temperatures Sunday afternoon will struggle to get above the 50 degree mark after being in the 80s yesterday and the 70s today.

The cool front that is bringing the cooler air will slowly settle southward during the night tonight, but will receive a stronger push to the south Sunday as some energy aloft moves across the state. That energy aloft will also provide cloudy skies and at least a chance of some showers and even a few rumbles of thunder will be possible. The cloudy skies, scattered showers, and NE winds of 10-20 mph on Sunday will be quite a contrast to the last two days.

A few showers may linger into the day Monday but we should see at least some sunshine by afternoon. However, temperatures will still be below normal on Monday and for that matter below normal temperatures will be the general rule throughout the coming week and into the weekend. In fact, would not be surprised if we have at least some frost on the ground by Tuesday morning when temperatures drop back into the 30s.

Tuesday will probably be the best day of the coming week. After the chilly start that morning, lots of sunshine during the day should at least get us to near the normal daytime high of 63 that afternoon. However, cooler air will be filtering back into the state by Wednesday and that trend should continue for the rest of the week and into the weekend.

There continues to be some guidance discrepancies with the longer range products, but the general consensus is for a more unsettled period for the latter part of the week. The GFS has a much warmer solution, but the usually more reliable European guidance has a much cooler solution. For now, will side with the cooler, wetter guidance which suggests cooler air moving in on Wednesday and increasing chances of showers for Thu/Fri. In fact, if the European guidance turns out to be correct, cannot rule out the possibility of some wintry precipitation on Friday as well.

As the QPF map on the right shows, there is at least the potential for up to an inch or so of precipitation on our side of the state with lesser amounts to the west. That will not be a drought breaker nor will it fill up our ponds, lakes, and streams, but it will certainly be welcome.

So, stay tuned and check back for updates.

Dick Faurot