Relatively Cool Weekend, Warmer Next Week.

As you can see from the low temperature map across the state as of early this morning, courtesy of the OK Mesonet, our day has started off very cool for this time of year. These below normal temperatures will continue right on through Mother's Day, but a warming trend will begin on Monday and at or above normal temperatures are then expected through the coming week for a change. So far this month, temperatures are running more than 9 degrees below normal and although today and Sunday will continue that trend, the pendulum will be swinging the other way next week. The normal high/low is 78/58 today and increases to 80/60 by next weekend to put the numbers in perspective.

A re-enforcing surge of cool air will be arriving this evening/night and as the leading edge of that boundary moves across the state later this afternoon/evening, there may be enough lift to produce an isolated shower or two. However, with light northerly winds ahead of and behind the boundary along with limited moisture to work with, really not much more than some sprinkles are expected. However, this is May so a rumble of thunder cannot be completely ruled out.

Today's light northerly winds and lots of sunshine should get us into the mid 70s this afternoon which is still a bit below normal. Then, clear skies and northerly winds tonight will start Mother's Day on a cool note with morning lows expected to be in the low-mid 40s. By the way, 40 is the record low for tomorrow morning but do not think it will be threatened.

Sunday afternoon will see a mix of sun and clouds as the NW flow aloft will be dropping some energy this way. This system may even produce a few light showers late in the day for the more NE counties. After the cool start and with some clouds spreading this way, look for afternoon temperatures to be in the lower 70s and our winds will be returning to a light SE direction. All in all, a pretty nice Mother's Day.

Monday morning will also start off relatively cool with morning temperatures near 50, but after that much warmer temperatures are expected for the rest of the week. Our surface winds Mon/Tue will be from a more S-SW direction and anytime we have a west or SW wind component, that is a down slope wind for us which will also be advecting drier air our way. Bottom line is lots of sunshine and much warmer daytime highs. In fact, we should be in the 80s both Monday and Tuesday, possibly even the upper 80s so it will be much warmer.

A more southerly wind and another weak disturbance aloft will bring more cloud cover our way for the middle to latter part of the week. That will put a lid on our daytime highs but will also result in much warmer overnight lows. That will also bring chances of showers/storms for the middle to latter part of the week. At this point, it appears that the pattern has changed and there are no indications of any more significant cool downs as we go through next week nor into the following week for that matter. In fact, that following week is expected to be near normal with respect to temperatures and precipitation.

So, stay tuned and check back for updates.

Dick Faurot