Winter Returns?

The past couple of days have featured chilly temperatures with gusty winds, producing some very cold wind chills over the state. Yesterday's temperatures ranged from the mid 30s to upper 20s for highs, with lows yesterday morning in the mid 20s and mid-teens! This morning saw even colder temperatures across the state, from 13 in Estherville to 21 in Burlington. At least the highs today are warming up nicely, currently mid 30s to near 40 degrees across Iowa.

Besides the temperature difference from the previous weeks, another difference that will likely be occurring is a change in precipitation mode. Midweek last week into the weekend saw some areas of the state report light snow, this will likely occur once again with even some heavy snow possibilities. This system looks to come into play starting already on Monday and continuing into Wednesday. Models are indicating the potential for accumulating snow and the NWS is agreeing with this possibility, the bigger question is how much accumulation?? Difference in soil temperatures and rate of snowfall could change the forecast quite easily; some models show heavy band of snowfall putting down up to a foot of snow across the state while others are only putting down a couple of inches. Either way, it is a sight that a lot of people will likely not enjoy as 'spring' was already declared when highs were reaching the 70s and 80s only two weeks ago. Updates on this challenging forecast will hopefully be made early next week and as the system really bears down on the state.

Once this system passes, the next strong system isn't too far behind. Scheduled to effect the state starting on Thursday night and into Friday, thankfully this one doesn't look to have winter precipitation. Rather more of a springtime storm, with the potential of severe weather already being mentioned by Des Moines NWS. This system will have plenty of time to come into focus and look for it to be explained better in later posts...